The Duck River and Columbia

The Duck River and Columbia. The river has always been connected to the life of the city.. , The river runs as a narrative through our history - its thread plays within the stores of farming, war, food, recreation, contemplation, and relaxation. It has been both a barrier and a road, for many it is a blessing , for a few it has been a curse. , Floods-overlook beside Fraser's Place , As the river rises during its cyclic winter floods, people come to stand beside it, not to enter, but to marvel at its power and force. The floods bring the prospect of immediate destruction, but also provide renewing and sustaining nutrients to the fields along its banks. , Pillow Park , Dr. Robert Pillow owned the floodplain fields here along the river. He donated them to become a park, where ball games were played, exhibitions were held, and quiet anglers caught their supper. It was here, in the early 1900s, that a place was dedicated so that children could grow up strong and healthy. , Dam , The river here has been dammed since the early 1800s. At first it was a grist mill that used the river's power to operate the mill stones. In 1926, the mill dam was replaced with this one, and was designed to provide electrical power to the city. Today, it forms a reservoir for the city's water system. , "I felt a long time before I knew, that the river had shaped the land. The whole country leaned toward the river. All the streams flowed to it, it flowed by, and yet it stayed. It brough things and carried them away." -Wendell Berry