The Legacy of Excelsior

The Legacy of Excelsior. . , [Caption:] Map Circa 1856, For centuries prior to the arrival of European settlers, the Dakota were among the sole human inhabitants of the Lake Minnetonka area., The name "Minnetonka" is taken from the Dakota word for "Big Water"., In August of 1852 George M. Bertram met Robert B. McGrath at the St. Charles Hotel in St. Paul. Bertram had just returned from Lake Minnetonka which had only recently been rediscovered. Bertram recruited McGrath to help settle the town site of Excelsior. Bertram returned to his home in New York City and constituted the Excelsior Pioneer Association in November of 1852. In 1853, McGrath arrived as the first resident of Excelsior. A carpenter by trade, he erected the first building in Excelsior for Bertram. In May of that year, a large portion of the Association arrived under the leadership of Vice President George Galpin. The Association was composed of farmers, mechanics, three schoolmasters, a lawyer, doctor, and minister among others. As part of their membership, each was allowed one city lot and a farm plot in the village outskirts., Excelsior has been a tourist town since its inception - a tradition that continues today. Shortly after its rediscovery in 1852, tourists began arriving on the shores of Lake Minnetonka - initially as adventurous sportsmen interested in hunting and fishing on the edge of modern civilization. As the community became established, the cool and healthful climate and [...???...] tourists, mainly from Ohio and the Mississippi River Valley. The large rivers provided easy transportation to Minnesota and the area climate was a refuge from the sweltering heat of southern locales. The Southern elite retreated to Lake Minnetonka in increasing numbers until the tourist trade peaked in the mid 1880's. New hotels and boarding houses appeared all around the lake with each passing year. During this period, large hotels were built, such as the Lafayette, Lake Park, St. Louis and Del Otero. As the principle city on the lake, Excelsior had over thirty-five hotels and boarding houses to accommodate visitors. Large excursion steamboats such as the Belle of Minnetonka and the City of St. Louis were built for the lake's tourist industry. These steamboats carried over 1,000 passengers and conducted flamboyant parties, complete with orchestra, at night., After the depression of the 1890's, Lake Minnetonka became a local resort for the Twin Cities' upper class. This was spurred on by the expenditure of $1.5 million by the Twin City Rapid Transit Company after the turn of the century. The TCRTC built a new streetcar line to Excelsior in 1905, launched streetcar steamboats, (i.e.. the Minnehaha), opened the Big Island Amusement Park and operated the Tonka Bay Hotel across from Gideon's Bay in Excelsior. By 1912, the amusement park had closed and the hotel demolished, signaling the end of the grand resort industry. With the demolition of the Tonka Bay Hotel, the last of the large hotels disappeared. Most of the smaller hotels had also closed or were destroyed. By the end of World War I, all that remained were a few boarding houses and cabin camps. By the early 1920's, most of the lake's streetcar boats had been scuttled and in 1932 the streetcar line was abandoned in favor of busses., A resurgence in Excelsior's tourist industry occurred in 1924 with the opening of the Excelsior Amusement Park. For fifty years it brought day tourists to Excelsior from all over the metropolitan area and beyond. After nearly a twenty-year hiatus, Excelsior's tourist industry has been reborn in the form of excursion boats., Today, Excelsior has once again become a lake attraction to tourists from all over the world. As a dynamic, thriving community, the legacy - begun so long ago - lives on.