Did "Pig's Eye Landing" Become St. Paul, Minnesota?
There was never a place officially named "Pig's Eye Landing."** The story is a colorful conflation of early St. Paul history.
What Actually Happened
- Pierre "Pig's Eye" Parrant (c. 1790–1872), a one-eyed French-Canadian bootlegger, set up a **whiskey shanty** near present-day downtown St. Paul around **1838**.
- The settlement around it was colloquially called **"Pig's Eye"** (or "Pig's Eye Pandemonium") by riverboat men and traders.
- 1841: Father Lucien Galtier built a log chapel dedicated to **St. Paul** nearby.
- 1849: Minnesota Territory organized; the village was platted and **officially named St. Paul** (after the chapel), becoming territorial capital.
- 1854: Incorporated as a city.
Why the "Landing" Myth Persists
- Steamboats *did* land at the nearby **Lower Landing** (later Lambert's Landing).
- Parrant's shanty was close to the riverbank.
- Later histories romanticized "Pig's Eye Landing" as the city's birth name.
Legacy
- Pig's Eye Regional Park – East St. Paul, on the Mississippi (former dump, now restored).
- Pig's Eye Brewing Co. – Modern craft brewery honoring the rogue.
- Lambert's Landing – Current riverboat dock (Harriet Island).
So: **Pig's Eye → St. Paul (official), not "Pig's Eye Landing."**
Wanderlust World