Spirit of Dubuque Virtual Cache
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(virtual)
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This is a special virtual rewards cache. As a result, there is no container to find or logbook to sign. Instead, you will be required to visit the listed coordinates and provide proof of your visit as explained below.
This cache takes you to the Julien Dubuque Monument overlooking the mighty Mississippi River in the Mines of Spain Recreational Area. It marks the burial site of the founder of the city of Dubuque. During your visit, you will have the opportunity to learn about the history of both the city of Dubuque and the life of the man it was named after.
Park hours are 4:00am to 10:30pm. (In the winter time, the gate to the driveway might be closed. If so, you may need to add about 0.2 miles to your walk and about 1 full star to the terrain rating.) Placement of this cache has been approved by Mines of Spain Iowa DNR.
To verify that you have visited the site, you must:
a) send the cache owner a message providing the words to replace the 6 blanks in the below text which can be found on plaques located at the parking and final coordinates and
b) post a picture of yourself or your group (faces not required) with the monument in the background
when you log it as “found”.
In fairness to all geocachers, any log not supported with the above proof will be deleted. Please do not include the answers in your log. You do not need to wait for my approval to post your log.
At the main parking lot coordinates, you will find a plaque with this information:
HISTORIC DUBUQUE . . . Historic Dubuque -- the Key City of Iowa -- formed a part of what became French Louisiana when Joliet and Marquette paddled by in 1673. Perrot taught the Miami Indians how to mine lead here in 1690. France ceded Louisiana west of the Mississippi to Spain in 1762, placing this area under Spain. Frenchmen mined lead here during the ___1___ .
. . . The Fox Indians granted Julien Dubuque the right to work the lead mines in 1788 and this right was confirmed by a Spanish Land Grant in 1796. Dubuque, the first permanent settler in Iowa, died in 1810. His tomb is on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi below Dubuque.
. . . Sturdy lead miners drew up the Miner’s Compact (the first code of laws in Iowa) on this site in ___2___ . Permanent white settlement began here in 1833 following the withdrawal of the Fox Indians. The first survey of the city limits was made that fall.
. . . Dubuque is a city of many firsts -- the first church and the first ___3___ and public hanging (1834), the first newspaper and the first bank (1836). The town was incorporated in 1836. Dubuque, city and county, had 31,164 inhabitants in 1860.
At the listed coordinates near the monument, you will find a plaque with this information:
Julien Dubuque and the Mines of Spain. . . Julien Dubuque was born on January 10, 1762 at Trios Rivieres near Quebec, Canada. In 1788, he established a trading post and lead mining smelter at the mouth of Catfish Creek. He was active in fur trading and lead mining with the Mesquakie (Sac & Fox) tribe who lived nearby. According to the legend, Dubuque married Potosa, ___4___ of Chief Peosta. Julien Dubuque died on March 24, 1810 and was buried by the Mesquakie (or Meskwaki) with tribal honors overlooking Catfish Creek and the Mines of Spain. In 1897, the Old Settlers Association erected the 25 foot tall limestone monument that exists today known as the Julien Dubuque Monument.
. . . Dubuque’s right to the land was originally obtained from the Mesquakie in an agreement dated September 22, 1788 and signed at Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin. On November 10, 1796, Julien Dubuque obtained an official land grant from the Spanish Governor, Baron de Carondelet in St. Louis. The Spanish grant included 73,324 acres of land. It stretched for ___5___ miles north and south of Catfish Creek and nine miles west. This area shown on early 18th Century maps as “Lead Mines” (mine de plomb) became known as the “Mines of Spain”.
From this point, you can also view the following Dubuque area landmarks with the spotting scope and plaque positioned just a few feet away:
1. Court House
2. Shot Tower
3. Eagle Point Park
4. Sinsinawa Mound
5. Nine Mile Island
6. ___6___
Virtual Reward - 2017/2018
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between August 24, 2017 and August 24, 2018. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards on the Geocaching Blog.
Additional Hints
(No hints available.)