Great River Road
St. Paul, MN

St. Paul was settled by Fort Snelling squatters who had been evicted. In the early days, the settlement was known as Pig's Eye after Pierre Parrant, one of the community's founders, who had a disfigured blind eye. (Although rumor has it that the nickname fit his personality as well.) In 1841, Father Lucian Galtier built a chapel at the landing where Kellogg Boulevard and Minnesota Street meet today. He named the chapel after Saint Paul, and local residents gladly renamed their settlement after the church.

In the 1840s, only a few cabins dotted the landscape, but its location along the river made it a central stop. In the 1860s and '70s, the city became a rail hub for the upper Midwest. James J. Hill's Great Northern Rail Line connected passengers to the Pacific Northwest and included steamers that could complete a journey to Japan. The James J. Hill House is located in St. Paul and open to visitors.

The Minnesota State Capitol Building is the most grand of the buildings in the city. Designed by Cass Gilbert in Italian Renaissance style, it boasts one of the largest unsupported marble domes in the world. Travelers may want to stop for a tour of the building to top off their tour of the state capitol.