Elizabeth Fries Ellet Interpretive Trail
Wilderness in the city

The City of Eden Prairie, Minnesota owes its name to Elizabeth Fries Ellet, the East Coast writer who visited the area in 1852. In her travelogue book, Summer Rambles in the West, Ellet described the Minnesota River Valley which adjoins the current day City of Eden Prairie as the garden spot of the territory.
The celebrated valley of the Minnesota River–called St. Pierre by the French, and until recently, St. Peter’s—extends in a general direction from west to east, and, with the country along its tributaries, forms the garden spot of the territory.
Writers & Readers Common Grounds
Ellet, Historian, Writer, Feminist

Who was this woman?
History and legacy informed every fiber of Elizabeth Fries Ellet. Being a writer was not an acceptable role for women in that era, but Ellet followed the passions of women before her, who were adept at crafting words into images of 18th and 19th-century life, some writing anonymously under male pseudonyms in order to be accepted and then published posthumously. Ellet pursued her passion for writing and published her first book, Poems, in 1835 at the age of sixteen.
Bug City: Make a Bug Fourth Event
Eden Prairie’s 4th Hometown Celebration

Bug Tent at Round Lake Park July 4th. Volunteers needed (must be accompanied by parent if under age 18)
•Live Bugs
•Write Shaped Bug Poems and Create Bugs in a Jar
•Take a selfie with Butterfly, Lady Bug Wings
• Create your own Buggy Face Art
Bug City: Make a Bug is sponsored every year by Eden Prairie Metropolitan Ford.
Winning Writers…
Submission Guidelines

Winning Writers Submission Guidelines
- All submission opportunities must be in English and are open to all who live in the United States 48
- All submissions must be submitted via Submittable at https://wrup.submittable.com/submit
- All winning entries will be published online only
- No submissions will be accepted via email
- Please include contact information and bio with your submissions
- Submissions that don’t follow the guidelines will not be considered
- Writers Rising Up reserves the right to declare no winner or winners
- Writers own all rights to their writing
- Winners only must submit (color optional) head shot, and four high quality jpeg images related to your work that will be published on our blogs
- No multiple submissions
- We do not accept submissions from writers who have their own pay for view/purchase web site for their work
Wilderness in the City Events
Outdoor Excursions on the trail

Wilderness in the City Nature Hike
Saturday October 21st from 3-5pm
Location: Elizabeth Fries Ellet Interpretative Trail
More info on our Events Page.
Past events at the EFEIT can also be found at the City of Eden Prairie’s website.
You can also check out some of our past excursions on our blog.
Wilderness in the City needs a sponsor!