EVENT CANCELLED: Historic Bridges of Southeast Minnesota

EVENT CANCELLED: Due to unforeseen circumstances, the speaker had to cancel his History Break presentation on October 15th. We apologize for any inconvenience. If you are interested in this topic, Steve Gardiner’s book, Historic Bridges of Southeast Minnesota is available in the museum gift shop.

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Minnesota is often called the Land of 10,000 Lakes, but it could also be called the Land of 20,000 Bridges. During the early days of the state, the Mississippi River and its many tributaries barred and disrupted transportation and commerce. To span these obstacles, communities battled to build and maintain bridges. Their efforts created a variety of bridge designs and purposes–from small hiking and biking bridges to concrete beams across rural rivers. Across the area, one can behold wonders like the beautiful Stone Arch Bridge, the La Crescent Swing Bridge, the Point Douglas Drawbridge, the elegant Winona Main Channel Bridge as well as other massive structures crossing the Mississippi. During the presentation, Steve Gardiner will share stories about these bridges and their impact on Southeast Minnesota.

About the Speaker: Steve Gardiner taught high school English and journalism for 38 years in Wyoming, Peru, and Montana. He was the 2008 Montana Teacher of the Year and holds a Doctorate of Education degree. He has published articles in The New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, The Christian Science Monitor, The Denver Post, PBS NewsHour, Educational Leadership, Phi Delta Kappan, Education Week, and many others. He published his books Historic Disasters in Southeast Minnesota (2022) and Historic Bridges of Southeast Minnesota (2023) with The History Press.