Grand Portage National Monument
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Grand Portage National Monument
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The Great Hall at Grand Portage
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| Location | Cook County, Minnesota |
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| Nearest city | Grand Portage |
| Coordinates | 47°59′47″N 89°44′03″W / 47.99639°N 89.73417°WCoordinates: 47°59′47″N 89°44′03″W / 47.99639°N 89.73417°W |
| Area | 710 acres (2.9 km²) |
| Visitation | 68,856 (2007) |
| Website | Grand Portage National Monument |
| NRHP Reference # | 66000111 |
| Significant dates | |
| Designated HD | October 15, 1966 |
| Designated NMON | January 27, 1960 |
Grand Portage National Monument is a United States National Monument located on the north shore of Lake Superior in northeastern Minnesota that preserves a vital center of fur trade activity and Anishinaabeg Ojibwe heritage.
The Grand Portage is an 8.5-mile (13.7 km) (2720 rod) footpath which bypasses a set of waterfalls and rapids on the last 20 miles (32 km) of the Pigeon River before it flows into Lake Superior. This path is part of the historic trade route of the French-Canadian voyageurs and coureur des bois between their wintering grounds and their depots to the east.
Composed of the Pigeon River and other strategic interior streams, lakes, and portages, this route was of enormous importance in pre-industrial times. It provided quick water access from Canada's settled areas and Atlantic ports to the fur-rich North-Western Territory. Some 50 miles (80 km) upstream from Lake Superior, this trade route crosses the Height of Land Portage, on the Northern continental divide, and connects South Lake in the Pigeon River/Great Lakes watershed with North Lake of the Rainy River watershed. Grand Portage therefore was an essential link between the drainage basin of the Nelson River to Arctic Ocean and that of the Saint Lawrence River to the Atlantic Ocean.
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Wikipedia