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U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
St. Paul District
Public Affairs Office
332 Minnesota St., Suite E1500
St. Paul, MN 55101

Phone: (651) 290-5807
Fax: (651) 290-5752
cemvp-pa@usace.army.mil 

 

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Tag: navigation
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  • May

    A man on a crane.

    Major work completed at Lock and Dam 2

    There is major work happening at Lock and Dam 2 in Hastings, Minnesota. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, performs rehabilitative work on each of the district’s 13 locks and dams on the Upper Mississippi River every 15-20 years. This year, it was time for Lock and Dam 2, in Hastings, Minnesota, to be dewatered for the first time since 2007. The Corps closed Lock 2 on Dec. 4, 2023, to complete the necessary work by a target date of March 5.

  • January

    construction equipment scoops sand into a bucket atop a larger pile of sand.

    Wabasha, Corps partnership in managing Mississippi River dredged sand pays dividends

    The Upper Mississippi River near Wabasha, Minnesota, is traditionally quiet during the winter as the river freezes, halting large tow boats shipping grains, fertilizer and other bulk commodities.

  • April

    The U.S. Army corps of Engineers, St. Paul District performs maintenance and repairs at Lock and Dam 4 in Alma, Wisconsin.

    A Winter to Remember: Corps of Engineers continues annual winter maintenance fight to preserve aging infrastructure

    The American Society of Civil Engineers 2021 infrastructure report card released in March was less than perfect for the nation’s inland navigation system. According to the report, they gave the Inland waterway infrastructure a D+. The ASCE report said the infrastructure "includes locks and dams as well as navigation channels” but added that shipping delays cost up to $739 per hour for an average tow within the United States.

  • August

    A dredged material island in the Mississippi River.

    Moving sand isn’t just for kids

    Navigation on the Upper Mississippi River this year has been anything but normal. Historic flooding plagued the region for much of the spring and early summer. The floods brought historic high water and a significant increase in the amount of sediment. The high water has since receded leaving sediment as the sole souvenir of the 2019 flood.

  • November

    Meeker Lock and Dam under construction Sept. 27, 1905.

    Meeker Dam: Controversy plagued one of the first locks on the Mississippi River

    Listed as one of the “controversies” in Raymond Merritt’s book “Creativity, Conflict & Controversy: A History of the St. Paul District U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,” the Meeker Dam project continues to provide intrigue.

  • October

    The Boatyard: History of the Fountain City Service Base

    For 100 years, the Fountain City, Wisconsin, Boatyard has played an essential role in supporting the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ efforts to improve navigation on the Upper Mississippi River. These efforts have included the 4 ½-foot channel project (1878-1907), the 6-foot channel project (1907-1930) and the 9-foot channel project (1930-present).

  • Origin of the Navigation System

    Along with their best suits, the delegation packed the hopes and dreams of the entire Northwest – from the farmers in the hinterland to the captains of commerce in St. Paul, Minnesota, and from the merchants on Main Street to the pillars of industry in Minneapolis.

  • February

    Airboat operator Bill Chelmowski and survey technician Kurt Schroeder scoot across frozen Lake Pepin as ice thickness measurements are taken on Feb. 18, 2015. St. Paul District staff from the channels and harbors section took to the ice of Lake Pepin on Feb. 18 for the first of weekly ice thickness measurements. The thickest ice discovered this year was at river miles 771 and 766, where 21 inches were recorded.

    Lake Pepin ice measurements begin

    With an air temperature of -5 degrees and winds at 15 miles per hour or more, St. Paul District staff from the channels and harbors section took to the ice of Lake Pepin on Feb. 18 for the first of weekly ice thickness measurements.
  • Kris Taverna, left, and Dale Rud, both of operations, work to remove damaged concrete from the lockwall at Lock and Dam 5A on January 15, 2015. Lock 5A was closed to navigation on Dec. 1, 2014, in order to complete the necessary work by March 9, 2015.

