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PADELFORD RIVERBOATS
P I O N E E R P R E S S S P E C I A L A D V E R T I S I N G F E A T U R E • S U N D A Y, M A Y 3 1 , 2 0 0 9
Celebrating our 40th Anniversary!
40 Years and 4,000,000 Memories
aunched 40 years
ago by Capt. William
D. Bowell Sr. and his
wife Lillian, Padelford
Riverboat Co. is a Twin
Cities institution that has
changed the way we look
at the river that runs
through our own backyard.
L
Once the lifeblood of the
Minnesota Territory, the
Mighty Mississippi brought
settlers and supplies to a
young pioneering community. For decades, steamboats were the primary
means of transportation for
the expanding region, and
literally hundreds of riverboats plied the Mississippi
– from Fort Snelling all the
way to the “Head of
Passes” near New Orleans,
1,813 miles downriver.
With the arrival of the
locomotive, however,
steamboats started to van-
ish on our nation’s waterways. Automobiles made
steamboats even more
obsolete. In time, cities
turned their backs on the
rivers that once connected
them to the outside world.
Fortunately for the Twin
Cities, that trend started to
reverse in 1969, when
Capt. and Mrs. Bowell
launched their boat excursion company based out of
Harriet Island. Located
across the river from downtown St. Paul, Harriet Island
was almost deserted at the
time.
Twin Cities was polluted, to
say the least. Only three
species of rough fish lived
in this section of the river
in the early 1980s. In addition, Harriet Island – downtown St. Paul’s riverfront
access to the Mississippi –
was unappealing and
uninviting.
Today, 29 species of fish
call this section of the river
home. Most are game fish.
Big birds, such as bald
eagles, herons, hawks and
egrets, now soar over the
cleaned-up river, and nest
along the wild and wooded
shoreline.
Harriet Island, benefitting
from $15 million in improvements, is now a lovely, multi-purpose, familyfriendly gateway to the
river – hosting many of the
region’s most popular outdoor festivals.
This transformation, of
course, didn’t happen overnight. It required tremendous efforts by local, state
and federal agencies and
organizations.
Few would deny, however, that the presence of the
Padelford riverboats – and
Capt. William Bowell –
played an important role. In
the past four decades, from
the decks of the Jonathan
Padelford, Zebulon Pike,
Josiah Snelling, Viking
Explorer, Anson Northrup,
Betsey Northrup and
Harriet Bishop, millions of
people have had the opportunity to see the Mighty
Mississippi up close and
personal. For many passengers, the Padelford provided
their first opportunity to
actually get out on the river.
Capt. William Bowell
grew up close to the river.
Born in 1921, he was
raised in West. St. Paul.
“Like the city, my life has
been shaped by the Mississippi,” he wrote in Ol’
paratrooper and jumped
into Normandy on D-Day
and fought in the Battle of
the Bulge – two of the most
decisive campaigns during
the war.
As a Chicago account
executive, he developed
trade publications for
Holiday Inn, Greyhound,
Oldsmobile and United
Airlines. As an entrepreneur, he created a national
catalog for discount merchandisers, and made promotional products for Dairy
Queen and Northwest
Airlines.
He has also been a museum curator and the co-
Man River. “For more than
80 years I have fought it,
cussed it, lived on it, and
loved it. I catch myself
thinking of it as MY river.
The tranquility, the aura
that surrounds you when
you’re on the water – it’s
almost like you’ve got a
halo protecting you.”
The fourth oldest of 12
surviving children, Bowell
spent much of his youth
doing whatever he could to
help his family survive during the Great Depression.
Like his siblings, he shined
shoes, sold magazines,
swept floors and helped his
dad sell popcorn on Harriet
Island. The work ethic he
developed during his youth
served him well throughout
his life.
To say that Bowell led an
eventful life is definitely an
understatement. During
World War II, he was a
owner of a plastic-mold
injection company.
