Get the latest Graeser Park new announcements, preservation updates and events.

This Depression-era Lilac Way park in Robbinsdale, MN has one of only two remaining beehive fireplaces.

MnDOT’s Historic Roadside Park Program preserved the park in 2020-21.

Late spring delays MnDOT's 2022 Graeser Park preservation project

Late spring delays MnDOT’s 2022 Graeser Park preservation project

May 1, 2022. Graeser Park’s preservation project, launched by MnDOT in fall of 2020, will continue when spring arrives. It was a drizzly 43° when I visited on May Day. The average temperature is 64°, so we are quite a bit behind schedule. Already completed is initial preservation of the historic beehive fireplace and reconstruction…

MnDOT: Graeser Park preservation project continues in fall of 2021

MnDOT: Graeser Park preservation project continues in fall of 2021

October 2, 2021. At 80 years old, Graeser Park in Robbinsdale is a scenic wayside rest with noteworthy historical significance. While it has suffered neglect over the years, much of the original park is still intact, including A large flagstone terrace Limestone curbing and walls An enchanting rock garden The iconic beehive fireplace MnDOT project…

Take your own Lilac Way tour—three parks, eight miles, no entrance fees.

Take your own Lilac Way tour—three parks, eight miles, no entrance fees.

A summer 2021 Lilac Way tour is the perfect escape, and it’s free! Stop in at Graeser Park, Rock Island and restored Lilac Park—all located on an 8-mile stretch of Highway 100. Bring a lunch, family and friends, and see the heroic preservation efforts of dedicated volunteers and MnDOT. These three Insta-worthy historic Depression-era parks…

How much did a Lilac Way stone picnic table cost in 1938?

How much did a Lilac Way stone picnic table cost in 1938?

Cool find! MnDOT’s Historic Roadside Property Program Manager noted something interesting in a 1938 MnDOT Belt Line report showing the cost of creating a Lilac Way stone picnic tables. The seven original Lilac Way parks each had these unique stone tables. The parks were built alongside Highway 100 during the Great Depression, providing work for…

Tree removal brings light to Graeser Park's rock garden

Tree removal brings light to Graeser Park’s rock garden

3.29.21. Graeser Park got a little TLC from MnDOT this week. Four diseased and damaged volunteer trees in the rock garden were removed on Monday. They included a boxelder and mulberry on the slope near W. Broadway, and two elms near the rock garden pond. The elm roots were causing damage to the stone paths…

Join the Graeser Park Get Together - Sunday March 7th, 11am - 1pm

Join the Graeser Park Get Together – Sunday March 7th, 11am – 1pm

Join other Lilac Way fans at historic Graeser Park on Sunday March 7th, 11am – 1pm. This is an impromptu pop up event after a long winter. The weather will be almost 50°, so let’s get out of the house to celebrate a rare warm March day in Minnesota. We could all use a diversion.…

Graeser Park's 2020 preservation by Jeannine McDonald

Graeser Park’s 2020 preservation by Jeannine McDonald

Jeannine ‘Niner’ McDonald has been volunteering to preserve Graeser Park since 2008. As a Robbinsdale Lion, she joins group cleanup days but also spends a lot of time on her own, weeding and digging in the early morning hours. Thanks to a global pandemic, this PhysEd teacher at Jenny Lind Elementary School in Minneapolis was…

Take a virtual walk around Graeser Park's rare beehive fireplace

Take a virtual walk around Graeser Park’s rare beehive fireplace

11.24.20 See Graeser Park’s rare beehive fireplace in Robbinsdale, MN Take a virtual walk around Graeser Park’s rare beehive fireplace on a rare sunny November day in MN. One of only two remaining beehives built by the WPA, it’s the only one in its original location. Community efforts are growing to restore this historic Depression-era…

Graeser Park: MnDOT installing picnic tables, removing invasive plants in 2021

Graeser Park: MnDOT installing picnic tables, removing invasive plants in 2021

MnDOT’s Historic Roadside Property Program has committed resources to provide repairs and cleanup for this historic Lilac Way park in summer 2021. New MnDOT maintenance project will precede title transfer to City of Robbinsdale. After speaking with park supporters and seeing community enthusiasm, Historic Roadside Property Program (HRPP) Manager Andrea Weber dedicated funding to improve…

