Driftless Zone
From Freepedia
The Driftless Zone (sometimes called the Driftless Area) is an area of about 20,000 square miles in western Wisconsin, northeastern Iowa, southeastern Minnesota, and extreme northwestern Illinois, which was by-passed by the continental glaciers. As a result, the topography is more rugged than that usually associated with the Midwest. In Wisconsin, the Driftless Zone parallels the Mississippi River to the Illinois state line in a band 60 to 80 miles wide. About halfway a lobe extends farther northeast into Wisconsin. In Iowa, it also parallels the Mississippi River from the Minnesota state line to about Dubuque in a band approximately 20 miles wide.The Minnesota and Illinois portions are much smaller, by comparison, and much more irregularly defined.
Other than rugged topography, the Driftless Zone has no one single unity of landscape. In the north there is a "North Woods" visual appearance, as much of the terrain is covered in deciduous forest. The Dells of the Wisconsin River, along the route of the Wisconsin River, in the bed of Glacial Lake Wisconsin, are a unique, specially formed scenic attraction in their own right. In southwestern Wisconsin there is a more pastoral, semi-wooded landscape with many prosperous farms along rural by-ways. The portion of the Mississippi River that flows through the Zone is noted for its high bluffs and dramatic river scenery. In Iowa, the Driftless Zone takes the appearance of low, rugged hills covered with pine woods, a landscape not usually associated with that state. In Illinois, the Driftless Zone contains Charles Mound, the highest point in that state.
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In popular culture
An interesting connection with the landscape of the Driftless Zone is Taliesin, the home of American architect Frank Lloyd Wright, who advocated organic integration of a structure with its natural surroundings. Taliesin itself is built from local limestone and set on the brow of a rugged hill, for the specific purpose of emphasizing its ties to the Driftless Zone of southwestern Wisconsin.
In history
In the past the Driftless Zone was noted for its many lead and zinc mines; in fact, the state seal of Wisconsin shows a miner in honor of that historic era. Today, however, there are no functioning metal mines in this region.
Modern importance
Agriculture, where it can be done, tends toward dairy farming. In southwestern Wisconsin this specialty is combined with the characteristic feedlot system of the Corn Belt, and beef cattle as well as the raising of specialty crops. Some ethnic communities have concentrated across the Driftless Zone, including ethnic islands of Cornish, Swiss, Scandinavians and Slavs. In Wisconsin, the Driftless Zone, around New Glarus, is the original source of the Swiss cheese industry in the USA, although most of the Wisconsin cheese industry is concentrated elsewhere in state.
Protection of ecosystem
The Driftless Area National Wildlife Refuge has been established in this region for the purpose of preserving a rare snail and rare flower that have made this region a specialized ecological niche for themselves. The Refuge is located in several scattered sites among the states that make up the Driftless Zone. [1]
Human influence
The principal settlements in the Driftless Zone are La Crosse, Baraboo, and Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin; and Winona, Minnesota. Dubuque, Iowa, Eau Claire, Wisconsin and the Twin Cities and Rochester, Minnesota are on the edges of the Zone. It is noteworthy that most of these cities are on large rivers, suggesting the comparative difficulty of earlier land travel, in light of the rugged topography, for the early settlers.
References
- ^ "Welcome to Driftless Area District." Accessed August 8, 2005.
