At 7:47 a.m. on February 7, 2007, the temperature was -7˚F, and the wind was blowing hard from the northwest. The sun was just beginning its ill-fated effort to warm the northland with its brief transit when National Park Service historian John Anfinson captured this view of the frozen Mississippi River.

Light streaming in from the southeast illuminates the eastern shore of the Upper Landing, highlighting the new development (bright yellow buildings to the right of the river) and the bluff behind it. The nationally-significant St. Paul Municipal Elevator sits on the riverbank in front of the new housing. Behind it, the Smith Avenue “High” Bridge links the blufftops on either side.

Anfinson writes, “I took this photo to capture the breadth and depth of the Mississippi River Valley viewshed above downtown St. Paul.

“The Mississippi River Valley at St. Paul is a historic landscape defined by the interweaving of its unique physical character and the history that has occurred within and in response to the landscape. Three elements define this historic landscape’s physical character: the high bluffs; the long, wide valley, and the world-renown Mississippi River.”