Erik's Cloud 9

On a recent trip to Waconia to see a movie I was made aware of a former island paradise that litterally used to be called "Paradise Island". It lies in the midst of Lake Waconia and was renamed "Coney Island" in the late 1800s. It was quite the tourist destination in its day for folks from Minneapolis and St. Paul. They would board a train that would drop them off at the shore of Lake Waconia. From there they's board a steam ferry that would take them to the island. At their disposal was a private resort hotel complete with all the luxury ammenities.

From the City of Waconia history page: "Paradise Island, later changed to Coney Island in 1884 by Lambert Naegele , was considered the paradise of the northwest. Development on the island started after Naegele’s purchase with the first full season at the resort in 1885. This was a successful season and sparked further growth on the island. After the ice melted on the lake, construction of another resort started along with a boarding house, several cottages, and a boathouse. Two large steamships traveled back and forth to the island. Many of the residents of Minneapolis and St. Paul were frequent visitors to the resorts."

This was such a hot spot that the University of Minnesota Goper Football Team held pre-season practice sessions on the island in the early 1900s. I'm sure that for an underweight lineman beat up and broken down that an island practice arena was like an early "Alcatraz". Freedom from the grind was at least a long and difficult swim away!

Now it's nothing but a dense forest of large trees and crumbling foundations. I can only imagine the sound the wind makes when it settles upon what used to be Coney Island. Can you hear the screams and laughter of playing children where the old swimming beach used to be? Is the sound of the dining room piano still audible? When the chilling winds of Autumn blow through does the whistle and yelling of a former Gopher football coach bounce off the overgrowth?

I think the story of Coney Island is just another great example of all of the local and regional history to explore as Minnesota celebrates its 150th birthday. For more tidbits of Minnesota state history click on this link: http://mn150years.wordpress.com/category/day-in-histor
y/ .

Always seeking the past,

Erik