[II-35] To a position immediately below the mouth of the Crow Wing r.
[II-36] Rivière à l'Aile de Corbeau of the F., usually shortened into R. de Corbeau, though Eng. Crow Wing r. reflects the full name. The large island at its mouth was called Isle or Île de Corbeau, and I suspect that the similarity of aile and isle or île may be concerned in this nomenclature. The river sometimes appears as Crow r., rendering the shorter F. form; in such instance it must not be confounded with Crow r. much lower down the Mississippi: see [note11], p. 97. Crow Wing also appears as Crow-wing, and I have found both Cow-wing and Crowing r. in Schoolcraft. Raven r. is another name; Pike sometimes uses this. Beltrami has Raven's Plume r. and Crow Feather r. Nicollet calls it Kagiwan r. This is the largest branch of the Mississippi above Little Falls. The unnumbered affluents which unite to compose the main stream head in lakes and marshes of Hubbard, Becker, Otter Tail, Wadena, and Todd cos. Having received most of its tributaries, and coursed through Wadena, the river for a short distance separates Todd from Cass Co., and then runs between Cass and Morrison to empty opp. the town of Crow Wing. Crow Wing r. was important as a means of communication between the Mississippi and Red River of the North. It was navigated up to the mouth of R. des Feuilles, now Leaf r., in the S. part of Wadena Co.; thence the route was up Leaf r., and by portage into Otter Tail l., one of the principal sources of Red r. waters. Crow Wing r. was also a route to Leech l. Schoolcraft made the trip this way from Leech l. to the Miss. r. in July, 1832; his map, pub. 1834, letters some of the main branches Kioshk r., Longprairie or Warwater r., and Leaf r. The chain of lakes on this route are in his nomenclature as follows, from below upward: 1. Kaichibo Sagitowa; 2. Johnston's; 3. Allen's; 4. Longrice (Long Rice); 5. Summit; 6. Vieux Desert; 7. Ossowa; 8. Plé; 9. Birth; 10. Little Vermillion; 11. Kaginogumag, source of the river. Four small ones thence to Leech l. are called Lake of the Island, Lake of the Mountain, Little Long l., and Warpool l. The branch which Schoolcraft calls Kíosh is Nicollet's Gayashk r., now called Gull r.; a lake on it has the same name, and one higher up is Lake Sibley of Nicollet. Nicollet says that he contracted Gayashk from Chip. Kagayashkensikang, "the place where there are little gulls [terns]," Rep. 1843, p. 54. Gull r. comes from the N., approx. parallel with the Mississippi, and falls into Crow Wing r. only some 3 or 4 m. above its mouth; about the same distance up it is crossed by the N. P. R. R., at or near Gull River station (between Baxter and Sylvan Lake stations).
[II-37] This seems to bring the whole party up to Crow Wing isl., opp. old town of Crow Wing. Pike says himself that he could scarcely make his notes intelligible, but we certainly know where he is to-day, and have probably checked him from Little Falls with all the accuracy the case admits. The town was mainly in Sect. 24, T. 44, R. 32, 4th M., but settlements in 1857 were in Sect. 23; pop. in 1866, 600; Brainerd killed the place about 1870: see Harper's Mag., XIX. 1859, p. 47. Thos. Cowperthwait's map of Minn., Phila., 1850, letters "Morrison's" on the town site.
[II-38] "Hard W." is a misprint for N., the general course of the river as you ascend, for many miles, till the Crow Wing is reached; after this the Mississippi bears N. E.; and as the Crow Wing comes in from the W., and is very large, their confluence is, as it were, the forks of the Mississippi.
[II-39] The whole way by river from Crow Wing to Pine r. (the next place where we can certainly check Pike), is only 34 m. He makes it 10½ + 3 + 3 + 10 + 12 + 21 + 12 = 71½ m., with something over for morning of Dec. 31st. Hence we have to cut him down about half. His "10½" m. takes him about 6 m. toward Brainerd, with nothing to note on the way, excepting a small creek on the left hand, in Sect. 26, T. 133, R. 29, 5th M. From Crow Wing to Brainerd is 11¼ m. by the river; Crow Wing Co. continues on the right; on the left is Cass Co., according to such a presumably authoritative map as that of the G. L. O., 1893; but in fact Crow Wing Co. also extends on the left-hand side of the Mississippi from a point about 1½ m. above the mouth of Crow Wing r. upward for many miles, its W. border being along the middle line of R. 29.
[II-40] To Brainerd, Crow Wing Co., called City of the Pines, now easily first in this part of the State; pop. 10,000; junction of St. Paul div. with main N. P. R. R., 136 m. from St. Paul by rail, 114 from Duluth; recent utilization of the fall of the river furnishing perhaps 20,000 horse-power; water-works, electric lights, etc. It is a center of the lumber interests, and a focus of roads from every direction; the river is bridged, and the surplus population forms West Brainerd. Brainerd was laid out by the railroad in 1870, and has no earlier history.
[II-41] Beyond Rice r. or cr., Nagajika cr. of Nicollet, which falls in on the right, in Sect. 18, T. 45, R. 30, 4th M., about 3 m. above Brainerd, and is to be distinguished from another of the same name higher up on the same side; also, past French rapids, the Seventh of Nicollet, which were Pike's carrying-places to-day. Above these he found the river frozen solid.
[II-42] Vicinity of Sand cr., from the right. This is mapped by Nicollet, but without name. It falls in through Sect. 27, T. 46, R. 30, 4th M.; directly opposite its mouth is a smaller creek, from the left.
[II-43] To a position at or near the stream called White Bear-skin r. by the geologist D. Norwood, 1847, being the discharge of Duck l. and Swamp l., two of the largest of the numerous small lakes that lie close along this course of the river. They are close together; each is about 2 m. long and at one point only a mile or so to the left of the river. Lake Taliaferro of Nicollet is on this connection, but further off. Pike is fairly within the great lacustrine region of Minnesota, where there are more lakes than have ever been counted. Half Moon l. is a little one, about half a mile below the discharge of Duck and Swamp lakes. The most notable point Pike passes to-day is the mouth of Rabbit r., on the right. This is a considerable stream discharging from a set of lakes (one at least of which has the same name), at the junction of Sects. 13 and 24, T. 46, R. 30, 4th M., at or near the foot of Island rapids. A smaller creek, also from the right, empties below, in Sect. 24. Higher up are some rapids called Big Eddy.
[II-44] Nearly to the mouth of Pine r. (not to be confounded with Pike's Pine cr., now Swan r.): see [next note]. The new species of pine "called the French sap pine," is the balsam-fir, Abies balsamea. Pike meant to say "called by the French sapin." The text of 1807, p. 31, has "Sappine."