Posted: 6/26/02

Turn-of-the-century tourists began FL vaction tradition

(Editorís Note: The following Reflections column was first published on June 4, 1981 and is reprinted here as part of the newspaperís on-going coverage during its 100th year.)

Elsie Vogel
Times Correspondent

ìGoing out to Forest Lakeî has been a popular trip for city people since before the turn of the century.

The appeal of the lake and the fresh country air was as strong then as it is now.

They found nature at its finest. There were three crystal clear lakes surrounded by thick forest and natural underbrush.

They could hear the songs of the different birds and the plaintive call of the loons on the lake. No doubt there were eagles soaring in the sky, while the ducks skimmed across the water.

In the early morning the deer would emerge from the woods and drink at the waters edge, unafraid of any danger.

There was the occasional splash of walleye rising from the water.

Transportation

It wasnít a long journey out here, more tiring of course if our visitors came by horse drawn wagons or carriages, but coming out on one of the daily trains was becoming the popular way to travel.

Alighting from the train, they found many forms of transportation to choose from. There was a launch they could board at the boat landing which would dock wherever one wished to disembark, or there were horse drawn carriages, wagons and surreys available to bring the passengers to the hotels, campgrounds or cottages.

Lodging

There were several options for our summer visitors. They could enjoy the fabulous accommodations of the first summer resort hotel, the Marsh Hotel, on North Shore Drive, which catered to world travelers and city people.

Later other hotel choices included a summer hotel, plus four cottages, built in 1876 on the west side of the lake, by H.D. Gurney.

On the south shore of Forest Lake was the large Forest Home Hotel, owned by Victor and Hulda Berggren. This hotel was started in 1879 and was in operation for 34 years.

There were two hotels a short distance away from the lakeshore, the Euclid Hotel, north of our business district and the Windsor Hotel on West Broadway.

Fire in 1963 destroyed another landmark hotel, Vogels, which in its early days was known as the Forest View Hotel.

We have one last remaining hotel structure, the Forest Laker, and its empty rooms on the second floor are a sad reminder of the busy hotel days.

All of these places offered lodging and good food. In addition, some served beer and liquorÖthere were indeed plenty of places for our visitors to stay.

Camping

ìCampingî has always had a big appeal for people who love the great outdoors and this was a pleasure that many, many people experienced.

Whether it was for a week or a weekend, they packed up their white tents, cooking utensils, bathing suits and fishing poles and boarded one of the passenger trains, destination ìForest Lake.î

Neighboring Clear Lake offered city tenters several good spots, among them the Dan Kueger area, with pasture, lake and woods. Later Bill Kosanke had the land.

ìLindquistsî was one of the popular camp sites on the east side of Forest Lake, in the vicinity of the present Carl Morey residence. What a beautiful spot that was! Because of it Lindquist had several nicknames, such as ìLindquist the Bee-manî and ìPeonyî Lindquist. His bees feasted on the big lilac hedge, lovely peonies and fruit tree blossoms that added so much to this natural setting.

Camp Life

Camping, basically has not changed very much from the 1800s to the presentÖit is possible that some things never change?

Weíll try to recall the happy days of early camping at Forest Lake.

The smell of bacon frying over an open campfire would stimulate the appetite and awaken any sleepy heads in camp.

What a gourmet dinner could be prepared by simply frying the freshly caught fish!

Chores, such as trying to clean the smoke blackened cooking kettles, are also part of the ìfunî of camping.

Just to relax on the bank of the lake, watching the clouds float by and to notice and appreciate the birds and animals is indeed a pleasant way to spend a summerís day.

Bathing suit fashions have drastically changed since the days the ladies shyly donned their daring bathing suits (without even a knee showing) but swimming is still a great part of going camping.

Lively horseshoe games, softball games and playing cards filled many hours.

The evening spent around the campfire was and is always the highlight of camping. Someone starts a song and soon all the favorite tunes are remembered. Ghost stories delight and shiver the little ones. After the children go to bed the adults tell their stories and tall tales about the ìones that got away.î

Roasting wieners on a twig cut from a tree or bush provided a tasty midnight snack before retiring to their tents.

