Voyageurs National Park, the only such NPS unit in the Land of 10,000 Lakes, protects 341 square miles of lakes, streams, and boreal forest on and around the Kabetogama Peninsula near the state’s border with Canada. Although it was designated in 1975, the history of Voyageurs National Park, its lands and water, goes back much, much further. These “before and after” photos illustrate the ways in which today’s human activities in the area bear some similarities to those a century or more ago.

It’s estimated that indigenous peoples occupied parts of what is now Voyageurs National Park for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. More than 200 sites within the park offer evidence of their presence.
Voyageurs National Park/Facebook
The Bois Forte band of Chippewa were the most recent native group to use the area, primarily for seasonal uses, like blueberry harvesting.

This meant the Bois Forte people typically used temporary shelters when they were in the area. Likewise, voyageurs and other European visitors to the area lived in tents and other portable shelters.
Today, visitors to the park enjoy camping on the islands and lands within Voyageurs.
Recreation.gov
For the Bois Forte and the voyageurs who used the connected lakes of the area as a passage through the dense North Woods, canoes were a primary mode of transportation.
National Park Service
Canoes, kayaks, houseboats, and all manner of other vessels, ply the park’s waters today.
Voyageurs National Park/Facebook

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In 1893, a vein of gold-bearing quartz was discovered on an island in Rainy Lake.
Voyageurs National Park/Facebook
This sparked a bit of a gold rush, and all the attendant services, such as a hotel, were quickly mustered. It was all mostly gone by the turn of the 20th century, though.
The only lodging operating within park boundaries today is the Kettle Falls Hotel.
Kettle Falls Hotel
It can only be reached by boat. Don’t worry - if you have a reservation, they’ll pick you up.
During the gold boom, mining equipment was visible in many places along Rainy and Kabetogama lakes.
Voyageurs National Park/Facebook
Remnants of the rush are still visible in the park, such as this gold mine shaft on Bushyhead Island.
Voyageurs National Park/Facebook

While the present uses of the land and waters of Voyageurs National Park are based largely in recreation – and are far less extractive – some similarities still exist, and visitors can learn much about the history of Voyageurs National Park by going to the park, asking questions, and exploring the area.

Have you visited Voyageurs National Park? Do you find the history of this area as fascinating as we do? Let us know in the comments!

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