The Minnesota national park sites are teaming up this year to bring a virtual National Park Week experience to you. Explore all six sites through live online activities, downloadable workbooks, solo adventuring in a local park, trip planning live chats, and connecting on social media.
Want to support your national park during National Park Week? Learn how today!
Military Monday
Perched above the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota River, Fort Snelling will be celebrating its bicentennial anniversary in 2020! One of Mississippi National River and Recreation Area’s premier cultural resources reflecting both the heritage of the Dakota people and the history of the United States, the site offers a dynamic opportunity for visitors to discover the deep cultural, social, military and political history of the Upper Midwest.
History: Based at Fort Snelling, Minnesota, from August 1944 to October 1946, the Military Intelligence Service Language School (MISLS) served the U.S. Army by providing this knowledge of the Japanese. Though far from the battlefields of World War II, Fort Snelling produced trained, educated, and battle-ready translators and code breakers for the war effort in the Pacific Theater. Learn more about this secret language school and other historical topics on the park’s website.
The park is planning a special Veteran’s Paddle with a Ranger down the Mississippi River for September. The journey starts at North Mississippi Regional Park in Minneapolis, with lunch at a local restaurant, a stop at Sheridan Memorial Park, and finishing at Boom Island. For more information, contact Ranger Brent Skaja at brent_skaja@nps.gov.