(EDITOR’S NOTE: Most information on Eden Prairie’s early history is found in Helen Holden Anderson’s book “Eden Prairie – The First 100 Years.”)

Eden Prairie owes its name to Elizabeth Fries Ellet, an author who, upon visiting this area’s bluffs and prairies at the request of the New York Times, proclaimed this to be the garden spot of the territory.

American Indians were the first residents, but an 1851 treaty opened vast acreage west to settlement. The Mississippi and Minnesota rivers allowed pioneers easy access to what is now Eden Prairie.
The town board of Eden Prairie held its first meeting in a log school/house under the direction of men named Gould, Anderson and Collins on the same day Minnesota became a state – May 11, 1858.
By 1880, Eden Prairie had grown to 749 people living on 19,783 acres of fertile land, which had an estimated value of more than $266,000. The township contained 498 head of cattle 2 years of age or older.

The farming township of Eden Prairie grew slowly over the years. A sign of change to come was the construction of Flying Cloud Airport in 1946. The census taken 14 years later, in 1960, indicated Eden Prairie’s population had topped 2,000 residents.
James Gamble made the first attempt at formally educating Eden Prairie’s children in the early 1850s at his home. By 1857, the number of students required the building of a school. James Anderson donated an acre of land for the building. Today that land is the south parking lot at Eden Prairie Center’s Sears store.

As children were needed at home for farm work, students attended class for three months each year. Because the community was so sparsely populated, four schoolhouses were built. Consolidation of those schools occurred in 1900, amid much community debate. The result of a vote to consider consolidation was 124 in favor, 26 opposed.
After an election and a lawsuit determined the location of the new school, construction began March 10, 1924. Five years later, the first graduating class left Eden Prairie Consolidated School. Today that building serves as Eden Prairie School District 272’s main offices.

The 1960s and ’70s were decades of measured growth. The city’s parks got their beginnings through land acquisition made possible by federal land grants; the park and recreation system has since become nationally recognized. The community took on a more regional importance with construction of Interstate Highway 494 and the Eden Prairie Shopping Center.
As to population, Eden Prairie’s boom hit in the late 1970s and early ’80s. In 1968, city officials drafted a plan still in use today. That plan, the Eden Prairie Comprehensive Guide Plan, helped map Eden Prairie’s development future by calling for a balance of businesses, parks, homes and shopping facilities.

Agriculture, Eden Prairie’s link to the past, is still carried out here but on a much more limited basis and mostly along the Minnesota River and in a few fields in the northern portion of the city. Eden Prairie is also the home of corporate headquarters and prestigious neighborhoods.
Cummins-Grill Homestead
13600 Pioneer Tr.
Listed in the National Register of Historic Places, the Cummins-Grill Homestead was built in 1879 by John R. Cummins, a horticulturist who grew berries and other fruits on land near the house. The house is in the vernacular style, containing elements of the Greek Revival style. It is constructed of local Chaska brick.

In 1908, the house was sold to the Edwin and Harriet Phipps family, which added the kitchen area to the structure. The family passed the house to a married daughter, Mildred Grill. Martin and Mildred Grill occupied the homestead until the late 1970s. The city of Eden Prairie obtained the property as part of the Staring Lake Park land acquisition.
Volunteers have worked over the years to restore the home to its earlier condition. The property also has the original peony garden planted before 1920 by Harriet Phipps; the garden is also being restored.
The Eden Prairie Garden Club took the task of restoring the original peony garden, which had more than 400 individual plants from China.

History Museum
The Eden Prairie Historical Society maintains a museum in the lower level of the Eden Prairie Center, 8080 Mitchell Road. An elevator is available at the main entrance. The museum houses an extensive collection of very old photos, documents, files, records and bound newspaper volumes dating back to the 1930s, as well as artifacts and displays. For more information, call 952-949-8300 or 952-949-8580.