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Interstate State Park

Interstate Park
Minnesota State Park, Wisconsin State Park
Dalles Of St Croix.jpg
The Dalles of the St. Croix River seen from the Wisconsin bank
Country United States
States Minnesota, Wisconsin
Counties Chisago County, Minnesota, Polk County, Wisconsin
City Taylors Falls, Minnesota, St. Croix Falls, Wisconsin
Elevation 886 ft (270 m)
Coordinates 45°23′30″N 92°39′55″W / 45.39167°N 92.66528°W / 45.39167; -92.66528Coordinates: 45°23′30″N 92°39′55″W / 45.39167°N 92.66528°W / 45.39167; -92.66528
Area 1,628 acres (659 ha)
Founded 1895
Management Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Unit of Ice Age National Scientific Reserve
Location of Interstate State Park in Minnesota
Interstate State Park WPA/Rustic Style Historic District
Interstate State Park Visitor Center.JPG
1939 Refectory built by the WPA, now the Minnesota park's visitor center
Location Off U.S. Hwy. 8, Shafer Township
Nearest city Taylors Falls, Minnesota
Coordinates 45°24′0″N 92°39′4″W / 45.40000°N 92.65111°W / 45.40000; -92.65111
Area 6 acres (2.4 ha)
Built c. 1920–1939
Architectural style National Park Service rustic
MPS Minnesota State Park CCC/WPA/Rustic Style MPS
NRHP Reference # 89001664
Added to NRHP June 11, 1992
Interstate State Park CCC/WPA/Rustic Style Campground
Interstate State Park Refectory Shelter.jpg
1938 Shelter/Refectory built by the WPA
Location Off US 8 SW of Taylors Falls, Shafer Township
Nearest city Taylors Falls, Minnesota
Coordinates 45°23′33″N 92°40′8″W / 45.39250°N 92.66889°W / 45.39250; -92.66889
Area 22 acres (8.9 ha)
Built 1938, 1941
Architectural style National Park Service rustic
MPS Minnesota State Park CCC/WPA/Rustic Style MPS
NRHP Reference # 92000638
Added to NRHP June 11, 1992

Interstate Park comprises two adjacent state parks on the MinnesotaWisconsin border, both named Interstate State Park. They straddle the Dalles of the St. Croix River, a deep basalt gorge with glacial potholes and other rock formations. The Wisconsin park is 1,330 acres (538 ha) and the Minnesota park is 298 acres (121 ha). The towns of Taylors Falls, Minnesota and St. Croix Falls, Wisconsin are adjacent to the park. Interstate Park is within the Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway and the Ice Age National Scientific Reserve. The western terminus of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail is on the Wisconsin side. On the Minnesota side, two areas contain National Park Service rustic style buildings and structures that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

1.1 billion years ago, a series of volcanic eruptions from the Midcontinent Rift System sent at least ten separate lava flows across the region that now includes Interstate Park. These flows hardened into basalt, which fractured at several joints. In the Cambrian period, between 530 and 470 million years ago, the region was covered by a shallow sea which deposited sandstone and siltstone atop the basalt. This epoch of the Cambrian, the Furongian, was originally called the Croixian in North America because the layers exposed in this area were its type locality.


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