History of the Minnesota Valley: Including the Explorers and Pioneers of Minnesota and History of the Sioux Massacre

This extensive volume on the history of the Minnesota Valley includes sections by Edward Neill on the early explorers of Minnesota (Nicollet, Menard, Marquette, and Perrot, among others); the founding of the state; and the early history of the valley, including explorations of the Minnesota River, interactions among explorers, traders and local Indians, and steamboat navigation. In a section on the geological makeup of the Minnesota Valley, N.H. Winchell briefly summarizes the results of two earlier surveys, conducted in 1848 and 1865, of the distribution of various geologic types. He describes the general topography of the valley and provides details on granites, sandstones, quartzites, limestones, and cretaceous formations. A history by Charles S. Bryant of the Sioux "massacre" of 1862 is presented. Finally, histories of individual counties in the valley (including Ramsey, Scott, Redwood, Lyon, and Yellow Medicine) are provided.