11/5/2012 MinneCulture

Coldwater Spring/Mini Owe Sni
Produced by Allison Herrera

Some people believe that Coldwater Spring has been flowing for more than 10,000 years. Located south of Minnehaha Park on the former Bureau of Mines Campus, and formerly known as Camp Coldwater, the spring provided fresh drinking water to the soldiers who built Fort Snelling. A civilian settlement sprang up, and fur traders, blacksmiths and the state’s first Indian agent all settled and lived among military personnel. Coldwater Spring sits near some of the most sacred Dakota sites: Wita Tanka, Pike Island, where Dakota buried there dead; Taku Wakan Tipi, Carvers Cave near the VA hospital, the dwelling place of Native American gods and spirits; and B'dote, the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota Rivers, where the first Dakota emerged. In 2010 the National Park Service took over the land at Coldwater Spring with the intention of making it a public park. Controversy ensued among Dakota people and environmental activists, who believe the site is sacred and worthy of protection under the National Register of Historic Places. KFAI producer Allison Herrera explores the complicated history of Coldwater Spring in this exclusive MinneCulture documentary.