Travel to and from Paynesville to Lake Koronis was by horse or by walking. In 1892 an account read, “Lake Koronis is more popular this year than ever. Almost any day you can see picnic parties or outing parties on the water or shores, and Geo. Haines’ livery does a land office business from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. If he hadn’t the very best of horse-flesh, he couldn’t stand such a rush.”
An interesting tidbit was printed in 1893 about a person’s invention for the water. “Val. Kray has a pair of water shoes, with which he can walk around on the water like a mosquito. They are quite an institution, but like the duck’s feet, would not be just the thing for dancing a clog.”
Picnicking was standard practice in 1894. “Don’t forget the picnic at Lake Koronis this evening. The ladies of the Episcopalian church will serve supper (near the new boat house), from 5 to 6 p.m. Only 10 cents. Ice cream and cake 5 cents.”
Camping and boating were two recorded activities in 1895. “Mr. and Mrs. R.P. Gilbert and Miss Hattie are having almost as much of a camping spree as the regular cottagers and tenters. They go to the lake nearly every pleasant morning, and remain all day. Yesterday they eclipsed all records, getting up at 4 a.m. and arriving in Koronis Park before the residents of that place were up. Mr. Gilbert is preparing a site on which to build a neat cottage. It will be located on a beautiful eminence at the south-east corner of the Park.” This short article on a boating incident was found. “Last Monday Dr. Chalmers and wife, and Rev. T. C. Hudson and wife went out on the lake for a pleasure trip on the doctor’s handsome new steamer, ‘Lady of the Lake.’ All went lovely until they reached a point near Camp Brog when from some unknown cause the engine refused to perform its duty and the boat stood as still as the Rocks of Ages. Fortunately kind friends came to their assistance and they were soon relieved from their unpleasant situation.”
By 1899 more and more people were discovering Lake Koronis. However, at that time a shortage of accommodations existed. “O.F. Metzroth of St. Cloud, said to a Press reporter the other day, ‘You have an ideal place here for a flourishing little city but you will never have it until you wake up to the fact that Lake Koronis is a treasure in itself and proceed to make something out of it. I intended bringing my family and some friends over for an outing but there is no inducement to do so on account of lack of accommodations. No hotel, no boats, no nothing. I could have gotten board at Mr. Gilbert’s but it was conditional and depended on whether this one or that one who was ‘soon expected’ would come and there was nothing certain. A hotel is the first thing you need and until you open the lake to the outside world New Paynesville will never grow...’”
These short glimpses into life at Koronis a hundred years ago reflect the common thread of feeling that there is no place like a view from the lake.
Information for this column was found in the following issues of The New Paynesville Press: July 14, 1892; August 24, 1893; July 12, 1894; August 8, 1895; July 28, 1899.