thumbThe
Dells of the Wisconsin River (used in the singular, and also called the
Wisconsin Dells) is a 5 mile (8 km) gorge on the
Wisconsin RiverThe Wisconsin River is a tributary of the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. At approximately 430 miles long, it is the state's longest river. The river's name, first recorded in 1673 by Jacques Marquette as "Meskousing," is rooted in the Algonquian languages used by the area's...
in southern
WisconsinWisconsin is one of the fifty U.S. states. Located in the north-central United States, Wisconsin is considered part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the...
in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
noted for its scenic beauty, in particular for its unique
sandstoneSandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains. Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any color, but the most common colors are tan, brown, yellow,...
rock formations and
tributaryA tributary is a stream or river which flows into a main stem river. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea. Tributaries and the mainstem river serve to drain the surrounding drainage basin of its surface water and groundwater by leading the water out into an ocean or some other large body...
canyonA canyon, or gorge, is a deep valley between cliffs often carved from the landscape by a river. Most canyons were formed by a process of long-time erosion from a plateau level. The cliffs form because harder rock strata that are resistant to erosion and weathering remain exposed on the valley walls...
s.
The cliffs, some over 100 feet (30 m) high, and side canyons are closed to the public to protect sensitive ecological features.
thumbThe
Dells of the Wisconsin River (used in the singular, and also called the
Wisconsin Dells) is a 5 mile (8 km) gorge on the
Wisconsin RiverThe Wisconsin River is a tributary of the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. At approximately 430 miles long, it is the state's longest river. The river's name, first recorded in 1673 by Jacques Marquette as "Meskousing," is rooted in the Algonquian languages used by the area's...
in southern
WisconsinWisconsin is one of the fifty U.S. states. Located in the north-central United States, Wisconsin is considered part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the...
in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
noted for its scenic beauty, in particular for its unique
sandstoneSandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains. Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any color, but the most common colors are tan, brown, yellow,...
rock formations and
tributaryA tributary is a stream or river which flows into a main stem river. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea. Tributaries and the mainstem river serve to drain the surrounding drainage basin of its surface water and groundwater by leading the water out into an ocean or some other large body...
canyonA canyon, or gorge, is a deep valley between cliffs often carved from the landscape by a river. Most canyons were formed by a process of long-time erosion from a plateau level. The cliffs form because harder rock strata that are resistant to erosion and weathering remain exposed on the valley walls...
s.
The cliffs, some over 100 feet (30 m) high, and side canyons are closed to the public to protect sensitive ecological features. The viewing of the rock formations by water is a popular tourist attraction in the area. The nearby city of
Wisconsin DellsWisconsin Dells is a city in south-central Wisconsin, with a population of 2,418 as of the 2000 census. It is located partially within four counties: Adams, Columbia, Juneau, and Sauk. The city takes its name from the dells of the Wisconsin River, a scenic glacially-formed gorge that features...
is the center of summer tourist activity, much of it in the form of the theme parks unrelated to the river features.
Description and formation
thumb
The Dells (term used in the singular) was formed during the last
ice ageThe general term "ice age" or, more precisely, "glacial age" denotes a geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in an expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Within a long-term ice age, individual...
approximately 15,000 years ago, although the rock itself is much older, dating from the
CambrianThe Cambrian is the first geological period of the Paleozoic era, lasting from ; it is succeeded by the Ordovician. Its subdivisions, and indeed its base, are somewhat in flux...
approximately 510-520 million years ago when the area of Wisconsin was at the bottom of a shallow sea.
Approximately 19,000 years ago, the Dells was at the extreme eastern margin of the continental
glacierA glacier is a perennial mass of ice which moves over land. A glacier forms in locations where the mass accumulation of snow and ice exceeds ablation over many years...
. However, the Dells itself was never covered by glacial ice sheets - it was part of the large Driftless Area that was bypassed by the ice. The melting of the glacier formed
Glacial Lake WisconsinGlacial Lake Wisconsin was a prehistoric proglacial lake that existed from approximately 19,000 to 15,000 years ago, at the end of the last ice age, in the central part of present-day Wisconsin in the United States....
