Lake Itasca had really no greater
claim to be considered the head of the river than Cass Lake, or
Bemidji or Winnibegoshish, all larger and finer lakes than Itasca.
Above and beyond Itasca lay another lake. This, with its feeding
springs, was the source of the mighty river, and this lake, if it
existed, Captain Glazier resolved to visit and explore. After a
long and severe journey he reached it, being the first white
traveller to float upon its surface; and after thoroughly examining
its feeders and the narrow stream through which it flowed into
Itasca, he felt that he had found the _true source_ of the
Mississippi. Nevertheless, he continued his explorations along the
river below Itasca after passing through that lake, and satisfied
himself thoroughly that the new lake was at the head of the main
stream. In speaking of the source of the Mississippi, therefore, we
should henceforth call it LAKE GLAZIER instead of Lake Itasca."

The following description of Lake Glazier from the pen of Channing Paine
appeared in the _Dubuque Herald_ of September sixth, 1881:

LAKE GLAZIER.

"The new-found source of the Mississippi is a sparkling little gem
of a lake, situated above and beyond Lake Itasca. It nestles among
the pines of an unfrequented and wild region of Northern Minnesota,
many miles from the nearest white settlement, and just on the
dividing ridge which forms the great watershed of North America.
Within a few miles of it can be found lakes and streams, whose
waters are tributary to the Red River of the North and the
Yellowstone, thus reaching the sea thousands of miles from the
mouth of the mighty Mississippi, which flows in a limpid brook from
LAKE GLAZIER. This lake, discovered to be the source of one of the
greatest rivers of the world, by Captain Willard Glazier, on the
Twenty-second of July, 1881, is about two miles in greatest
diameter, and would be nearly round in shape but for a single
promontory, whose rocky shores give it in outline the form of a
heart. The waters of the lake are exceedingly clear and pure,
coming from springs, some being at the bottom, but the three most
prominent rise a few miles back, in low, wet land enclosed by
sand-hills, and flow into the lake in little rills. On the very
point of the prom