Ramsey County History – Spring 1989: “Boats, Boaters and Boat Clubs—Slips Cost 10 Cents a Foot”

Boats, Boaters and Boat Clubs—Slips Cost 10 Cents a Foot
Author: Thomas J. Kelley

Two short pieces in one, this article centers around Navy Island, the history of the Minnesota Yacht Club, and memories of the Minnesota Boat Club. The Yacht Club began in 1912 as the St. Paul Motor Boat Club. Its key function was to supply slips, but it was also a social club. Over time the slips moved from Navy Island (now Raspberry Island) to the Holman Field area and finally to the harbor north of Harriet Island in 1962, where they now remain. In the 1930s, attorney Thomas C. O’Brien, an early member, wrote his memories of balls, races, picnics, stunts, shinny games, and straw rides.

PDF of Kelley article