Minnesota, it is well known, is a State of lakes, and the picture which Mr. Rogers has given in this week’s issue of the WEEKLY depicts a gay moonlight scene at Lake Harriet, one of the small, picturesque resorts near Minneapolis. The drive at Lake Harriet, which consists of a firm, pebbly shore, is one of the favorites in that part of Minnesota, and the gay throng so admirably represented in the picture may be seen there almost any evening in summer. The people of the Northwest have little need to go away from home during the hot months for purposes of health or recreation. On the contrary, many of the best-known residents have erected beautiful cottages near the various lakes, where they entertain par ties of friends from a distance throughout the season; and this, together with the brilliant summer life of the hotels, forms a population at once varied and interesting. The opportunity for character study is very rich at Lake Harriet, as it is at other summer resorts.
The fair young equestriennes, whose youthful figures fit so gracefully into the scene, are doubtless the heroines of many a pretty romance, while the equally interesting occupants of the carriages are the representatives of many charming phases of life, of which some of the happiest homes in the nation furnish the harmonious background. Among the men’s figures may presumably be traced some of the most substantial citizens of Minneapolis, whose indomitable industry and energy have been prominent factors in the wonderful development of that healthful and growing city.
A city which furnishes so vast a region with that most necessary of all commodities, the one from which bread is manufactured, may well be proud of her chief industry, and of the stal wart men who protect and encourage it by their vigilant and unceasing attention to business. The tourists who mingle in the throng represent many different nationalities, professions, and types of life. As a rule, they are a much-travelled people, but nowhere have they found a more invigorating atmosphere than that which greets their senses along the shores of Minnesota’s lakes. As for the natural beauty of the scene, it can hardly be surpassed. Lake Harriet, al though small, and not so well known as Minnetonka and Minnehaha, is yet one of the most picturesque spots in the region, lying within easy driving distance to the southwest of Minneapolis. Just how the lake received its name is not accurately known, although tradition has it that the first school teacher in Minnesota bore the name of Harriet, and it is more than probable that this good woman thus left the State a legacy which will be perpetuated forever. Among the small neighboring lakes are those known as Cedar and Calhoun, which, with Lake Harriet, share a wide-spread reputation for exceptional beauty of landscape. Lake Calhoun has always been known in Minnesota as the classic lake, because of the existence of several beautiful legends, which some poetic genius conceived in the early days. The shores of these lakes are com posed largely of gravel and pebbles, which form a firm, solid road-bed, and their waters are shallow, cool, and clear, being peculiarly free from the boggy marsh and the treacherous morass which characterize the lake waters of the South. Lake Harriet is connected with Minneapolis by a motor line, which makes it easy of access to all classes. A cemetery, which attracts a great deal of attention on account of its romantic situation, lies between lakes Harriet and Calhoun.
-Harper’s Weekly
Journal of Civilization
September 27th, 1890
