The Past: Steamboat Minnehaha and her five identical sisters were built in 1906 by the Twin City Rapid Transit Company, linking Twin City streetcar routes to Lake Minnetonka. Service ended in 1926 and Minnehaha and two of her sisters were scuttled in the lake off of Big Island. Minnehaha was raised in 1980, restored, and returned to service as an excursion boat in 1996.
In October 2019, Minnehaha lost access to a privately-owned commercial boat ramp for launching and hauling-out and was dry-docked in her Excelsior boat barn. She has been carefully maintained by dedicated volunteers, added to the National Register of Historic Places, and underwent a hull restoration funded by a $104,000 grant provided by the State of MN from the Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund through the Minnesota Historical Society. Simultaneously, a thorough search was conducted for a new launch ramp and storage facility site that would meet Minnehaha’s unique size and weight requirements.
The Present: LMHS has been exploring a Three Rivers Park District site at Lake Minnetonka Regional Park in Minnetrista as a possible solution. A site and engineering feasibility study has been completed by the Minneapolis engineering firm WSB and the site was found to be compatible with Minnehaha’s needs for a new winter home and launch ramp.
Moving Forward: LMHS has launched a capital campaign to cover construction costs for the storage building, launch ramp, and an endowment fund. The project will require approval from multiple regulatory agencies as well as formal lease and site use agreements with Three Rivers Park District. A volunteer crew will be recruited and during summer cruising seasons, passengers will board Minnehaha at a Lower Lake public dock and cruising routes throughout the lake will be developed.
LMHS has been granted permission to use Minnehaha’s original ramp one more time to send her on her way to her new home when it is completed. IF the site remains available i t’s expected that Minnehaha will be back in service and fully operational on Lake Minnetonka as an excursion boat and floating museum by 2028. But time is of the essence. If the original launch ramp becomes unavailable, a relaunch will be extremely difficult.
Help Us Re-Launch History!
Join the Lake Minnetonka Historical Society as a member to stay in the loop and to support our mission: Telling the story of Lake Minnetonka by collecting, preserving and sharing its history.
LakeMinnetonkaHistory.org/membership.
Use your time, talent and connections to return Minnehaha to active service. Volunteer at LakeMinnetonkaHistory.org/volunteer, or contact us at info@LakeMinnetonkaHistory.org, 952-474-2115.
Interested in Learning More?
With a path forward for Minnehaha taking shape, Lake Minnetonka Historical Society is beginning conversations with community members interested in helping bring this vision to life.
If you would like to learn more about the plans for Minnehaha or discuss a leadership gift to support this effort, please contact:
Liz Vandam
co-president@LakeMinnetonkaHistory.org
952-474-2115.
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