Corps of Engineers rededicating Big Sandy Lake visitor center

ST. PAUL, Minn. – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, invites the public to attend a rededication ceremony of the remodeled visitor center at Big Sandy Lake Recreation Area, near McGregor, Minnesota.

Col. Dan Koprowski, St. Paul District commander, will host the ceremony officially reopening the visitor center Aug. 17 at 10 a.m.

The center, a former lock house located next to the dam, has artifacts and information about the region’s history. Corps staff spent the past year updating the displays and artifacts to better communicate the centuries of history that has occurred around the site. 

From fur traders to Ojibwe settlers and the creation of the dam by the Corps of Engineers, the land has been witness to many historical moments. Visitors to the center will have the opportunity to learn about the history of the region, the Corps of Engineers and what archaeologists are doing to document and preserve the history for future generations. 

The nearly 650 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, employees working at more than 40 sites in five upper-Midwest states serve the American public in the areas of environmental enhancement, navigation, flood damage reduction, water and wetlands regulation, recreation sites and disaster response. Through the Corps’ Fiscal Year 2014 $100 million budget, nearly 1,600 non-Corps jobs were added to the regional economy as well as $155 million to the national economy. For more information, see www.mvp.usace.army.mil.

-30-