Lakeville Minnesota History & Facts

Lakeville is an exurb of Minneapolis-Saint Paul, and the largest city in Dakota County, Minnesota, United States. It is approximately 20 miles (32 km) south of both downtown Minneapolis and downtown St. Paul along Interstate Highway 35. Starting as a flourishing milling center, its agriculture industry and other major industries are still in operation. Lakeville is one of the fastest-growing cities in the Twin Cities area. The U.S. Census Bureau estimated its population to be 69,490 in 2020.

Lakeville first became notable in 1910 when Marion Savage built the Dan Patch Railroad Line to service his Antlers Amusement Park. While many of Lakeville's workers commute northward to Minneapolis, Saint Paul, and more central suburbs like Bloomington, Lakeville has had major industry since the 1960s—including the Airlake Industrial Park, which is served by Airlake Airport, a regional reliever airport.

A military road was constructed between Fort Snelling and forts to the south. In 1855, J.J. Brackett, a Saint Paul lumber baron and mail carrier using the road, decided to plant a site halfway between Saint Paul and Saint Peter on a lake he named Prairie Lake. The village was established as Lakeville Township in 1858. Notoriety came when Colonel Marion Savage expanded his entertainment business by constructing Antlers Amusement Park in 1910. Riding on fame from his success with the Dan Patch racing horse and the park's popularity, the lake was renamed Lake Marion, and the rail line servicing the park named the Dan Patch Railroad Line.

With the mostly rural landscape, early settlers were farmers. A high percentage were Scandinavian. Other ethnic groups included Irish, Scots, and English, each of whom had spread out from Hamilton Landing and Burnsville. In Karen Miller's diary from 1840 to 1895, Danes reportedly outnumbered Norwegians; travel to Minneapolis was not uncommon for the rural township. Enggren's Grocery was a downtown staple since 1900 until it closed in 2006.

Lakeville's development later in the 20th century followed the typical pattern for the outer-ring suburban Twin Cities. The town was officially incorporated as the City of Lakeville in 1967. It remained primarily agricultural, as postwar development did not immediately absorb Lakeville (as well as Interstate 35's later completion date). In the early 21st century, housing and population increases were due to rising land costs in the metropolitan area, causing Lakeville to become a boomtown.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 37.83 square miles (97.98 km2), of which 36.06 square miles (93.39 km2) is land and 1.77 square miles (4.58 km2) is water. Lakeville includes the Argonne Farms post-World War I settlement project which failed in the early 20th century and was redeveloped in the 21st century into typical suburban retail. Since it was a semi-autonomous village within Lakeville Township before the city's incorporation, it continues to appear today on maps as Argonne.

Famous Peoples From Lakeville Minnesota

Tyler David

(born March 1, 1994) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a defender for Minneapolis City SC in USL League Two and the National Premier Soccer League. David is also the coach for the Marcy-Holmes Rangers in the Minneapolis City SC Futures League.

From 2007 to 2011, David played for the Minnesota Thunder in the United States Soccer Development Academy, captaining the team all five years.

David played four years of college soccer at Saint Louis University between 2012 and 2015, and was named to the Atlantic 10's All-Conference First Team in his senior season.

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