Almanac: At the Capitol

A select few got to see the reality of a promise made to lawmakers at the Capitol many years ago. The promise was to keep one of the most coveted pieces of real estate in public hands: Lake Minnetonka's Big Island. The public park which Minnesotans once flocked to had been sold to private developers, but the last-minute action of a few politicians saved it for the public.

The governor's Commissioner of Veterans Affairs Clark Dyrud stood on the old steps of the once grand entrance to the old veterans' park to announce the official re-opening of the park to the public. Veterans were on hand along with Sen. Gen Olson, former Rep. Barb Sykora, Hennepin County Commissioner Mark Stenglein and representatives for Congressman Jim Ramstad.

It was the first time in nearly a century that the historic boat the Minnehaha made the trip back to Big Island. It represents something little at the Capitol that produced big results. We included the history of the park and the boat in our series Almanac: Hands-On History, a clip of that can be seen on the August 18, 2006 episode of Almanac. It was nice to experience a historic moment and see the tangible fulfillment of a promise made to the legislature.