Lake Minnetonka History
1670's French Trappers refer to Minnetonka as "lac gros" in the "grand bois," "Big lake in the woods"
1819 Ft. Snelling is established as north-westernmost army post on the U.S. frontier
1822 Fort Snelling teens, Joe Brown & Will Snelling paddle up Minnehaha Creek and discover Lake Minnetonka
1851 Important "Traverse de Sioux and Mendota Treaties" are signed with Indians, opening way for pioneer settlement
1852 Simon Stevens and Calvin Tuttle re-discover Lake Minnetonka, build dam and sawmill at Minnetonka Mills
1853 First Hotel in lake area opens, locate at Mtka. Mills. Governor Alexander Ramsey visits lake. After learning that Indians call it "min-ni-tanka," he officially names it Minnetonka. Pioneer Association headed by George Bertram arrives from New York and settles Excelsior
1854 The "Pre-emption Privilege Act" is extended to Minnesota Territory. Allows settlers to stake a claim. Village of Wayzata is laid out by Oscar Garrison and Alfred Robinson. Cook House built in Mound.
1855 "Song of Hiawatha" is published by Longfellow. Puts Minnehaha Falls and Minnesota on the map. First stagecoach begins operation from Wayzata to St. Anthony and St. Paul, operates three times weekly. Cholera breaks out in Wayzata First death is recorded
1857 Ginseng plants found growing wild. Digging the sought-after medicinal roots brings quick money to many
1858 Minnesota admitted to the Union. Becomes the 32nd state on May 11, 1858
1860 Rev. Charles Galpin of Excelsior builds first steamboat, name the "Governor Ramsey." Lincoln elected president
1862 Indian uprising at New Ulm panics local settlers, many head for safety at Fort Snelling. Others board boats to Big Island
1867 Railroad comes to Minnetonka, first train arrives at Wayzata on the 25th of July
1868 First propeller steamboat, the "Sue Gardiner," launched by Charles Gardiner
1869 Following the Civil War, visitors begin arriving from the deep south. Area seen as healthy, cool nights, and beautiful
1876 Editor A.S. Diamond begins publication of Lake Minnetonka Tourist. Chapman House opens in Mound on 4th of July
1879 Sir Charles Gibson opens Hotel St. Louis in Deephaven. First major hotel on the lake, 200 rooms. Huge Lake Park Hotel at Tonka Bay is also completed and open
1881 1000 passenger, 160ft. "City of St. Louis" steamboat, owned by W. D. Washburn, launched at Wayzata on June 4th
1882 Not to be outdone, James J. Hill builds enormous Hotel Layfayette at Mtka. Beach. Also commissions "Belle of Minnetonka" The 300ft steamboat dwarfs all others. Great rivalry develops with the "City of St. Louis" Minnetonka Yacht Club is organized. George Brackett becomes first Commodore
1883 Glory years at Minnetonka are here. Hundreds of visitors arrive weekly. 10,000 guests were registered in the three major hotels during June & July
1885 With his railroad tracks now reaching Spring Park, J. J. HIll opens Hotel Del Otero. One of the largest on the lake. It will survive for the next sixty years. Keeywaydin Hotel also opens in Cottagewood
1892 Heyday of the big steamboat is drawing to a close. "Belle of Minnetonka" remains tied to the dock all summer. An incredible new sailboat the "Onawa" is designed and built ini Deephaven by Arthur Dyer from the Burton family. The "Onawa" sweeps every race in which it is entered
1893 Hill feuds with Wayzata about location of tracks on lakeshore. In spite, he relocates depot to the edge of town
1897 Hotel Lafayette destroyed by fire. The Glory Years are ending. One by one, the fabulous hotels & huge steamboats are disappearing. Guests from the South and East are going elsewhere 1904 Excelsior Casino opens on the shore at the foot of Water St. Features a bowling aley, restaurant and a roller skating rink
1905 Golden Years arrive. Excelsior residents awake to the rumble of streetcars on Water Street. Thomas Lowry's Twin City Rapid Transit Company is about to forever change Lake Minnetonka
1906 Six unique, fast Express Boats resembling their yellow streetcar cousins, are launched in Excelsior, and begin new shuttle service to anywhere on the lake. TCRT also opens a Picnic and Amusement Park on Big Island. Minnetonka once more comes alive. J. J. Hill relents and constructs new train depot at Wayzata. Said to be the finest on the line
1911 First bridge spans the Narrows replaceing hand operated ferry. President WM Howard Taft tours the lake and makes Lafayette Club his summer White House. TCRT abruptly closes Big Island operations at end of season. Ferry, excursion boats and island structures are dismantled
1925 Excelsior Amusement Park opens. Has a roller coaster, merry-go-round, ferris wheel, a fun house and other attractions
1926 Ridership has fallen off sharply. Streetcar boat operations are suspended. Three boats, including the "minnehaha," are sunk in deep water off Big Island
1945 Hotel Del Otero burns on July 4th. Last of the big hotels, the end of an era
1973 Excelsior Amusement Park closes on Labor Day, September 3, after forty nine seasons of operation
1976 The Gray Freshwater Biological Institute is built on the shores of Lake Minnetonka by the Freshwater Foundation and given to the University of Minnesota.
1986 The last of the sewage treatment plants discharging into Lake Minnetonka is closed. Since this closing both phosphorus and nitrogen levels in the lake have dropped substantially.
1987 Eurasian Water Milfoil is first identified in Lake Minnetonka.
1989 Eurasian Water Milfoil forms a dense canopy up to 15 feet thick in parts of the lake. The Lake Minnetonka Conservation District dedicates the Hattie Mae, the first of four $70,000 milfoil harvesters for the lake.
1996 Discovered, raised and restored, the steamboat "Minnehaha" is returned once more to passenger service on the lake
