Established in 2022, River Whale Review is headquartered at Minnesota State University, Mankato. Since then, we have published two issues a year and a special editor’s choice anthology issue showcasing works from 2022–2023.
What is the River Whale?
In 1999, a Minnesota State University, Mankato professor created a fake website about Mankato for an information literacy class, which included a visitor’s letter regarding a whalewatching expedition to see a migrating “Mankato Bottlewhale” inhabiting the Minnesota River. Unfortunately, some unlucky travelers saw the website and took it at face value. Some tourists came all the way from Kansas and Canada to see the supposed Mankato Bottlewhale, and one even drove six hours. Since then, the river whale has lived on as a local legend.