When the tourist boom was over and the Hotel Lafayette had burned to the ground, James. J. Hill deeded the land to the founders of the Lafayette Club. Hill was an honorary member when the Club opened in 1899.

That clubhouse, another wooden structure, was visited by members and guests, sometimes well-known and influential guests, for several decades before it, too, burned down in 1922.

The Club's location on a peninsula in Lake Minnetonka assured that a new clubhouse would be built and the present structure was dedicated in 1925.

Since that time, the Grand Old Lady of the Lake has hosted General Ulysses S. Grant, Vice President Adlai Stevenson, President Chester Arthur, President William Howard Taft, and many governors of the State of Minnesota. Adlai Stevenson lived in one of the cottages on the grounds. Chester Arthur used the Lafayette Club for a summer White House.

While the "good bones" of that 1925 facility remain, our Board of Governors has paid careful attention to the preservation of the elegance and function of the Club, while making sure that it is renovated to suit modern tastes, safety standards, and exceptional décor.

Lafayette Club is still "Grand" in every respect.