Lake Minnetonka - Latter 20th Century

Latter 20th Century

The Excelsior Amusement Park (not to be confused with Big Island Amusement Park) opened in Excelsior in 1925. Attractions included a funhouse, the Silver Streak, the Scrambler, a carousel, picnic accommodations, and a roller coaster. The Rolling Stones performed live at the Park's "Danceland" Pavilion in 1964 for a crowd of approximately 300. The Excelsior Amusement Park proved to be a very popular tourist destination until its closure in 1973. Today the site is occupied by a condominium complex and two restaurants.

In 1946, Mound Metalcraft was established in Mound, Minnesota, a town near the northwestern end of the Lake (an area known as "Westonka"). It later changed its name to Tonka Toys. The Company is no longer based in Minnesota.

Lake Minnetonka was mentioned in the 1984 Prince film Purple Rain during a scene in which Prince's love interest attempts to "purify" herself in the waters of the Lake. After she enters the water, Prince reveals that the water she has entered is not actually Lake Minnetonka. Dave Chappelle (as Prince) mocked that scene in an episode of Chappelle's Show when he asked, "Why don't you purify yourself in the waters of Lake Minnetonka?" Since his rise to fame in the 1980s, Prince has lived in the area but never on the Lake itself. He has had a home on Lake Ann in Chanhassen.

In 1980 the Steamboat Minnehaha, one of the beloved "streetcar boats" that had been scuttled in 1926, was raised from the bottom of the Lake and completely restored by 1996. This piece of Lake Minnetonka history once again carries passengers between the cities of Excelsior and Wayzata as it did over a century ago. It is currently the only steam-powered vessel-for-hire based in Minnesota. See Museum of Lake Minnetonka.