REGIONAL- Tuesday was the official golden anniversary of Voyageurs National Park, and a months-long celebration kicked off with a reception at the park’s headquarters in International Falls, where the public was given a glimpse into the park’s extensive archive of the carefully preserved treasures of Minnesota’s only national park.
But park lovers who couldn’t be there were able to take a virtual stroll through the park’s complicated past and rich archives through a Zoom presentation facilitated by Voyaguers Conservancy Education Specialist Jesse Gates. In a relaxed and revealing presentation, Park Ranger Erik Ditzler and Archivist Catherine Crawford led viewers through a story that began more than a century ago and continues to evolve. Ditzler appeared live, while he and Crawford put together a video tour of the archives that was shown during the session.
Birth of the park
“Most people think (the park) started 50 years ago,” Ditzler began, “but the idea was actually born in 1891.”
That year, the Minnesota Legislature formally asked President Benjamin Harrison to consider establishing a national park between Crane Lake and Lake of the Woods. The idea lay dormant until the 1960s, when serious surveys began. In 1971, President Nixon signed legislation authorizing the park, but the official designation didn’t come until April 8, 1975.
Why the delay?
“There were nearly 100,000 acres of state and private lands that needed to be sorted out before we could open the gates, so to speak,” Ditzler said. “And it wasn’t just bureaucratic paperwork, it was emotional.”
Ditzler read from a heartfelt letter written in the ‘70s by cabin owner Jenny Wiley to President Gerald Ford. In it, she lamented the loss of a dream cabin built over years, only to be swept into the park boundary. “How would you feel?” she asked the president. No reply came.
Some lands were tied up in school trust funds, others held by logging companies like Boise Cascade, and many still belonged to local families and resorts.
Compromises were necessary to address local concerns about the park infringing on traditional uses of the land and lakes. Recreational fishing, motorboats, and snowmobiles were ultimately allowed, but hunting was not, at least not within park boundaries. To appease duck hunters, a prime area, Black Bay, was transferred to the state in 1983 for continued use.
Creating a national park, Ditzler emphasized, “was no home run for everyone.” Yet today, Voyageurs boasts over 10 million visitors since its opening, more than 170 campsites, and four visitor centers, one newly opening this summer in Crane Lake.
Inside the archive
Following the history lesson, attendees were treated to a rare tour behind the scenes of the park’s collections room, what Ditzler called “the secret room,” though Crawford was quick to clarify, “It’s not really a secret. It’s everyone’s history.”
Crawford oversees an impressive and eclectic collection.
“Everything here tells a piece of the park’s story,” she said, standing among artifacts ranging from fish scale records to Native beadwork, from weathered logging tools to an old wooden fishing boat once owned by a Rainy Lake local.
There’s also presidential flair – one of the original pens used by Richard Nixon to sign the authorizing legislation now rests safely in the park’s collection, donated by local sportsman Wayne Judy, who was also one of the founders of the forerunner of the Voyageurs Conservancy, the Voyageurs National Park Association.
Perhaps most visually stunning is a large mining pulley wheel from the Little American gold mine, salvaged from the days when Rainy Lake echoed with picks and steam engines.
“It used to lean against a wall in the old HQ,” Crawford said, “a hazard waiting to happen.”
The park’s maintenance crew eventually built a custom support cart to protect both the artifact and anyone who comes near it.
Beyond relics of industry and recreation, the collection includes oral histories and archival documents, many not on public display.
“It’s not glamorous,” Crawford admitted, gesturing toward shelves of archived reports and microfilm, “but it’s the backbone of how this park was built and how we operate.”
Looking forward
As the park enters its next half-century, Ditzler and Crawford hope to continue expanding both the story and the stewardship.
“Our mission is long-term,” Ditzler said. “We’re preserving this place not just for us, but for the kids and grandkids of the future.”
“We’re here to share it,” Crawford said. “It belongs to all of us.”
For a full slate of ongoing anniversary events, visit voyageurs.org/fiftieth.