History Lake Minnetonka

1 history

1.1 history
1.2 glory years
1.3 golden years
1.4 late 20th century

history
early history

the first people inhabited lake minnetonka area indigenous natives migrated region @ end of last ice age circa 8000 bce. later peoples inhabited area between 3500 bce , 1500 ce referred collectively mound builders because constructed large land features serving spiritual, ceremonial, burial, , elite residential functions. mound builder culture reached apex circa 1150 ce , ceased exist circa 1500 ce.

by 1700s lake minnetonka inhabited mdewakanton people, subtribe of dakota nation. although primary settlements lay within minnesota river valley, mdewakanton frequented lake minnetonka hunt, fish, , collect maple syrup. spirit knob, peninsula near present-day wayzata, held spiritual significance mdewakanton. following dakota war of 1862, however, dakota banished minnesota , forced leave area.

the first euro-americans known have visited lake minnetonka 2 teenage boys, joe brown , snelling, canoed minnehaha creek fort saint anthony in 1822. 3 subsequent decades, however, few other euro-americans visited lake or knew of existence.

lake minnetonka officially named minnesota s territorial governor, alexander ramsey, in 1852. had been informed dakota used phrase minn-ni-tanka (“big water” in dakota language) refer lake. excelsior, lake s first settlement, established following year. first steamboat on lake minnetonka, small side-wheel steamer named governor ramsey, launched in 1861. travel lake minnetonka remained relatively difficult, however, until saint paul , pacific railroad extended line wayzata in 1867.

peter gideon, minnesota horticulturist, moved lake minnetonka area in 1853. in 1868 bred species of apple withstand minnesota s harsh winters , named wealthy in honor of wife. breakthrough made possible later developments of haralson , honeycrisp apples in 1922 , 1974, respectively.

glory years

the construction of hotels , boarding houses near lake minnetonka boomed during 1870s , 1880s. first large hotel on lake, hotel saint louis in deephaven, built in 1879 , offered 150 guest rooms private verandas. larger lake park hotel completed in tonka bay later year. largest hotel ever built on lake minnetonka, hotel lafayette in minnetonka beach, opened in 1882. @ 800 feet (244 m) long , 5 stories tall, hotel lafayette had on 400 guest rooms. many guests hailed deep south , spent entire summers on lake enjoy natural beauty , cooler climate.

large steamboats became prevalent on lake minnetonka during time. first inland steamboat ever equipped electric lights, city of saint louis, assembled in wayzata in 1881 , began servicing lakeside communities , resorts later year. largest vessel ever operate on lake minnetonka, belle of minnetonka, launched , put service in 1882. @ 300 feet (91 m) long, belle of minnetonka purportedly accommodate 2,500 passengers.

the lake s first yacht club, minnetonka yacht club, founded in 1882 in deephaven. hazen burton, 1 of club s original founders, credited commissioning development of racing scow. when debuted first racing scow, onawa, in 1893, disqualified winning every regatta entered. rules modified, however, , racing scows became popular within sailing community worldwide. onawa on display @ excelsior-lake minnetonka historical society museum in excelsior.

many of lake minnetonka s visitors began finding new places vacation railroads expanded westward in 1890s, causing of lake s hotels , steamboats suffer financially , cease operations. hotels burned during time, demolished or dismantled. 1900, however, increasing number of families had begun construct private summer cottages around lake minnetonka. permanent homes , grand estates began appear around lake twin cities metropolitan area grew. of these homes , cottages still exist, including thompson summer house in minnetonka beach.

golden years

express boat hopkins on lake minnetonka circa 1912

in 1905 twin city rapid transit company (tcrt) extended streetcar line village of excelsior on lake minnetonka s southern shore. lake saw dramatic change in 1906 tcrt opened big island park on big island , debuted express boat service. express boats, casually referred “streetcar boats,” floating streetcars served lake s summer residents. 6 (and later seven) of these steamboats connected 26 landings around lake excelsior, passengers transfer onto streetcars bound twin cities. many streetcar boat passengers lakeside residents commuting jobs in minneapolis , saint paul. tourists, on other hand, board 1 of 3 large ferry boats bound big island park, picnic, enjoy live music, , ride several attractions. excessive operating , maintenance costs, however, caused tcrt close big island park 5 years after opening it.

ridership on streetcar boats began plummet when roads improved in area in 1920s. steamboat service on lake minnetonka grew evermore limited during time, , 1926 tcrt had suspended steamboat service on lake. rid of vessels, tcrt scuttled 3 of 7 streetcar boats in deep water north of big island summer. 3 of other boats scrapped shortly thereafter, , 1 sold , used excursion boat until it, too, scuttled in 1949. streetcar service excelsior continued until 1932.

crane island, island near western shore of lake, organized summer cottage retreat in 1907. crane island association platted number of lots around perimeter of island , dedicated commons area @ center. many of island s original cottages remain, , today historic district listed on national register of historic places.

several of area s prestigious social clubs, including lafayette club, minnetonka country club, , woodhill country club, founded during period.

late 20th century

excelsior amusement park opened in excelsior in 1925. attractions included fun house, silver streak, scrambler, carousel, picnic accommodations, , roller coaster called cyclone. rolling stones performed live @ park s danceland pavilion in 1964 crowd of approximately 300. excelsior amusement park continued popular tourist destination until closed in 1973. today site occupied condominium complex , maynards restaurant.

before gaining national fame in 1940s, laverne, maxene, , patty andrews of andrews sisters vocal trio spent summers relatives in mound, town in area known westonka, , returned there later in life.

in 1946 mound metalcraft established in mound. company changed name tonka toys in 1950s, when became known manufacturing toy trucks. tonka toys purchased hasbro in 1991 , no longer based in minnesota.

two f4 tornadoes ravaged lake minnetonka area during tornado outbreak of 1965, causing damage in communities of mound, navarre, , deephaven. hundreds of homes destroyed , several deaths reported during outbreak.

the steamboat minnehaha, 1 of streetcar boats scuttled in 1926, raised bottom of lake minnetonka in 1980, restored, , returned service 1996. operated museum of lake minnetonka, minnehaha once again carries passengers between communities of excelsior , wayzata did on century ago.