Upper Mississippi River - Characteristics

Characteristics

The Upper Mississippi from below St. Anthony Falls (Minneapolis, Minnesota) downstream to St. Paul, Minnesota is a gorge with high limestone bluffs carved by the waterfall. Upstream of the waterfall the land slopes gently to rivers edge. Downstream of downtown St. Paul the river enters its wide preglacial valley. The states of Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa, along with the federal government, have preserved certain areas of the land along this reach of the river.

There are three National Park Service sites along the Upper Mississippi River. The Mississippi National River and Recreation Area is the National Park Service site dedicated to protecting and interpreting the Mississippi River itself. The other two National Park Service sites along the river are: Effigy Mounds National Monument and the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial (the Gateway Arch in St. Louis).

Unlike the Lower Mississippi, much of the upper river is a series of pools created by a system of 29 locks and dams. The structures were authorized by Congress in the 1930s, and most were completed by 1940. A primary reason for damming the river is to facilitate barge transportation. The dams regulate water levels for the Upper River, and play a major part in regulating levels on the Lower Mississippi.