Mosquitoes, the Minnesota biting bird, had to be contended with, without the bug sprays and the lotions of today. They simply used the slap method and smudge fires.

For the campers that didnít come to town on Saturday night, the lively music from the dance pavilion at the foot of Broadway, could be heard across the lake.

End of Vacation

Mr. Alex Erickson, formerly of Forest Lake, recalls Sunday afternoon and evening at the railroad station (meeting the trains was a favorite pastime of our local people).

During that time span, three trains returning from Taylors Falls would stop in Forest Lake to pick up the passengers. These vacationers were loaded down with suitcases, equipment and gunny sacks full of fish.

Each train had about 10 coaches and hopefully there would still be room for more passengers at the next stop, White Bear.

Undoubtedly the passengers were pleasantly exhausted and even a little sunburned, but they had plans to return the next week, perhaps already having made their boat rental reservation.

We have been fortunate indeed to have a photograph of our vacationers at the railroad station, taken about 1904.

Time Marches On

Every summer found more cottages of every size being built around the lake. Wealthy well-known city people also found our area a desirable one and invested in some larger summer homes.

Names like the Villaumes (Villaume Box. Co.) Cardorzos (furniture store), Seegers, Bremers and Munns on the North Shore became familiar around town.

Several of those homes are currently occupied. Bob Waltz owns the large three-story Villaume home on North Shore Drive. A gazebo still stands in the yard, a reminder of a slower paced time.

The big cement stone home owned by Tom Ersfeld previously belonged to a Bremer family.

The Angus Cameron home and Waldreff Estate on Clear Lake were earlier show places and are still attractive.

Cottage Summer Resorts

Forsaking the tents, the new trend was to rent a cottage at the various resorts that started business around the lakes.

A few names to recall in the resort business would be Smith Cottages, Martin Hoekstras Fishermanís Home, Jack Lunzer, Bill and Ellsís, Whitey Olson, Stralstroms, Bowmans Resort, John Sadowski, Singbartels and of course the Cooleys.

There were numerous lake homes with room enough to build cottages to rent by the week or the season, so there were many places for summer people to spend a great vacation.

Summer travelers driving off the highway found two ìCabin Courtsî ñ the Lakeside and Ranís Cabins with overnight or weekly housekeeping cabins. What beautiful settings for the cabin courts along the lakeshore. But yet they were in the downtown area near stores and restaurants.

Lakeside Cabins eventually made way for the Hardware Hank store in April 1978, the last of the original Rans cabins was moved away and that was the end of that era.

Forest Lake Today

ìGoing out to Forest Lakeî to live and play is still a popular thing to do. Vacant lots around the lake are selling for astronomical sums because the desire to own a little bit of lakeshore is very strong.

The people that built those cottages are converting them to year-around homes and becoming permanent residents.

Vacationers driving to Forest lake (no more train travel) could still find one resort, Willow Point, with a few cottages to rent, but many would know about Timms Campgrounds on the south shore of Third Lake.

The modern camper will arrive with motor homes, fifth-wheelers, pop-up tent trailers. And here and there will be a real tent, probably filled with boy scouts, learning to enjoy the rudiments of camping.

Five miles from Forest Lake the people that prefer tenting in the woods would find Trout-Haus Camp Grounds a perfect place. Theyíd even have a chance to fish for trout.

A Great Place to Live

Our lakes are still as beautiful as when our first settlers came, but there are changes of course. The trees are gradually thinning out as more houses are built, the deer are gone.

But we still hear loons and see ducks, a few cranes, numerous kinds of birds. And there is still plenty of room for our graceful sailboats, canoes, pontoons, even racing speed boats and boatloads of fishermen. But we must take good care of these lakes for the future.

Summertime

This past week, Iíve been humming on old song, ìIn the good old summer timeî and with plans for company, fishing, golfing, barbecuing and a mini-trip or two, Iím going to say ìThis is the last column for the summer and the good Lord willing Iíll talk to you in the fall.î

I want to thank all the people that contributed names, dates, experiences and pictures this past year to help us remember the interesting history of Forest Lake. Have a good summer everyone!

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