Editing Excelsior, Minnesota (section)

==History==
The first [[Euro-Americans]] known to have visited Lake Minnetonka were two teenage boys, [[Joseph R. Brown|Joe Brown]] and [[William Joseph Snelling|Will Snelling]], who canoed up [[Minnehaha Creek]] from [[Fort Snelling|Fort Saint Anthony]] in 1822.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ci.edina.mn.us/PDFs/AboutTown/L4-91_AboutTown_2002Winter.pdf |title= |website=www.ci.edina.mn.us |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718121451/http://www.ci.edina.mn.us/PDFs/AboutTown/L4-91_AboutTown_2002Winter.pdf |archive-date=July 18, 2011}}</ref>

Minnesota's territorial governor [[Alexander Ramsey]] officially named Lake Minnetonka in 1852. He had been informed that the Dakota called the lake ''Mní iá Tháŋka'' ("the-water-they-speak-of-is-large").<ref name="Durand 1994 p.60">{{cite book | last=Durand | first=Paul | title=Where the waters gather and the rivers meet : (ó-ki-zu wa-kpá) (to meet, to unite) : an atlas of the eastern Sioux | publisher=P.C. Durand | location=Prior Lake, MN | year=1994 | isbn=978-0-9641469-0-7 | oclc=32050105 | page=60}}</ref> The next year, a group of settlers from [[New York (state)|New York]] established Excelsior, the lake's first white settlement. The former Excelsior Township was named after the hamlet.

During the late 19th century, the Excelsior and Lake Minnetonka area was home to several popular summer lake resorts.

Streetcars were used in Excelsior as a part of the [[Twin City Rapid Transit Company]] system until 1932, when the line was cut back to [[Hopkins, Minnesota|Hopkins]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.steamboatminnehaha.org/history.html |title=Steamboat Minnehaha History |website=www.steamboatminnehaha.org |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150523071627/http://www.steamboatminnehaha.org/history.html |archive-date=2015-05-23}}</ref>

===20th century===
A large [[dance hall|ballroom]] called "Danceland" (later "Big Reggie's Danceland") stood across the street from Excelsior Amusement Park from the mid-1920s to 1973. Operated by Ray Colihan, it hosted performances by [[Lawrence Welk]], [[Fred Waring]], and the [[Andrews Sisters]] in the 1930s. On May 3, 1963, the [[Beach Boys]] performed at Danceland. Beach Boys singer [[Mike Love]] remembered the performance as a significant moment for the band in a 2019 interview. According to Love, people "were breaking the windows to get into [Danceland] because it was sold out... I said to one of my bandmates: 'This must be like when Elvis was starting out.'"<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.startribune.com/how-the-beach-boys-caught-a-wave-on-lake-minnetonka/509644232/ | title=How the Beach Boys caught a wave on Lake Minnetonka | website=[[Star Tribune]] | date=May 9, 2019 }}</ref> On June 12, 1964, [[The Rolling Stones]] played Danceland for an audience of 283.<ref name="Keller">{{cite book |author=Keller, Martin |title=Music Legends: A Rewind on the Minnesota Music Scene |year=2007 |publisher=D Media |url=http://www.minnesotaseries.com/ |isbn=978-0-9787956-1-0 |page=10 |access-date=January 3, 2010 |archive-date=May 17, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100517145008/http://minnesotaseries.com/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> It has been speculated that Excelsior resident [[Jimmy Hutmaker]] inspired [[Mick Jagger]] to write the 1969 song "[[You Can't Always Get What You Want]]" after a chance encounter at a local drugstore earlier that day, but this claim has long been disputed.<ref name="Thiede, Dana 2007">{{cite news|author=Thiede, Dana|title=Excelsior loses tie to rock and roll history|year=2007|url=http://www.kare11.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=266626|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130103164259/http://www.kare11.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=266626|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 3, 2013|work=KARE 11|publisher=Multimedia Holdings|access-date=January 2, 2010}}</ref>

In 1974 President [[Gerald Ford]] purchased a [[golden retriever]] named [[Liberty (dog)|Liberty]] from Excelsior resident Avis Friberg.<ref>[http://www.grweekly.com/cgi-bin/webdata_pro.pl?_cgifunction=form&_layout=print&keyval=dogdirectory.alphanumeric_name%3DHonorsFoxfireLibertyHume Honor's Foxfire Liberty Hume - Golden Retriever Weekly] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928161558/http://www.grweekly.com/cgi-bin/webdata_pro.pl?_cgifunction=form&_layout=print&keyval=dogdirectory.alphanumeric_name%3DHonorsFoxfireLibertyHume |date=2007-09-28 }}</ref>

===21st century===
Over the years, Excelsior's downtown historic district has been home to many businesses, including hotels, restaurants, and merchants. Since 2010, restaurants and eateries have come to dominate the town's commercial landscape. Excelsior is known for maintaining its historical identity. Beyond the downtown district, it also retains much of its [[Victorian architecture|Victorian]]-era housing stock. Strict building codes are enforced in order to preserve this identity.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.startribune.com/excelsior-grapples-with-preserving-its-quaint-identity-amid-new-construction/560282972/ | title=Excelsior grapples with preserving its historic identity amid new construction | website=[[Star Tribune]] | date=September 14, 2019 }}</ref>

The Excelsior Commons and Lake Minnetonka are central amenities to the community and major draws for tourists. The [[Minnesota Streetcar Museum]], a local [[transport museum|transportation museum]], maintains a [[heritage streetcar]] line in Excelsior and operates three restored [[streetcars]] on the line: Twin City Lines No. 1239, Winona Power & Light Co. #10, and Duluth Street Railway No. 78.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://trolleyride.org/about/rolling-stock/|title=Rolling Stock|website=trolleyride.org|access-date=6 August 2019}}</ref>