When the Bowells started
their excursion boat rides
in the Twin Cities in 1969,
they learned that no excursion boats had operated in
the Twin Cities for many
years. Past boats – the
Capitol, the Donna May, the
Avalon – were all long
gone. The closest excursion
boat on the river was in
LaCrosse.
Capt. and Mrs. Bowell
decided to call their company River Excursions and
base it out of Harriet Island. They arranged for
their first big excursion
boat to be built at the
Dubuque Boat & Boiler
Works, in Dubuque IA.
They named it after Capt.
Bowell’s tenth great-grandfather – Jonathan Padelford
- who emigrated from
England to America in
1628. While it was being
built, Bowell worked on getting his pilot’s license.
The excursions started in
the summer of 1970. Lillian
was successful in marketing the young company
and had lined up a backlog
of charters.
After their first year of
business, the Bowells realized that their new 250passenger boat was too
small. They took it to a
shipbuilder in Chicago and
added 20 feet to her midsection. Passenger capacity
increased to 313.
In the next 40 years,
more boats were added to
the fleet and some were
sold. All have been continuously updated and refurbished, and kept in perfect
running order. The fleet
currently features the flagship – the Jonathan
Padelford; the two-deck,
350-passenger sidewheeler
– the Anson Northrup; the
360-passenger party barge
– the Betsey Northrup; and
the towboat Ugh the Tug.
The Betsey Northrup can
be operated separately
when pushed by Ugh the
Tug, or it can be attached
to the Anson Northrup for
exceptionally large gatherings (710 passenger capacity).
The company also manages and maintains the
Minnesota Centennial
Showboat for the University
of Minnesota. Permanently
docked at Harriet Island,
the Centennial Showboat is
a floating 225-seat theater,
featuring lively performances by the University of
Minnesota Showboat
Players.
Capt. and Mrs. Bowell are
now retired, but keeping
very busy. In 2002, they
sold their company and its
fleet of boats to family
members, who take great
pride in providing the public with the unique opportunity to cruise Ol’ Man River.
Celebrating our 40th Anniversary!
Charting His Own Course
For a company to survive, you need drive, determination, hard work, a
good idea and the ability to
take risks.
For a company to survive
and thrive, you also need
passion.
Bowell’s passion for the
river was infectious, igniting the interest of others in
this long neglected aquatic
landmark flowing through
the metro area.
When the Bowell’s started their fledgling company,
the water quality of the
Mississippi River in the
P I O N E E R P R E S S S P E C I A L A D V E R T I S I N G F E A T U R E • S U N D A Y, M A Y 3 1 , 2 0 0 9
Wrote Capt. Bowell in his
book Ol’ Man River:
Memoirs of a Riverboat
Captain, “Though the road
to Harriet Island was awful,
and the entrance to the
island looked like a boat
junkyard, I had faith that
something good would happen here. There was not a
doubt in my mind that the
business would be successful. It was just a natural
thing.”
In the past 40 years, an
estimated 4,000,000 passengers have taken rides on
a Padelford riverboat.
About 700,000 school children have taken schoolrelated outings on a
Padelford riverboat. Plus,
hundreds of weddings have
been celebrated on a
Padelford riverboat.
“Capt. Bowell is passionate about the river. He is
passionate about riverboats. And he is both passionate and proud of his
community,” said John
Groundwater, executive
director of the Passenger
Vessel Association (PVA),
headquartered in
Washington, D.C.
A founding member of
the PVA, Capt. Bowell also
served as its president for
many years. Groundwater
noted, “Through his leadership, PVA grew and prospered. He is an icon in the
passenger vessel industry,
and has set high standards
for the rest of us to follow.”
WIN FREE CRUISES!
40th Anniversary Celebrations Include “Wedding Boat” Cruise
“
n the past 40 years,
hundreds of couples
have either been married on one of our riverboats or held their wedding
reception on one of our
riverboats,” explained Capt.
Jim Kosmo, senior vicepresident, Padelford
Riverboat Co. “We’ve
always taken great pride in
the fact that so many people have selected a
Padelford riverboat to be
the setting for such an
important occasion in their
lives.”
