Visiting the Angle

Posted by: Mary Alice Anderson on: May 8, 2016

• In: Local History | Primary Sources
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A recent CBS morning news feature on Minnesota’s Northwest Angle caught my attention, reminding me of our interesting and unique visit to the most northern port of Minnesota a few years ago.   The Northwest angle is that part of Minnesota but only shares a land border only with Canada. The rest of the Angle is part of large Lake of the Woods. We made it to the Angle directly from the west via Manitoba, traveling there by land requires leaving the United States, entering Canada, and then reentering Minnesota.

This unique geographic feature is the result of a mapping error by a mapmaker and erroneous ideas about the source of the Mississippi.  Now part of the Library of Congress Map collections, the Mitchell map depicts land as known in 1757 and when the Treaty of Paris was signed after the Revolutionary War.

Our favorite memory of visiting Angle Inlet is getting there by gravel road and stopping at Jim’s Corner, the customs checkpoint where we reported our arrival via videophone. The roadside stand reminded me of a telephone booth. Angle Inlet has a small post office, community store, and a modern one-room elementary school. Older students travel 60 miles to attend high school. Resorts offering lodging and recreation provide employment for the year-round residents and support the tourism industry.

Our visit to Angle Inlet was brief, but we learned a great deal about a local history, enjoyed a beautiful setting, and have great memories.

Resources
A map of the British and French dominions in North America, with the roads, distances, limits, and extent of the settlements, humbly inscribed to the Right Honourable the Earl of Halifax, and the other Right Honourable the Lords Commissioners for Trade & Plantations.   Library of Congress Map Collections

Minnesota’s Northwest Angle, an American oddity, CBS News, May 1, 2016. <http://www.cbsnews.com/news/minnesotas-northwest-angle-an-american-geographic-oddity&gt;

Angle Inlet School is a one-room throwback. Minneapolis Star Tribune, May 30, 2015.

Tags: Minnesota, Mitchell Map, Northwest Angle