Dedication
T
his book is dedicated to the five
generations of the Peters family who,
100 years ago, started with a vision,
a dream and hard work to establish a summer
hotel on the east shores of Lake Minnewaska.
Little could Henry and Maude Peters have
imagined in June 1915 that 100 years and five
generations later, the dream continues. With
the help of valued staff, the Peters family has
persevered in good times and in bad to build
and maintain that vision and dream.
This book is also dedicated to the many
wonderful guests of the resort who, through
these 100 years, have come to Peters Sunset
Beach Resort and enjoyed our hospitality.
Much has changed over the past 100 years:
the people, the activities, technology, transportation and the facilities. What remains
constant are the beautiful surroundings, Lake
Minnewaska with the sandy beach offering
swimming, fishing, boating, sailing and sunsets
and a commitment to providing a welcoming
guest experience. The resort mission statement written by Henry Peters in 1915 remains
true today: to offer: “the good life of rest,
recreation, tasty food and good fellowship”. First Generation
H
enry and Maude Peters opened the
resort on June 1, 1915. In the early
1900s, communities and hotels
sprung up along the railroad lines in the western U.S. and Canada. The Soo Line Railroad
ran 15 or more passenger trains each day
through Glenwood on the railway lines above
Lake Minnewaska with connections southeast
to Chicago and west through the Dakotas
and Canada. Henry and Maude Peters, then
newly-weds, moved to Enderlin, North
Dakota, in 1907 when Henry began work as
a passenger train conductor on the Soo Line
Railroad. While running the passenger trains,
Henry, and the others working on the railroad, including the President of the Soo Line,
looked over the beauty of Lake Minnewaska
and observed the surrounding area. To enjoy
their summers, they built summer cottages on
the east side of Lake Minnewaska in the area
known as Camp Dakota.
In 1908, Pierce was born to Henry and
Maude. The young family spent much of
their time during the next summers in their cottage on Lake
Minnewaska with friends from the Soo Line Railroad, Glenwood
and Pope County. Henry and Maude dreamed of a summer
hotel and surrounding real estate development on the east shores
of Lake Minnewaska.
I
n 1912, Henry and Maude moved to Estevan, SK, Canada,
so that Henry could work in the construction business, learn
the trade and put aside savings for establishing the resort.
Estevan was a connection for direct rail connections along the
Canadian Pacific Railway to the coastal ports of Vancouver,
Thunder Bay and Montreal, as well as service to Minneapolis,
Chicago and Kansas City.
Henry and Maude moved to Glenwood and in 1914 organized
a company to build the “Glenwood Summer Hotel” on the
grounds near their summer cabin on the east side of Minnewaska. The Main Lodge was constructed and the new summer
hotel opened with a banquet on June 1, 1915. The Main Lodge
featured twelve rooms on the second floor and the dining room,
lobby and porch on the first.
A young Pierce Peters recalls that 1915 was a “rough go” and that during the coming winter Henry cut cord wood
for sale to make ends meet. The family lived in the hotel kitchen. Business improved in the coming years. Henry
and Maude added numerous cabins and boats. By about 1918, Henry and Maude bought out other stockholders
and renamed the hotel to Peters Sunset Beach Hotel.
Guests arrived by rail to Glenwood and then horse and buggy down to the hotel. Guests enjoyed the rooms and
cottages, fishing, boating, swimming and dining in the Main Lodge. Even while fishing, guests enjoyed their stay in
suits and ties or dresses and nylons. Families came from all over the Midwest.
In the 1920s, Henry and Maude built the
Annex Building with two stories and 8
rooms. Pierce attended the University of
Wisconsin and there met Maxine Giller
from Omaha. Maxine’s grandmother was
Mary Conant, who was the President of
the Conant Hotels Company in Omaha,
one of the most successful chains of
hotels in Omaha. Pierce and Maxine were
married in 1931. Henry and Maude built
the Court Building with an additional 12
rooms.
