DRAFT 8/8/2013 Updates at Chapter 59 -- Three Tales of Two St
Chapter 59 -- Three Tales of Two St. Pauls Chute's Cave Let us briefly move to St. Paul's Minnesota's neighbor, Minneapolis. When S.H. Chute excavated a 2.5-meter tunnel to provide water to his Phoenix Four Mill in 1864, the project encountered a cave and was abandoned. A bulkhead built during 1875 excavation for a tailrace, however, made the suitable for sub-urban excursions. From the Saint Paul and Minneapolis Pioneer and Tribune, August 26 of the following year, Chute's Cave -- A Boat Ride of 2,000 Feet Under Main Street. The mouth of the "Chute's Cave" is just below the springs, and the bottom of this cave is covered with about eighteen inches of water. For the moderate sum of ten cents you can take a seat in a boat with a flaming torch at the bow, and with a trusty pilot sail up under Main street a distance of about 2,000 feet, between pure white sandstone, and under a limestone arch which forms the roof. It is an inexpensive and decidedly interesting trip to take. Stereopticon view showing a flat- bottomed boat and pole. Saint Paul and Minneapolis Pioneer and Tribune, December 1, 1889, But a few years ago not a day passed that did not bring in visitors. A stream of water ran the whole length of the cave, and for the small consideration of a dime, a grim, Charon-like individual would undertake to convey, in a rude sort of a boat, all visitors, who were inclined, for the distance of a quarter or a mile or thereabouts into the gloomy passage.
[Show full text]