Title: St. Croix River (Wisconsin–Minnesota) - Wikipedia
Headings: St. Croix River (Wisconsin–Minnesota)
St. Croix River (Wisconsin–Minnesota)
Contents
Geography and hydrography
Conservation efforts
Naming
History
Fur trade
Logging
Cities and towns
Bridge crossings
Commerce and recreation
Further reading
See also
References
External links

Content: Downstream of its confluence with the Namekagon, the Ojibwa renamed the river as Gichi-ziibi (Big River) or Okijii-ziibi (Pipestem River)
At the time of the European settlement of the valley, Dakota and Ojibwe were engaged in a long and deadly war with each other. Consequently, the portion of the river below the confluence with Trade River is called Jiibayaatig-ziibi (Grave-marker River) in the Ojibwe language, reinforcing the earlier "Rivière Tombeaux" name in their language. On Map of the Territories of Michigan and Ouisconsin (1830) by John Farmer, the St. Croix River is shown as the "Chippewa River". However, by 1843, Joseph Nicollet 's Hydrographical Basin of the Upper Mississippi River reinforced the name provided by Franquelin's 1688 map. History
The river is the result of geologic forces going back 1.1 billion years. At that time, the Mid-Continent Rift rendered the middle of North America apart, creating a volcanic zone. The lava spewed forth cooled into hard basalt. That basalt is what today creates the dramatic cliffs around the Interstate State Parks. About 500 million years ago, a shallow sea covered the area, laying down layers of sand and minerals that make up much of the sandstone bluffs now seen along the river. In the last 20,000 years, glaciers have scraped the landscape and released torrents of meltwater, which carved the St. Croix River's course.