• Did YOU have your
wedding or wedding reception on a Padelford riverboat?
If so, contact Padelford
Riverboats at:
to register for a Wedding
(Tammy@RiverRides.com) Boat cruise on August 2.
P I O N E E R P R E S S S P E C I A L A D V E R T I S I N G F E A T U R E • S U N D A Y, M A Y 3 1 , 2 0 0 9
Celebrating our 40th Anniversary!
I
Part of the company’s 40th
Anniversary celebrations,
the Wedding Boat cruise
includes lunch.
Act fast! Only the first 40
couples who register will
receive the free commemorative cruise with meal.
The Wedding Boat
dinner cruise is also open
to past Padelford employees who met and married
another Padelford employee while working for the
riverboat company. (If you
qualify, call for additional
information.)
Another 40th Anniversary party is planned in
August for all past and present Padelford crew members. If you ever worked at
the Padelford and are interested in attending this gathering, send an e-mail to
tracy@RiverRides.com.
40 + 40
Free Cruises!
Padelford Riverboats is
also commemorating its
40th Anniversary by giving away 40 pairs of dinner cruise tickets and 40
pairs of public sightseeing
cruise passes.
To register, go to the
Padelford’s website and
sign up for the Padelford
online newsletter –
www.RiverRides.com.
Winners will be
announced in the August
online newsletter.
Remember – even if you
don’t win a free ticket, you
can always take a fascinating and scenic ride on a
Padelford Riverboat. For
additional information on
the public cruise schedule,
refer to the company’s
website or call 651/2271100 (or turn to the back
page of this section).
Padelford Management Team includes from left to right: owners Capt. Jim Kosmo, Shelley Bowell Kosmo and Capt. Steve Bowell; Capt. Shevek McKee, pilot/website tech; Capt. Matt
Spence, port engineer/senior pilot; Capt. Gus Gaspardo, general manager; Colleen O’Rourke, administrative assistant/reservations; Tammy Gaspardo, wedding charter consultant;
Capt. Tracy Shimek, human resources manager/pilot; Gabe Clendenen, corporate charter consultant; Capt. Gary Meyers, crew chief supervisor/pilot; and owner Beth Bowell Myers.
apt. William D.
Bowell Sr., a native
of the west side of
St. Paul, and his wife Lillian
founded the Padelford
Riverboat Co. in 1969.
Under their guidance, the
company grew and prospered. In 2002, Capt.
Bowell retired and sold the
business to his nephew
Steve Bowell and daughters
Shelley Bowell Kosmo and
Beth Bowell Myers.
The next generation has
continued the family’s tradition of providing impeccable service and fun, festive
cruises.
In his youth, Capt. Steve
Bowell spent his summers
working on the boats. He
joined the firm full time in
1993 after a banking career
in Colorado. He is now
President of the Padelford
Riverboat Co.
Shelley Bowell Kosmo,
who joined the company in
1980 after working in marketing for the American
Dairy Association (Chicago),
is Vice-President of Sales.
Capt. Jim Kosmo, a former
C
newspaper editor and marketing executive, is Senior
Vice-President and Director
of Marketing Services.
Beth Bowell Myers, a
Hamline grad, spent many
years working for the company before moving to
Florida. She rejoined the
Padelford in 1998, and is
now Vice-President of
Accounting.
The first shareholder of
the company who is not a
member of the founder’s
family, Capt. John “Gus”
Gaspardo originally joined
the Padelford in 1984 as a
deckhand. Two years later,
he earned his captain’s
license from the U.S. Coast
Guard. In 2000, the company named him Director of
Marine Operations.
A 1982 graduate of St.
Thomas Academy, Gaspardo was named general
manager in 2008 and was
added to the company’s
Board of Directors.
In addition to the management team, Padelford
Riverboats employs 11 yearround, full-time people.
During the boating season, importance on the safety of
35 to 50 temporary employees join the staff. Another
35 to 50 personnel are
employed on the riverboats
through a partnership with
Mintahoe Hospitality, a contract catering firm.