Second Generation
P
ierce and Maxine Peters were married
in 1931 right out of college and joined
Henry and Maude in managing the
resort during the summer seasons. Pierce had
grown up at the resort during the summers
during the 1910s and 1920s. Pierce and
Maxine were blessed with four children: Ann
(March 1932), Bill (January 1935), Ruth
(August 1937) and Carol (April 1939).
After years of living at the resort during the
summers and in Omaha during the winters,
they moved the family to live at the resort
year-round in 1940.
Guests continued to come to the resort on
Lake Minnewaska from all over. Many guests
came from the Twin Cities and other parts of
Minnesota. Before air conditioning, others
came to the resort to escape the summer
heat from places like Iowa, Kansas, Missouri,
Nebraska, Oklahoma and South Dakota.
Families that continued as guests of the resort
for 5 generations included the Dr. Eugene Robichaux family from Louisiana and Missouri
and the Benjamin Swisher family from Iowa.
Guests enjoyed fishing, swimming and boating
in the beautiful lake with the sandy beach.
The pace of life was slow and relaxing and
month-long vacations were common. Maude
and Maxine helped provide the American
Plan of three meals a day in the Dining Room
with lodging as one package. Large gardens
produced much of the food served. Guests
enjoyed tennis on the court on the main
grounds. Golfing was enjoyed at the nearby
Minnewaska Golf Course in Glenwood,
which Henry helped establish and for which
he served as the first President.
In the evenings, guests enjoyed the Duck
Room for social gatherings, drinks and entertainment. Movies and bingo were offered in
the Sunroom. Lakeside Ballroom in Glenwood held regular Friday dances with the Big
Bands including Sammy Kaye, Wayne King,
the Crew Cuts, Harry James and the Lombardos. The bands often stayed at the resort, but
Pierce’s favorite, Louis Armstrong, had to get
back on the bus for an overnight drive to the
next venue. Through the Great Depression of
the 1930s, the Midwest drought and World
War II, the resort continued to offer guests a
comfortable respite.
In 1944, Northwestern National Life
Insurance Company selected the resort as a
training school for its agents. George Wright,
the son-in-law of Eli Power, who had worked
on the railroad with Henry, approached the
Peters family with the concept of the resort
providing entertainment and facilities for
a training school for agents. For decades,
NWNL held 4 twelve-day sessions per year.
Over the years, hundreds of agents and
executives attended one of the 150+
sessions held here. In the 1950s, the Peters family constructed cabins 106 and 114 at the
resort to offer mid-sized cabins for
families and friends.
Third Generation
B
ill and Mary Peters were married in
1959 and, together with Pierce and
Maxine, continued to operate the
resort. Bill had grown up at the resort and
returned after college and Army duty. Mary
was from Alexandria and was a waitress in the
dining room for several summers up to 1959.
Bill and Mary had three children: David
(September 1960), Jim (August 1961) and
Peggy (January 1963).
Guests of the resort continued to enjoy
Lake Minnewaska with fishing, swimming,
the beach, boating and spectacular sunsets.
The Main Lodge, Annex and Court Building
underwent extensive renovation including
air-conditioning. In 1981, the Main Lodge,
Annex and Court Building were placed on
the National Register of Historic Places.
Two tennis courts replaced the original one.
In the early 1960s, the Peters family decided
to construct a 9-hole golf course. The family
enjoyed golfing and wanted to offer golf to
guests. Pierce began purchasing land for the
golf course, which involved many individual
Peters Sunset Beach Resort Timeline
1915-Main Lodge
1915
1944
Dining Room
Renovated
1925
1931
1944
1920s-Cabins 3, 4, & 5
1944-First Northwestern
National Life Insurance
Company Training Session
1931-Court Building
Opens
1977-Clubhouse
Renovation
2007 Pezhekee Lodge
& Hiawatha Lodge Open
2003-Wedgewood Lodge Opens
1977
1985
1998
2003
2007
1998
Summerset
Purchased
2013-Lodge
Landscaping
2007
Holes #10-13
Constructed
MID 1980’s-Townhouses
2015
woodlots totaling about 50 acres. From 1962 to 1967, Bill Peters
and family constructed the original 9 holes of the golf course with
the help of local contractors who provided the heavy equipment for
earth moving and a pond. A friend from town, Pete Serrin, designed
and constructed the three bridges spanning the ravine that cuts
across the golf course. After playing combinations of a few holes as
soon as open, the Peters family opened the original 9 holes for play
in 1967.
