Preston Overlook is a historic scenic overlook in

Preston, Minnesota Preston is a city in and the county seat of Fillmore County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 1,325 at the 2010 census. The Root River runs through it, and Mystery Cave State Park is nearby. It bills itself as "America's Trout C ...

, United States,

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

History

In 1937–38, the overlook was built by the Minnesota Department of Highways under the program of Federal Relief Construction in Minnesota. The overlook was a product of its times.

The Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank an ...

led United States

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

to create the

New Deal The New Deal was a series of wide-reaching economic, social, and political reforms enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1938, in response to the Great Depression in the United States, Great Depressi ...

, a complex package of economic programs initiated to help the economy recover and put people to work. The overlook was a project of one such plan, the National Reemployment Service. The original idea came from the Preston Women's Civic Improvement Club, which had lobbied for highway beautification. A site was chosen on the highest point on the bluffs above the Root River, below. The overlook was designed by Minnesota landscape architect Arthur R. Nichols in the Rustic Style. The mosaic patterned wall and flagstone walk consist of

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

quarried from below the overlook.This section adapted from the existing NRHP sign on the site. In 2003, the Preston Overlook was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

References

External links

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MNDOT Historic Roadside Development Structures Inventory: Preston Overlook
{{National Register of Historic Places in Minnesota Buildings and structures in Fillmore County, Minnesota National Register of Historic Places in Fillmore County, Minnesota New Deal in Minnesota Parks on the National Register of Historic Places in Minnesota Roadside parks National Park Service rustic in Minnesota Arthur R. Nichols works Scenic viewpoints in the United States