You’ll note that several
members of the company’s
upper management team
are riverboat pilots. And
that’s because, when you
spend this much time
around the boats, it just
seems natural to learn how
to operate them.
Pilot training, however,
involves much more than
just learning how to steer
the boats. In addition to
large vessel training, pilot
training also includes vessel
maintenance; stability
awareness; first aid; emergency procedures for fire,
flood and severe weather;
plus a broad range of
marine knowledge.
You can be confident
when you are on a Padelford Riverboat cruise that
the well trained pilot in the
wheelhouse places utmost
the boat and individual.
Celebrating our 40th Anniversary!
Padelford Riverboats: The Next Generation
P I O N E E R P R E S S S P E C I A L A D V E R T I S I N G F E A T U R E • S U N D A Y, M A Y 3 1 , 2 0 0 9
MEET THE STAFF!
DISTINCTIVE
PRIVATE EVENTS
Padelford Riverboat Cruises
xclusive Private
Charters for 50 to
710 passengers are
available from April
through October – day or
evening. Padelford
Riverboats are ideal for
weddings, receptions,
reunions, sales meetings,
client or staff appreciation
or any corporate celebration.
Riverboats offer full bar,
complete white linen dining service, bands, DJs
and a wide variety of
theme cruises. Everything
is taken care of for you, so
all you have to do is have
a great time!
P I O N E E R P R E S S S P E C I A L A D V E R T I S I N G F E A T U R E • S U N D A Y, M A Y 3 1 , 2 0 0 9
Celebrating our 40th Anniversary!
E
For additional information on any cruise or char-
ter cruise, contact
Padelford Riverboats at
www.RiverRides.com or
call 651-227-1100.
Padelford
Captain’s Log
DID YOU KNOW that every
year Padelford Riverboats
awards nine college scholarships to its employees?
The Padelford Scholarship
Fund is an endowment fund
created through gifts from
riverboat passengers,
Showboat Theater patrons
and vendors. 100% of the
donations is deposited in the
scholarship fund.
To apply, student employees fill out an application
including three essays.
Finalists appear before a
selection committee composed of community leaders.
Three $2,000 scholarships
are awarded – one each to
a Showboat student cast
member, a riverboat employee and a Mintahoe
Hospitality catering staff.
Six $500 awards are also
made.
WE NEED
YOUR HELP!
Great Mississippi River Cleanup - June 10
oin us on Wednesday,
June 10, for the 18th
Annual Great Mississippi
River Cleanup. You will join
approximately 150 other
volunteers in removing rubbish from the riverbanks.
Sponsored by the Padelford Riverboat Company,
the Minnesota Conservation Corps. and the Department of Natural Resources’
Adopt-a-River Program, the
River Cleanup event is part
of a continuing effort to
remove the garbage deposited in part by storm
sewers along the Mississippi between Fort Snelling ditions for humans, fish,
and South St. Paul. Remov- birds and other aquatic life.
Since the riverboat
ing this man-made debris
greatly improves living con- cleanup began in 1992,
more than
50,000 pounds
of trash have
been removed
from the Mississippi River, predominately in
the St. Paul area.
Last year, cleanup volunteers
removed 3,200
pounds of river
garbage, mostly
near Lilydale.
If you are
interested in volunteering,
advance registration is required.
J
DID YOU KNOW that, in 1994, the Jonathan Padelford riverboat was briefly named
“The Wedding Boat” by a Hollywood film crew?
The boat was docked at Hidden Falls Park in St. Paul where it became the setting
for the television movie, “She Led Two Lives,” starring Connie Sellecca and
A. Martinez.
Celebrating our 40th Anniversary!
Padelford Captain’s Log
P I O N E E R P R E S S S P E C I A L A D V E R T I S I N G F E A T U R E • S U N D A Y, M A Y 3 1 , 2 0 0 9
Volunteers must be in good
health, able to follow specific direction, and at least 12
years of age or older. The
captain awards prizes to
volunteers who find the
best trash.