Just as business was a “rough go” in 1915 for the opening season
of the Main Lodge, the late 1960s also were challenging. The resort
partnered with individuals to improve and expand. In 1971, the
resort established a condominium development that allowed private
owners to purchase existing cabins and to renovate the cabins to include kitchens. The resort continued to manage and rent the cabins. Bill and Mary Peters introduced the Sports Special package
plan that included lodging in one of the historic buildings,
two meals per day and unlimited golf. Mary began managing the Dining Room full time in 1973 and, together with
Bill, grew the Sports Special and family vacation business at
the resort with great business acumen and a flair for creating
a fun experience for guests. The golf course and Sports
Special packages became very popular and attracted golfers
from all over.
In 1978, an executive first introduced to the resort through
the NWNL classes constructed Cabin 40 as part of the
condominium. In the 1980s, three executives with ties to
NWNL replaced cabins 3, 4 and 5 on the south lawn of
the resort with two large buildings featuring 10 rental townhouses with resort management and rental.
Bill and Mary Peters directed other renovations and expansions. In 1977, the golf clubhouse was opened with a golf
shop, snack bar, cocktail lounge and racquetball court. The
golf course became so well-liked by guests, golfers from the
area around Lake Minnewaska and the region that it became
overcrowded. In the early 1990s, Bill and Mary Peters decided to expand the golf course to 18 holes. They acquired
adjacent property and directed the expansion with family
and staff again doing the bulk of the work. In the 1980s and 1990s, David Peters transformed the
grounds and lawns with his self-taught exceptional brand
of gardening. Perennial flowers and ornamental trees deliver
beautiful colors all season long.
Fourth Generation
D
avid Peters graduated with a business degree from UMD and has
shared in the management of the
resort since 1982. David and Julie (Rosten)
Peters were married in 1984 and had three
children: Hayley (August 1986), Evan (November 1987), and Gina (September 1991).
In May 2000, David remarried Julie (Darg)
(Quinlivan) Peters, whose family are long
time guests of the resort. They were blessed
with son Sam (March 2001).
Jim Peters joined in the management of the
resort in 1993 after graduating in economics from Florida State, law school at the U
of M and practicing law in Minnesota and
California. Jim and Karna (Johnson) Peters
were married in 1988 and were blessed with
3 sons: Pierce (January 1991), Ben (February
1993) and Jake (October 1998).
Guests of the resort increasingly included
larger family reunions, family gatherings and
golf groups enjoying Lake Minnewaska,
the variety of accommodations, the resort
grounds with all of David’s perennial flowers,
tennis courts, the Dining Room and the
Pezhekee National Golf Course. With the
steady success of the cabins, townhouses and
the Shuster Cabin during the 1970s, 80s
and 90s, the Peters family saw generations
of families spread out across the U.S. getting
together for vacations here at the resort. New
guests hoping to secure rental dates in the
Shuster Cabin involved getting on a significant waiting list.
David and Jim Peters
expanded the family reunion, family gathering
and golf group business
at the resort as a niche.
In 1998, the resort
purchased and renovated the Summerset and
Dundee cottages adjoining the resort and began
offering these for family
reunions, golf groups
and other gatherings as
a single rental capable
of holding 18 people.
In 2003, David and Jim developed and
opened the largest rental building at the resort, the Wedgewood Lodge, which is capable
of housing 24 people with 7 bedrooms, kitchen, dining and large
living spaces all under one roof. Wedgewood Lodge immediately
became the most thriving rental at the resort.
