Adding View to Frontenac
July 26, 2017
Frontenac State Park takes a commanding position high atop the bluffs overlooking Lake Pepin, which is a natural widening of the Mississippi River.
Some 260 species of birds have been seen here, many migrating via the Mississippi flyway. There is a rich diversity of natural communities and landscapes: bluffs, prairie, floodplain forests, and hardwood forests.
Archeological excavations at Frontenac in 1976 uncovered artifacts from the Hopewellian culture dating from 400 B.C. to 300 A.D. Some sites were burial grounds; some were living areas. Research also shows that the Dakota and Fox Indians hunted and fished on the shores of Lake Pepin.
This parcel was an inholding along the northwestern bluff in Frontenac State Park. This area of the park, which is undeveloped and essentially inaccessible, provides critical habitat for wildlife. The urgency to act to protect this stretch became clear when nearby land was being sold for well over appraised values and other parcels were being divided, leaving the state unable to compete for their acquisitions. Today, while this area is unconnected from the main area of the park, it adds to the potential for a long-term vision of a contiguous stretch of land along this scenic bluff.
Nestled next to Frontenac State Park was the longstanding Villa Maria Academy. It was a catholic high school for girls run by the sisters of Ursuline from 1891 – 1969, until a fire caused the school operations to close. It continued to operate as a retreat center with its iconic medieval buildings set among the beauty of Frontenac.
In 2008 the sisters decided to sell about 100 acres of land on their property that abutted the state park. Parks & Trails Council of Minnesota made the acquisition and worked with the DNR to incorporate it into the park that same year. The land includes portions of the creek that runs into Lake Pepin as well as land that abutted the three-quarters of a mile park trail leading to Lake Pepin. In 2017 the Villa Maria Academy put the remaining property and buildings up for sale.
The Waconia Cliffs have long been known as a place of outstanding beauty with views looking out over the a quiet creek and valley below.
In 2017, Parks & Trails Council bought this property from a private landowner. At the time, it was outside the park’s boundary, and it took years of advocacy from P&TC and the local community to advance legislation to expand the park.
Today, we are proud to see this land is part of our shared natural heritage and as the park develops trails. We are certain it will bring beloved outdoor memories.
This Friends Group works to preserve, protect, and enhance Frontenac State Park and its surroundings. The association formed in 1956 to advocate for the park’s establishment, which happened the following year.
Circa 1956 the group was formed to advocate for the park’s establishment, which happened in 1957.