Volunteers will leave
Harriet Island between 8:00
to 8:30 am, aboard a
Padelford riverboat. They
will be taken to various
locations along the river,
dropped off, and picked up
later. Volunteers will return
to Harriet Island between
1:30 to 2:00 pm.
For additional information or to register, contact
the Minnesota DNR Adopta-River program at 651/2595630 or e-mail adoptariver@dnr.state.mn.us
MINNESOTA
CENTENNIAL
SHOWBOAT
P I O N E E R P R E S S S P E C I A L A D V E R T I S I N G F E A T U R E • S U N D A Y, M A Y 3 1 , 2 0 0 9
Celebrating our 40th Anniversary!
The Show Goes On,
With Help From The Padelford
bsolutely no way
could we have staged
this sort of comeback without the Padelford
Riverboat Company,” said
Sherry Wagner-Henry, of
Minnesota University
Theatre and Minnesota
Centennial Showboat managing director.
Today, the picturesque
225-seat Showboat is permanently docked on the
Mississippi River at Harriet
Island near the Padelford
Riverboats. In the next twoplus months, a projected
16,000 patrons will board
the Showboat for one of the
75 lively performances by
the University of Minnesota
Showboat Players.
Nine years ago, however,
the original Showboat was
pretty much a heap of
ashes and charred timber.
The boat was in dry dock
undergoing major renovations when an errant welding spark ignited the boat’s
dry wood on January 27,
2000. It burned for 40 minutes before firefighters
could extinguish the flames.
A
“
All that remained was the
hull and paddle wheel.
Sherry Wagner-Henry,
who has been at the U of M
for 14 years, was there
before the fire and after the
fire. (The U of M Theatre
Department owns the
Show-boat.) She credits the
Padelford Riverboat Company with stepping up and
helping to keep the dream
afloat for an authentic
showboat on the banks of
the Mississippi River.
“The Padelford has been
integral in the re-emergence
of the Showboat,” she said.
“In fact, it was the Padelford
people who took the initiative to approach the U of M
and ask ‘What can we do to
help?’ ”
Capt. William D. Bowell
Sr., in his book “Ol’ Man
River – Memoirs of a Riverboat Captain,” describes the
work involved in building a
new Centennial Showboat
for the U of M.
He became involved with
the project shortly after the
fire. The Showboat was to
be the Padelford’s neighbor
on Harriet Island at a new
public dock. With the contacts and knowledge he had
acquired over the decades,
Bowell hoped he could help
the U of M find or build a
suitable replacement.
When a suitable boat
could not be found, he
agreed to build the boat for
the University for $2 million. The University would
own the boat. The Padelford
Riverboat Company would
operate and maintain it.
Any overruns would be covered by the Padelford’s new
owners (and boy, there
would be overruns – nearly
$300,000).
Bowell had the Showboat
designed by a naval architect friend in Sturgeon Bay,
WI. It was built by another
acquaintance who owned a
boatyard in Greenville, MS.
Bowell’s brother Dick temporarily moved from Alaska
to the boatyard to be the
on-site superintendent.
The entire Showboat is
built of steel. Even the
ornate Victorian gingerbread trim is crafted from
into a floating theater.
For the next 35 years, the
Showboat entertained more
than 600,000 people from
its berth on the Mississippi
behind Coffman Student
Union.
By 1994, at 95 years of
age, the boat was in dire
need of repair. Funds were
raised (almost two million
dollars) and the boat was
numerous foreign countries.
“When people go to a
performance at the
Showboat, they aren’t just
going to a play,” said
Wagner-Henry. “It’s an
unforgettable experience.”
The staff dress in character. The entire playhouse is
on a turn-of-the-century
riverboat floating on the
Mississippi. And the
Vaudevillesque interludes have taken on
a life of their own.
Plus, people often
take a cruise on a
Padelford riverboat
before or after the
play.
Celebrating our 40th Anniversary!
