SunThisweek Community Guides Lakeville Community Guide 2018 | Seite 7

LAKEVILLE
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HISTORY
Doug Ohman history program at Heritage Center
History celebrated by locals
Lakeville may have started as a township built on the
edge of Prairie Lake, but it has become one of the fast-
est growing cities in the metropolitan area, thanks to a
number of individuals who contributed to the success of
the its historic past.
Griffi n Phelps is credited as Lakeville’s fi rst settler af-
ter coming to Minnesota in 1853. He is most known for
planting the fi rst rye in the area in 1853 and for being
appointed postmaster in 1854. People from many of the
surrounding cities used to travel to Lakeville for their
mail, helping the area gain notariety.
Around that same time, Capt. William B. Dodd con-
structed a road that connected Fort Snelling in St. Paul
to the southern military forts. It now bisects present-day
Lakeville and was vital in the foundation of the city. The
area was chosen as an ideal place for a town since it was
halfway between St. Paul and St. Peter.
Two years later, J.J. Brackett, owner of a St. Paul lum-
ber mill, platted 250 acres of land and named the city
Lakeville because it was near Prairie Lake. By 1858, the
township became a growing community and was home
to many European immigrants.
The neighboring city of Fairfi eld began to boom with
the construction of a railroad, and residents petitioned
to get the name of Fairfi eld changed to Lakeville. The
Village of Lakeville was later incorporated in 1878, and
the name Fairfi eld was no more.
A majority of Lakeville Township and the Village of
Lakeville united in 1967 to become the city of Lakeville.
At the same time, Airlake Industrial Park opened, al-
lowing businesses to boom.
Antlers Amusement Park
Col. Marion Savage built Antlers Amusement Park
near the railroad line in 1910, and it soon became one of
the most famous amusement parks in the Upper Mid-
west. Prairie Lake was renamed Lake Marion since the
park was located on the east shore, and the railroad was
renamed the Dan Patch Railroad Line after Savage’s fa-
mous race horse.
Thousands of visitors came each year to use the dance
pavilion, playground, tennis courts, athletic fi eld, boats,
diving tower, high sliding chute, aerial swing and beach.
Wealthy southern families came to stay in cabins on the
lake each summer to escape the southern heat.
Present-day Lakeville
Lakeville became a boomtown in the early 21st cen-
tury as a result of rising land costs in the metropolitan
area. Despite its rapid growth, the city has not forgotten
its rich heritage. Several of the original structures can
still be seen today, including the historic village and fi re
hall in downtown Lakeville, which was constructed in
1910.
Community Guide 2019-20 | LAKEVILLE| 7