Personal Touches From 1912

This is a one of a kind photo, in the Minnetonka Minute archive.

The image in this article is extremely special, with this one of a kind, never before seen photo taken by an amateur photographer. I’ve had it in my archive for roughly the last month and have been excitedly waiting to bring this photo to the public eye for the first time in over 110 years.

This picture, measuring just 1.5 inches tall by 3 inches wide shows a group of friends visiting Excelsior and posing together in front of the, “Express for Wayzata” sign for the Streetcar Boats. Unfortunately, there’s no definitive way to know which boats are in the background, as all six sister ships were identical in nearly every way.

We can, however, be confident that this was most likely taken in the 1912 season. How do we know this? The Streetcar Boats, Minnehaha being one, had canopies added to their upper decks for the 1912 season. Based on other, yet to be publicized, photos from the same collection we can be confident that this was snapped in 1912. Likely by using a Kodak Vest Pocket camera, which was extremely popular at the time for its portability and ease of use.

The canopies on the Express Boats are a great way to identify if a photo is pre or post 1912. No canopy, the photo is 1906-1911. With canopy, 1912-1926.

This photo is, of course, wonderful to look at on its own. More importantly, however, is the preservation of a moment in history. These, now unnamed, people paid a visit to Minnetonka in much the same way as many of us today. We enjoy the waters, the friends, family, and memories created with those who matter most.