“Is There A Doctor
In The House?” Will
Leave You In Stitches
Cure your summertime blues with
a rousing afternoon
or evening at the
Minnesota
Centennial
Showboat. The
University of
Minnesota Showboat
Players perform “Is
Why It Is Called
There A Doctor In
The Minnesota Centennial sent to a dry dock to begin The House?” – a lively proits makeover. The plan was duction that features misdiShowboat
to completely renovate the agnosis, mistaken identities,
The original Showboat
Centennial Showboat and
was built in 1899. It was
misdirection and a wild
then dock it at Harriet
used by the U.S. Army
romp through France. The
Island in a partnership with audience is encouraged to
Corps. of Engineers for
inspections and general util- the City of St. Paul.
boo, cheer, hiss and sing
Work progressed around along during the delightful
ity work. For 58 years, it
the clock on the riverboat
traveled up and down the
Vaudvillesque musical interin anticipation of its July 4, ludes.
Mississippi.
Around 1956, plans were 2000, arrival at Harriet
You can attend just the
underway to commemorate Island.
show, or enjoy a dinner and
The fire a few months
Minnesota’s 100th annivershow, or go on a Padelford
sary in 1958 as a state. One earlier, however, delayed
river cruise and show, or –
of those plans – initiated by the arrival of a new
for the ultimate experience
the executive director of the Minnesota Centennial
– take in a lunch, a river
Showboat for another two
Minnesota Statehood
cruise and a matinee peryears. It opened with “Dr.
Centennial Commission
formance. The choice is
Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” – the yours.
and the U of M Theatre
performance originally
director – was to make a
The play runs from June
scheduled for the year 2000 19 through August 29. For
showboat part of the
season.
Centennial celebrations.
additional information, conNow in its 51st season,
The university purchased
tact:
the Minnesota Centennial
the Army Corps. of
Phones: 651/227-1100
Engineers’ boat for $1.00 – Showboat has attracted
Website:
and then spent in excess of more than 750,000 patrons www.Showboat.umn.edu
from all 50 states plus
$50,000 transforming it
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laser-cut steel.
The new Showboat finally arrived in St. Paul on
April 27, 2002. Two tugs
gently nudged the boat into
its berth at the new public
dock where it has remained, providing entertaining
melodramas, musicals and
comedies, always performed by the Univer-sity
of Minnesota Showboat
Players – a unique
troupe of talented
performers cast
exclusively with U
of M students.
The Minnesota
Centennial Showboat is considered
both a staple and
a favorite of the
Twin Cities theater
scene. One of
Minnesota’s
longest-running
theater venues, the
Showboat is also
one of the most
successful with
ticket sales
exceeding 94 percent.
BIG RIVER JOURNEY
Floating Classroom Combines
Education and Adventure
hen you combine
adventure with a
novel learning
experience you get highly
motivated students.
Which is why “Big River
Journey” has been such a
success with both students
and teachers. On a Padelford riverboat ride on the
Mississippi, 4th, 5th and
6th graders have the opportunity to study river geology, peer into the miniscule
world of aquatic invertebrates, experience river
navigation, observe eagles
and even investigate the
sources of litter in the river.
Big River Journey is a
floating classroom that
offers hands-on educational
opportunities about the
river, its history, geology,
wildlife and preservation.
The program started back
in 1995 through the collaborative efforts of Lyndon
Torstenson, National Park
Service Ranger and Manager of Educational Partnerships, and Capt. Jim Kosmo,
Senior Vice-President of the
Padelford Riverboat Co.
Who actually came up
with the idea for a riverboat
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Celebrating our 40th Anniversary!
W
classroom?
“Well, there’s some dispute about that,” quipped
Kosmo. “But there’s no
argument over the fact that
it was a great idea. We’ve
had many teachers bring
their classes back year after
year.”
Now in its 14th season,
Big River Journey has connected almost 40,000 students to the science and
heritage of the Mississippi
River and its watershed.
