ICE CASTLES AND THE ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA WINTER CARNIVAL

Click the stereoviews for a close up.

"Storming the Ice Palace at Night, St. Paul."
Ingersoll View Company, St. Paul, 1887

The Saint Paul Winter Carnival

The citizens of St. Paul, Minnesota held their first Winter Carnival in 1886 to refute the 1885 New York Times designation of St.Paul as "The Siberia of America" and "unfit for human habitation". The 1886 festival featured an Ice Castle that became the symbol of the carnival.  The 1888 Ice Castle was the tallest building in St. Paul.  It stood 14 stories high and was built of 20,000 blocks of ice.  The 1992 Ice Castle, at 15 stories, was the tallest on record.

According to the Legend of the Winter Carnival, the Ice Castle is the stronghold of King Boreas, God of the Northwind, a deity especially enamoured of St. Paul's winter.  For the ten days of the Carnival, Boreas and his consort, the Snow Queen, and his Court reign,  and merrymaking prevails.  On the tenth day of the Carnival, Vulcanus Rex, God of Fire and the implacable enemy of Boreas, storms the Castle.  On the advice of his queen and in the interest of peace and goodwill, Boreas abdicates, vowing to return the following winter.

Here is a link to the official web site of the ST. PAUL WINTER CARNIVAL where you'll find more information and photographs of many historic Ice Castles.

St. Paul Winter Carnival, T. W. Ingersoll, circa 1888

St. Paul Winter Carnival, Zimmerman & Ingersoll
Official Carnival Photographers, c. late 1880's

"Looking out of the Palace, night view"
H.H. Bennett, St. Paul Winter Carnival, c. late 1880's

"Looking in at Main Entrance to the Palace"
H. H. Bennett, St. Paul Winter Carnival, circa late 1880's

MONTREAL, QUEBEC

"Ice Palace, Montreal, Feb. 4, 1884"
C. Bierstadt/Underwood & Underwood

"A Castle of Glittering Ice--Montreal's Midwinter Carnival, Canada," copyright 1909 by Keystone View Company

NIAGARA FALLS, NEW YORK

"Ice Palace, Niagara Falls, N.Y. U.S. A."
Copyright 1899 by B. L. Singley, Keystone View Company