Minnesota Prairie Roots

Writing and photography by Audrey Kletscher Helbling

Land eroding around Faribault Woolen Mill Dam July 3, 2024

Filed under: Uncategorized — Audrey Kletscher Helbling @ 10:21 PM
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In this cellphone photo from the Second Avenue bridge, you can see the boulders piled across the north edge of the dam, excavator to the right. That’s the Faribault Mill to the left on the Cannon River. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo July 3, 2024)

WHEN I LEARNED late Wednesday afternoon of serious river bank erosion by the Faribault Woolen Mill Dam following recent flooding, one word crossed my mind—Rapidan. Last week the Blue Earth River skirted the Rapidan Dam, eroding the earth and creating a new river channel that eventually claimed buildings, trees and more.

Barricades block access to the area along the river where crews worked to stabilize the bank on Wednesday. The Faribault Mill is across the river. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo July 3, 2024)

Right now I don’t see that happening in my community. The dam, the river, the landscape differ. In Faribault, crews worked to mitigate further erosion by piling boulders on the north side of the mill dam. That’s a temporary fix until water levels drop and officials can check for damage to the dam.

The second dam next to Father Slevin Park is not showing serious erosion, although water is flowing over the bank on the south side. (Minnesota Prairie Roots copyrighted photo July 3, 2024)

I stopped briefly Wednesday evening to see firsthand what is happening at the two dams on the Cannon River. Water levels remain high, although lower than they have been. But more rain is predicted in the next several days. Exactly what we don’t need.

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NOTE: I did not have my 35 mm Canon camera with me so I had to use my cellphone to shoot these photos, thus I could not zoom in to take better, clearer images.

© Copyright 2024 Audrey Kletscher Helbling