“1996 was our pilot
year,” said Torstenson,
National Park Service education specialist. “The program has evolved a lot over
the years. We keep refining
it, adding to the classroom
and adapting the itinerary.
“Our current program
involves taking 120 students
out at a time. There are six
learning stations on the
boat, and each student
spends time at each learning station.”
The program has been
such a hit with elementary
schools throughout the
region that there simply
isn’t space or time to
accommodate all the inter-
ested classrooms. Because
of demand, the applications
are selected on a lottery
basis, Torstenson explained.
“Big River Journey has
trips in the spring and fall
during the school year,” he
said. “And we fill them all.”
The St. Paul public schools
have even prepared classroom trunks, filled with
resource materials, to help
teachers augment the educational experience for their
students.
Big River Journey has
been so successful that it
has received numerous
national and regional
awards. In 2007, for example, Big River Journey won
the Minnesota Environmental Initiative top award
for environmental partnership. In 2001, Big River
Journey personnel traveled
to Washington, D.C. for a
reception in the Supreme
Court Building, where they
were recognized by the
National Park Foundation as
the best educational partnership program in the
National Park Service. Other
accolades include a 9.5 rating (out of a possible 10)
Photo courtesy National Park Service
trip includes an hour-andforty-five-minute ride on
the Anson Northrup riverboat, departing from
Harriet Island in St. Paul.
Students rotate through the
six learning stations where
they engage in a hands-on
activity.
Students examine aquatic
science apply to riverboat
navigation.
When the riverboat
arrives at Fort Snelling State
Park, the 120 students disembark for the second half
of their field trip. Here they
march with a costumed soldier, explore artifacts, walk
through a floodplain forest
Photo courtesy National Park Service
and learn about the Dakota
culture. Guides include staff
from the state park,
Minnesota Historical
Society and Shakopee
Dakota Tribe.
Meanwhile, another 120
students who spent the first
half of their field trip at Fort
Snelling now board the boat
for their Big River Journey
back to Harriet Island.
After their Journey, students are encouraged to
use their knowledge of the
Mississippi River to create
artwork and submit it to
Environmental Education
invertebrates under a
the Big River Art Contest.
• The Minnesota DNR
microscope and learn how The winning drawings are
(Adopt-a-River, Fort Snelling to assess water quality.
displayed at the Mississippi
State Park, Project WET)
They examine samples of
River Gallery in the Science
• MN Historical Society
sandstone, limestone and
Museum of Minnesota.
• Historic Fort Snelling
shale, then connect them to
• For additional informa• Mississippi River Fund observable rock strata along tion on the Big River Journey,
• Science Museum of
the shoreline. Students use refer to the National Park
Minnesota
binoculars to observe river Service website. Note:
• St. Paul Public Schools birds, wildlife and floodTeachers can also find infor• Shakopee Mdewakanton plain vegetation. They ana- mation here about registerSioux (Dakota) Community lyze river litter while learn- ing for a field trip.
• U.S. Fish & Wildlife
ing how urban watersheds
www.nps.gov/miss/parkne
Service, Minnesota Valley
connect people to the river. ws/media_brj.htm
National Wildlife Refuge
They also visit the pilotor
house and watch the capwww.riverrides.com (click
The Floating Classroom tain in action. They see
on "School Trips")
A Big River Journey field firsthand how math and
Celebrating our 40th Anniversary!
Photo courtesy National Park Service
P I O N E E R P R E S S S P E C I A L A D V E R T I S I N G F E A T U R E • S U N D A Y, M A Y 3 1 , 2 0 0 9
from participating teachers.
In addition, organizations
from other parts of the
country have ventured to
St. Paul to observe Big River
Journey in action with the
goal of modeling a similar
program for their students
back home.
“The success of Big River
Journey and all these
awards is a reflection of our
partners,” emphasized
Torstenson. “None of this
would have been possible
without the support and
contributions from the
Padelford and our many
other sponsors.”
In addition to the
Padelford Riverboat Co.,
other Big River Journey
partners include:
• Hamline University,
Center for Global