With the changes in golf equipment that allowed players to hit
the ball significantly longer distances, the golf course needed a
renovation to stay current. The Peters family decided to undertake a major renovation of the golf course adding 4 new longer
holes, taking out 4 original holes and modifying another hole.
Additional property was acquired. David and Jim directed the
redesign and reconstruction of the golf course in 2005-2006
with the new layout open in the fall of 2006 featuring an island
green and multiple tee options. The original 9th hole was so fun
to play that the family kept it as the “19th hole”.
As larger family reunions and gatherings of friends continued in popularity, in 2006 and 2007, David and
Jim Peters directed the construction
of the Pezhekee Lodge and the
Hiawatha Lodge, both of which are
large rental units for family reunions
and friends capable of holding 20+
people in each.
Future (Fifth Generation Children)
A
nother generation of family members has grown up helping out. The
“Fifths” have all contributed during
the summers to make the resort a welcoming
and comfortable place for our guests. Hayley,
Evan, Gina, Sam, Pierce, Ben and Jake have
all pitched in for various duties. All started
out working in the kitchen and then moved
to the grounds crew, golf shop, front office,
housekeeping and everything else.
Hayley is now living in Colorado and
working for the USFS as a firefighter. Evan
is back this summer again helping with the
kitchen and the golf course. He is engaged
to Sara Eckmann, who helps in the Dining
Room. Gina lives at the resort, helps out with
the kitchen, front office and housekeeping
as needed, while also working full time as a
nurse at the Glacial Ridge Medical Center
in Glenwood. Sam assists with the kitchen,
grounds and housekeeping. Pierce is back this summer working on the
golf course and in the front office and will
begin medical school in the fall. Ben graduates this May from the Cornell University
School of Hotel Administration in Ithaca,
New York. He will be home for the Centennial Celebrations then begin work in California with The Bay Club Company, which is
based in San Francisco and operates 23 clubs
across California. Jake works in kitchen, front
office and housekeeping.
Our Employees
O
ver these past 100 years, we’ve had
the pleasure to employ hundreds
of people from Pope County and
the surrounding area. It has always taken
the efforts of a fairly large staff to run the
resort and take care of our guests. We want
to thank all of them for their willingness to
step up and help provide guests with a great
vacation experience. We all appreciate the
efforts. Many have been students on their
first job. Until 1977, we had a dormitory
for staff living on the premises. Sometimes,
almost entire families have worked here, such
as the Ericksons (50’s), the Swensons (60’s),
and the Svecs (80’s). Fun and work have
gone hand in hand for 100 summers. As one
former employee said: “Such good memories!
Still the most fun I’ve ever had at a job.”
Legend of Minnewaska Murals
1
1 The Death of Pau wating and Capture of Minnewaska
A Sioux tribe led by Pau wating and his warrior daughter,
Minnewaska, attempted to capture an Ojibway village which lay
on the shores of Waube Mokwa (White Bear*), a lake named for
the young, blue eyed Ojibway Chief. The Sioux tribesmen were
captured or massacred, Pau wating himself met his death on
Sunrise Rock. There too, the intrepid and revengeful Minnewaska became the captive of Chief Waube Mokwa.
* This lake is now Lake Minnewaska.
2
3
2 Minnewaska’s Escape
At the close of the day, after the ceremonies of victory had been
celebrated, Waube Mokwa claimed his prize, the Sioux maiden,
Minnewaska. Adroitly, however, she escaped in a canoe. Later when
overtaken by Waube Mokwa she again defied her captor and with her
paddle struck such a violent blow that he was obliged temporarily to
abandon his pursuit. Early the following morning the Chief found
his captive seriously ill on an island. Tenderly he took her to the
village, entrusting her to the care of the old Nohowa.
4 Minnewaska’s Declaration of Love
Twice during the following months the
ungrateful and revengeful Minnewaska
attempted to take the life of Waube
Mokwa. Meanwhile to the Ojibway village came news of white faced missionaries who had camped on Lake Superior. Waube Mokwa decided to visit them that he might learn
of their ways. On the evening before his departure there was feasting and dancing, followed by a
solemn gathering about the campfire. At this time the Chief gave Minnewaska her choice; freedom
or safe conduct to the Dakotahs. She chose neither but declared her love for Waube Mokwa.
