Chester Creek History

Chester Creek is one of 23 major creek ravines in the City of Duluth. Spring fed, it rises in the area of Rice Lake and Arrowhead Roads and after leaving Chester Park under the 4th Street bridge it is diverted by culverts until it empties into Lake Superior below the Rose Garden on London Road.

Igneous rock sculpted by glaciation and water erosion created the geographical features of Chester Creek. The rock formations found in this general area are part of the core of the continent, The Great or Canadian Shield. This volcanic rock is more than one billion years old, some of the oldest on earth. At the top of the Park is the historic shoreline of Glacial Lake Duluth. The deposits of red clay found throughout the Park were lake bottom sediment, eroded silts from younger volcanic and sedimentary rock washed down by water flows from the retreating glaciers.

Chester Falls. Chester Park, located in Duluth's east end, follows the flow of Chester creek. The park was acquired by the city in 1891, with additional acreage added in 1923. The park and creek were named for Charles Chester, an early settler who built a cabin on the creek above Fourth Street.