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Lake Itasca

Lake in Itasca State Park near Lake Itasca, MN

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Lake Itasca is a small glacial lake approximately 1.8 square miles (4.7 km2) in area. It is notable for being the headwaters of the Mississippi River, and is located in southeastern Clearwater County, in the Headwaters area of north central Minnesota. The lake is within Itasca State Park and has an average depth of 20 to 35 feet (6–11 m), and is 1,475 ft (450 m) above sea level. The Ojibwe name for "Lake Itasca" is Omashkoozo-zaaga'igan (Elk Lake); this was changed by Henry Schoolcraft to "Itasca", coined from a combination of the Latin words veritas ("truth") and caput ("head"), though it is sometimes misinterpreted as "true head". It is one of several examples of pseudo-Indian place names created by Schoolcraft.

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