Our Lady of the Rivers gets its name from the three rivers that meet a few miles from the site, the Mississippi, Missouri, and Illinois. Portage des Sioux was named for the two mile canoe portage that crossed through the future town site when the Sioux Indians would canoe between the Mississippi and Missouri rivers. The portage site save them an extra 25 miles of canoe travel along the rivers. In 1799, French settlers named the path Portage des Sioux, and a town developed along the path. The shrine itself has been built in memory of the flood of 1951. A group of townspeople gathered to pray for the safety of their town should the levee break in St. Charles. When the dam did break, the town was still miraculously spared when the water broke into two arms just before reaching the town. On October 13, 1957, the 3000 pound, 25 foot tall statue of Mary was erected along a causeway by the riverfront.
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