, a lake about the size of
Great Salt LakeGreat Salt Lake, located in the northern part of the U.S. state of Utah, is the largest salt lake in the western hemisphere, the fourth-largest terminal lake in the world, and the 37th-largest lake on Earth. In an average year the lake covers an area of around , but the lake's size fluctuates...
in
UtahUtah is a western state of the United States. It was the 45th state admitted to the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80 percent of Utah's 2,736,424 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering around Salt Lake City. In contrast, vast expanses of the state are nearly uninhabited, making...
and as deep as 150 feet (45 m). The lake was held back by an ice dam of the remaining glacier. The eventual bursting of the ice dam unleashed a catastrophic
floodA flood is an overflow or accumulation of an expanse of water that submerges land. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide....
, dropping the lake's depth to 50 feet (15 m) and cutting deep, narrow gorges and unusual rock formations into the sandstone seen today.
Unique ecosystem
The area of the Dells provides a mixture of plant communities, including northern and southern
oakAn oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 400 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
and
pinePines are coniferous trees in the genus Pinus , in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Distribution:...
forests, as well as
oak savannaAn oak savanna is a type of savanna, or lightly-forested grassland, with oaks as the dominant tree species. These savannas were maintained historically through fires set by lightning, herbivore grazing cycles, dry climates, poor soil, and/or fires set by Native Americans.-Edwards Plateau...
, moist, and dry cliffs,
The cliffs provide unique niches for plants, some of which are very rare in Wisconsin, including:
- Cliff cudweed (Gnaphalium obtusifolium var saxicola ), which is known in only two places on Earth - in the Dells and in the Kickapoo Valley, grows on protected rock ledges.
- Lapland azalea (Rhododendron lapponicum)
- Round-stemmed false foxglove (Agalinis gattingeri)
- Maidenhair spleenwort (Asplenium trichomanes)
- Fragrant fern (Dryopteris fragrans).
Among the rare animals in the dell are six
dragonflyA dragonfly is a type of insect belonging to the order Odonata, the suborder Epiprocta or, in the strict sense, the infraorder Anisoptera. It is characterized by large multifaceted eyes, two pairs of strong transparent wings, and an elongated body...
species, including the Royal river cruiser (
Macromia taeniolata), six rare
musselThe common name mussel is used for members of several families of clams or bivalve molluscs, from saltwater and freshwater habitats. These groups have in common a shell whose outline is elongated and asymmetrical compared with other edible clams, which are often more or less rounded or oval.The...
s and numerous species of birds.
Cultural history
The cultural history of the area stretches back several thousand years, from early Paleo-Indian people to the more recent
Native AmericanNative Americans in the United States is the phrase that describes indigenous peoples from North America now encompassed by the continental United States, including parts of Alaska and the island state of Hawaii. They comprise a large number of distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of...
peoples, such as
Ho-ChunkThe Ho-Chunk, or Winnebago , are a tribe of Native Americans, native to what are now Wisconsin and Illinois.-Etymology:...
, Sac, and
MenomineeSome placenames use other spellings, see also Menomonee and Menomonie.The Menominee are a nation of Native Americans living in Wisconsin. The Menominee, along with the Ho-Chunk, are the only tribes that are indigenous to what is now Wisconsin...
, who left behind effigy and burial mounds, camps and village sites, garden beds, and rock art.
The Dells were made famous in 1886 by the
photographerA photographer is a person who takes photographs using a camera. A professional photographer uses photography to make a living whilst an amateur photographer does not earn a living and typically takes photographs for pleasure and to record an event, place or person for future enjoyment.A...
H. H. BennettHenry Hamilton Bennett was a photographer famous for his pictures of the Dells of the Wisconsin River and surrounding region taken between 1865 and 1908. The popularity of his photographs helped turn the city of Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin into a major tourist destination.-Early life:H. H...
, who took the first stop-action photo of his son jumping onto Stand Rock.
Protected status
The area is now owned by the
Wisconsin Department of Natural ResourcesThe Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is an agency of the state of Wisconsin. Its purpose is to preserve, protect, manage and maintain the natural resources of the state. The WDNR has the authority to set policy for itself and to recommend regulations for approval by the State Legislature...
and was designated a State Natural Area in 1994.
External links