3 Waube Mokwa’s Search for Red Root
Old Nohowa nursed the Maiden faithfully but despaired of her
recovery unless she be given a potion made from the magical red
root. Waube Mokwa traveled far, risking his life many times in
his search for the potent herb. At length successfully he returned
with it to the dying girl and in a few days Minnewaska’s restoration was assured. To Nokowa’s amazement, however, Waube
Mokwa, who had incurred hardship and danger to obtain the
health-giving root, evinced no interest in Minnewaska’s recovery.
5 Departure of Waube Mokwa from Happy Valley
Waube Mokwa accompanied by the faithful Nohawa departed from Happy Valley for the camp of
the missionaries at Duluth, but promised to return within a year to marry his beloved Minnewaska.
The Dining Room features ten beautiful oil paintings depicting the Legend of Princess Minnewaska. In 1944, the Peters family redecorated the Dining Room and commissioned
Gustav Krollmann, a teacher at the Minneapolis Art Institute, to complete the series. These paintings tell the story from the book: “The Tribe of Pezhekee, a Legend of Minnesota”,
written in 1901 by Alice Otilla Thorson. Thorson heard the legend in 1890 from a Native American woman.
6
7
6 Waube Mokwa’s introduction to Christianity
After surviving many perils Waube Mokwa and Nohowa reached
Duluth. There from Father Duffe, the Indian Chief heard for the
first time the story of the Holy Church and Christianity. Efforts
were made by the missionaries to convert Waube Mokwa, but
when, during a thunder storm, the devout cross bearer was killed
by lighting, Waube Mokwa decide to worship forever the Great
Spirit, known to his Indian tribesmen.
8
8 Waube Mokwa’s Discovery
While Minnewaska was keeping her vigil, the desire to return
to Happy Valley took possession of Waube Mokwa and he
determined to leave the missionary camp. On the night previous
to his departure, while he was walking with Father Duffe, a
landslide would have killed him had not old Nohowa interposed
her body to save the live of the young Chief. The dying woman
was taken to Father Duffe’s cell where she revealed her identity as
the wife of Father Duffe and the mother of the blue-eyed Waube
Mokwa. After her death Waube
Mokwa lingered in the settlement to
care for and comfort his newfound
father. Eventually, however, the young
Chief was free to return to Happy
Valley. Heartbroken over finding
Minnewaska ill and seeking solace,
he wandered to the marsh land which
had once been Minnewaska Lake.
To his amazement he found there a
rushing underground stream which
he interpreted as a symbol that the
Great Manitou desired Minnewaska
to live. In his arms he carried his
beloved to the spot. Showing her the
life giving stream and explaining to
her the symbolism. Joyously yielding
10 Call of the Great Manitou
to the will of the Manitou MinneOne calm evening when the path of the setting sun lay upon the water, their
waska
became well once more.
came the call of the Great Manitou to Minnewaska and Waube Mokwa. As
they sat near the lake with their devoted tribesmen around them, a sudden
change passed over the faces of the beloved pair; and although the reverend
people saw no flight of spirits, they knew that these unseparable souls had
gone to the Happy Valley forever.
7 Minnewaska’s Vigil on Mt. Nuska
More than a year passed and the young Chief did not return to
Happy Valley. The lake which bore Minnewaska’s name became
only a misty marsh and simultaneously Minnewaska herself grew
languid and ill. Making a supreme effort she climbed once more
to the summit of Mt. Nuska (Mt. Lookout) to watch for her
lover’s return.
9 Contentment in Happy Valley
For many years Minnewaska and Waube Mokwa lived in peace and contentment
among their people.
20000 S Lakeshore Dr. • Glenwood, MN 56334
(320) 634-4501 • www.petersresort.com