    Mother Nature allows for start early to winter lock maintenance

    Following a historically late start to the navigation season in 2014, Mother Nature once again showed who’s in charge, giving the region a shot of cold air and shutting down navigation earlier than anticipated. This worked in favor of the district’s maintenance and repair section, based out of the Fountain City, Wisconsin, service base.

  • April

    HASTINGS, Minn. – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District welcomed the Motor Vessel Angela K to Lock and Dam 2, near Hastings, Minn., April 16. The vessel was the first line tow to reach St. Paul this year, which means all 13 locks and dams within the St. Paul District are now accessible to commercial and recreation vessels. The April 16 arrival is the latest non-flood related start to navigation since the Corps began maintaining records in 1970.

    Corps of Engineers welcomes navigation season after historic delay

    The 2014 Mississippi River navigation season in the St. Paul District has arrived. The Motor Vessel Angela K locked through Lock and Dam 2, near Hastings, Minn., around 5:30 p.m., April pushing 12 barges en route to St. Paul, Minn.

  • June

    Tom Novak, project manager for the recently completed Lock and Dam 3 Navigation Safety and Embankment Improvements project talks with stakeholders and partners at the end of the 862-foot upstream guide wall. A rededication ceremony was held at the facility May 31, signifying the completion of the nearly $70 million dollar project that significantly improves the navigational safety of boats entering the lock.

    Corps of Engineers holds dedication ceremony for Lock and Dam 3 navigation safety project

    The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, conducted a project dedication ceremony and open house at Lock and Dam 3, near Red Wing, Minn., on May 31 at 9 a.m.

  • March

    WABASHA, Minn. – U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District employees Al VanGuilder, left, survey technician, and Bill Chelmowski, marine machinery mechanic, use an airboat to measure ice on Lake Pepin, near Wabasha, Minn., Feb. 13, during the first Mississippi River ice surveys of the year. The district conducts the annual ice surveys to help the navigation industry determine when it is safe to break through the ice. Lake Pepin, located on the Mississippi River between Red Wing and Wabasha, Minn., is used as the benchmark because the ice melts slower in this area due to the lake width and the slower current.

    Spring is near - Ice surveys begin on Lake Pepin

    A few district employees from the channels and harbors section are getting the opportunity to take

  • February

    Joseph Gurin, operations, uses a clevis to connect equipment to a crane during dewatering construction at Lock and Dam 6, near Trempeauleau, Wis., Jan. 16.

    Dewatering a lock and dam

    For the fourth time since it was put into service in 1936, Lock and Dam 6, near Trempealeau, Wis.,

  • September

    Bosse navigation charts in the new century

    As commercial navigation becomes more dependent upon electronic technology, the use of paper navigation charts like the hand written ones completed by Henry Bosse in the early 1900s and used on the Dredge Thomson until 2005 are becoming a thing of the past.

  • March

    Navigation season opens with new leadership

    The district’s 2012 navigation season began March 17 with the arrival of Motor Vessel Deana Ann. The Paducah, Ky., based tow entered Lock and Dam 2, near Hastings, Minn., around 3 p.m., with seven barges. The tow’s final destination was St. Paul, Minn.

  • February

    WABASHA, Minn. – U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District employees Al VanGuilder, left, survey technician, and Bill Chelmowski, marine machinery mechanic, use an airboat to measure ice on Lake Pepin, near Wabasha, Minn., Feb. 13, during the first Mississippi River ice surveys of the year. The district conducts the annual ice surveys to help the navigation industry determine when it is safe to break through the ice. Lake Pepin, located on the Mississippi River between Red Wing and Wabasha, Minn., is used as the benchmark because the ice melts slower in this area due to the lake width and the slower current.

    Old techniques record annual ice measurement changes in Lake Pepin

    In preparation for the navigation season, the district’s Fountain City, Wis., survey crew began annual Lake Pepin ice measurements Feb. 15.