Excelsior Amusement Park, Miniature Train 1947, Greeting Card

Excelsior Amusement Park, Miniature Train 1947, Greeting Card by Graphic Designer Rich Sladek.

4.5" x 6.25" folded greeting card, professionally printed on uncoated smooth white 130# thick card stock. Blank inside for your own personal message. Includes white envelope and individually packaged in a clear plastic sleeve.

Amusement park owner, Fred Pearce, drives on the first trip for the park's second miniature train at the Excelsior Amusement Park, 1947.

The Excelsior Amusement Park opened on May 30, 1925 on Decoration Day (now more commonly known as Memorial Day). It is said that 20,000 people visited the amusement park on opening day. The streetcar from Minneapolis delivered visitors to the amusement park, which was located where Maynard's Restaurant, Bayview Event Center/Bayside Grille and The Gables Condominiums stand today. Well-known amusement park owner Fred Pearce spent $250,000 to build the Excelsior Amusement Park.

Standing on 16 acres of land, the Excelsior Amusement Park offered many rides, including the rollercoaster, a carousel, scrambler, chair-o-plane, tilt a whirl, Ferris wheel, caterpillar, boat rides and a miniature train. It also had a fun house with a rotating floor, revolving barrel, slide and house of mirrors.

Over the years, visitors to the amusement park dwindled. The Excelsior Amusement Park closed on Labor Day in 1973. Fred Pearce and his fellow investment partners opened Valley Fair in 1976.

Inspired by vintage-style travel/national park posters of the 1930’s, Rich is working on a collection of original graphic poster art illustration showcasing current and historical Lake Minnetonka and beyond.

- Original artwork by Image Quest LLC