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Hill Annex Mine State Park is located in Calumet, Minnesota, just off U. S. Highway 169. Hill Annex Mine State Park is quite different from most Minnesota state parks that often feature camping, hiking, and fishing. This park offers none of that, it does however give visitors a history lesson in open-pit mining for iron ore that has occurred in northeastern Minnesota's Mesabi Range for more than a century.
Mining at this location began in 1913 and continued until 1978. Over 63 million tons of iron ore mined here during that time. In 1988, Hill Annex Mine became a state park and it is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The open pit mine is now a lake. When the mine shut down in 1978, the pumps that kept the pit dry over the decades were turned off and the water seeped into the mine forming a lake with red rock walls.
In addition to the open-pit, visitors can view vintage mining equipment. A former clubhouse at the site has been turned into a museum with two floors of exhibits and a gift shop; the park office is also located there.
The park offers bus tours that take visitors along the same route that miners traveled. The tour stops at the operations area where some of the large equipment used for mining can be seen. A fossil tour is also offered. Fossils from the Cretaceous period can be found and kept by visitors. Both tours are about an hour and a half in length and are offered on weekends from Memorial Day through Labor Day weekends. There is a fee to take these tours. Check with the park to make sure that tours are being offered as tours were suspended due to COVID-19 concerns.
For those interested in biking, access to the paved Mesabi Bike Trail is available as the trail crosses the southwest corner of the park.
A fee is required to enter the park. A Minnesota state park day use or annual permit can be purchased at the Park Office. A link to the Minnesota DNR website for Hill Annex Mine State Park can be found here.
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