Tonka Bay, Minnesota

Peter Gideon (1820–1899) was a farmer near Excelsior, Minnesota, United States, who was responsible for breeding apples that could withstand Minnesota's climate. Gideon's farmhouse, now within the boundaries of Shorewood, Minnesota, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Gideon moved to Minnesota in 1853, near Lake Minnetonka, and experimented with planting pear, plum, cherry, peach, and apple seeds. After ten years of experimentation, the harsh Minnesota winters had killed off all of his trees except for one seedling crab apple tree. Seeking advice from a well-known expert in the field, he started corresponding with apple expert Francis Peabody Sharp in Woodstock, New Brunswick, Canada who had employed new, successful methods of hybridization starting back in 1844 (see more here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Peabody_Sharp). Sharp instructed him on the proper methods for hybridizing apples and buying seeds for colder climates, specifically indicating Bangor, Maine as the place to buy the seeds (Bangor, ME is located directly over the border from Woodstock, Canada). Gideon never told anybody about corresponding with Sharp nor gave him any credit for his expert advice. Gideon, being a transcendentalist, just said "an invisible being" came to him in a dream and told him to get some Russian seeds from a company in Bangor, Maine. There is, however, written evidence of Sharp and Gideon corresponding about these matters. Therefore, thanks to the expert advice of Francis Peabody Sharp, he sent back to Bangor, Maine for seeds and scions, and continued his experiments by grafting a scion onto the crab apple tree. From this experiment, in 1868 he successfully selected a variety of apple that he named the "Wealthy", in honor of his wife. In March 1878, Minnesota established a State Experimental Fruit Farm by act of the Legislature which Gideon ran for eleven years, planting many thousands of apple trees and distributing his best seeds across the state. He had been experimenting unsuccessfully with breeding apples for the colder Minnesota climate. This is what led him to seek out the expertise and advice of Francis Peabody Sharp's on how to grow his fruits in Minnesota, using Russian seeds and using new Sharp's new techniques of hybridization. [1] The state farm was located near Gideon's land on Lake Minnetonka, under the jurisdiction of the University of Minnesota. When the farm closed in February 1889 due to conflicts with the University, Gideon lost his job. Gideon later became the first superintendent of a University of Minnesota agricultural experiment station established in 1878. The station was abandoned in 1889, when he retired, but in 1907 the Minnesota Legislature established a fruit breeding farm between Excelsior and Chaska. The fruit breeding farm later became the Horticultural Research Center, which is now part of the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. The center later developed the Haralson apple, introduced in 1922. The Wealthy apple is genetically related to the Haralson, though it took DNA testing to rediscover this fact after extensive hybridization.

Minnesota, more so than any other state, is the focal point for ice hockey in the United States. Since the late-19th century, the cold, winter weather enabled the land of 10,000 lakes to be a natural home for ice hockey and the residents of the state have invested more time, effort and energy into the game than most other regions in the world.

Shorewood is a city nestled in the woods along on the shores of Lake Minnetonka in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 7,307 at the 2010 census. The city was incorporated in 1956. Its area was originally part of the former Excelsior Township. State Highway 7 serves as a main route.

Minnehaha is a steam-powered excursion vessel on Lake Minnetonka in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The vessel was originally in service between 1906 and 1926. After being scuttled in 1926, Minnehaha was raised from the bottom of Lake Minnetonka in 1980, restored, and returned to active service in 1996. The vessel operated uninterrupted on Lake Minnetonka until 2019. It is currently stored in a maintenance facility in the town of Excelsior.

Excelsior ( ek-SEL-see-ər) is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. Excelsior's historic commercial district along Water Street is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and the town has many Victorian-era houses. On Lake Minnetonka's southern shore, the community serves as a local tourism destination for shoppers, boaters, and restaurant-goers. Considered a western suburb of the Twin Cities, Excelsior is about 15 miles (24 km) southwest of downtown Minneapolis. Its population was 2,414 as of the 2020 census. Excelsior's major roadway is Minnesota State Highway 7.

Excelsior Public School is a former school building in Excelsior, Minnesota, United States, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The school was built in the Georgian Revival style between 1899 and 1901 to serve Excelsior during a time of growth in the community. Before this building was built, two other school buildings were located on the site. The first was moved to 321-323 Third Street, and the second was destroyed by fire.The building originally housed grades 1 through 7 in four classrooms on the first floor, and eighth-grade and high school students were on the second floor. At the time of its construction, it was deemed the finest school in rural Hennepin County. By 1908, the school served 308 students, and by 1915 the high school students had moved to a new building on Oak Street.The school bell, mounted in a bell tower, had to be removed from the tower in 1962 because of a decaying structure. It was mounted on a granite pedestal next to the Excelsior Public Library in 1966. In 1964, the school was closed, and later became administrative offices for the Minnetonka School District. The building is currently used for office space.

Galpin Lake is a lake in Hennepin County, Minnesota, in the United States. The northern part of the lake is in Excelsior and the southern part is in Shorewood. Galpin Lake was named for Charles Galpin, a local pastor.

The Thompson Summer House is a house in Minnetonka Beach, Minnesota, United States, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is located on Hennepin County Road 15, across from Lafayette Bay on Lake Minnetonka. The house was built in 1887 for Charles Telford Thompson, an attorney and civil leader, and his wife. It was listed on the National Register as a typical example of the types of Queen Anne summer homes that middle and upper-class Minneapolis residents owned on Lake Minnetonka during the end of the 19th century. An identical house owned by Samuel A. Harris, Charles Thompson's brother-in-law, once sat adjacent to the Thompson Summer House, but was demolished in 1968. In the 1990s, the house faced deterioration from erosion and rot. In an effort to stabilize the foundation and rebuild the wraparound porch while preserving the character of the house, the owners undertook a major restoration project. The project, conducted by Wes Foss, the husband of Thompson's great-great-granddaughter Debbie, was featured on a three-part episode of Hometime on PBS and won an award from the Preservation Alliance of Minnesota in 2005.The house is currently one of the oldest extant summer houses on Lake Minnetonka and is in excellent condition. It is still used strictly as a summer home (as it has always been) and frequently hosts family gatherings.

Excelsior Amusement Park was an amusement park on Lake Minnetonka in the town of Excelsior, Minnesota, United States. The park, which operated from 1925 to 1973, was a popular destination for company picnics and day trips from the Twin Cities.

The Allemarinda and James Wyer House is a Victorian cottage beside Lake Minnetonka in Excelsior, Minnesota, United States. It was built in 1887 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. Its nomination form called it the largest and best preserved of Excelsior's Eastlake style summer homes built around 1880. From 1925 through 1974, it served as the home for managers of the Excelsior Amusement Park.

Minnetonka Beach is a community in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 539 at the 2010 census.

The Old Log Theatre is the oldest professional theater in the state of Minnesota. It is sometimes cited as the oldest continuously operating professional theater in the United States. It is located in Excelsior and is funded entirely by ticket sales and income from its restaurant.