Graeser Park title transfer from MnDOT to Robbinsdale looks promising

Graeser Park title transfer from MnDOT to Robbinsdale looks promising

Sept. 7, 2020. A recent interview by Neil Pursley at CCX Media sheds new light on the long-awaited land title transfer for Graeser Park. Watch the video above or read the transcript below. You can also read the CCX article. Speaking with Robbinsdale City Manager Marcia Glick and MnDOT’s Historic Roadside Property Program Manager Andrea…

Graeser Park excavation uncovers lost 1939 staircase

Graeser Park excavation uncovers lost 1939 staircase

August 26, 2020. With a hobby background in archaeology and many volunteer hours, Robbinsdale Lion Beth Good uncovered a lost Lilac Way handcrafted stone staircase. In 2018, she uncovered the path and wall leading to the stairs and part of the V-shaped retaining wall. In 2019, Beth found the wall near staircase and the ‘Promontory…

Lilac Way featured in new video by historian Joanna Dowling

Lilac Way featured in new video by historian Joanna Dowling

7.26.20. Exciting news! Our own Lilac Way is featured in historian Joanna Dowling’s new “Along The Way: Midwest Waysides and Rest Stops” video. This well-written and researched film documents the places we stop when we are on the way to somewhere else. Scroll down to watch video The Lilac Way section starts at about 9:00,…

John Zieba presents Lions Club service and Graeser Park stewardship

John Zieba presents Lions Club service and Graeser Park stewardship

Nov. 26, 2019. November’s meeting of the Robbinsdale Historical Society featured John Zieba of the Robbinsdale Lions Club. Scroll down to see photo gallery. Organized in 1939, this local Lions Club has a strong commitment to helping the community through financial support and action. All of the help they provide is either voluntary or funded…

Wells Fargo volunteers cleanup Graeser Park

Wells Fargo volunteers cleanup Graeser Park

Oct. 4, 2019. Graeser Park was the lucky recipient of efforts by a Wells Fargo volunteer group. Beth Good, Kim Brimley, Nestor Quarshie and Jennifer Kodet joined Robbinsdale Lions Kent Brun and Rene Buchanan to help maintain this historic 1939 Lilac Way park. Wells Fargo is big on supporting communities, so they give their employees…

View photos of Graeser Park structures unearthed in summer 2019

View photos of Graeser Park structures unearthed in summer 2019

August 17, 2019. The Robbinsdale Lions Club led an amazingly successful year at Graeser Park. They have unearthed many original 1939 WPA-built Lilac Way structures, including a picnic table platform, pathways to a buried staircase to Broadway Avenue, the back wall to a path wall and multiple bump-out areas. These were all designed by Landscape…

Non-profit group formed for future Graeser Park fundraising

Non-profit group formed for future Graeser Park fundraising

May 18, 2019. More Graeser Park good news! The new Graeser Park Restoration & Preservation (GPR&P) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization with one mission – fundraising to restore Graeser Park.

View ‘Lilac Way Stories’ presentation online

View ‘Lilac Way Stories’ presentation online

April 12, 2019. Did you miss Karen’s ‘Lilac Way Stories’ presentation in February? Restore Lilac Way’s own Karen Laukkonen presented ‘Lilac Way Stories: History, Restoration and Graeser Park’s Beehive Fireplace’ at the February 19th meeting of the Robbinsdale Diggers Garden Club. If you missed it, you can view the full presentation. Or, just check out…

Graeser Park beehive fireplace gets protective fencing

Graeser Park beehive fireplace gets protective fencing

March 28, 2019. This can only be good news! For the first time in four months, I impulsively stopped by Graeser Park in Robbinsdale, MN. As I pulled up,

NEW LOCATION! Beehive Musical event, Sept 4, 2018

NEW LOCATION! Beehive Musical event, Sept 4, 2018

MOVED TO Wicked Wort Brewing Co. due to rain.

Join a Graeser Park clean-up on Sat. June 9, 2018 from 8-11am!

Join a Graeser Park clean-up on Sat. June 9, 2018 from 8-11am!

Love Lilac Way? Become a Graeser Park Beehiver! Join an amazing group of volunteers to give Lilac Way’s Graeser Park a cleanup, and see all the work they have already completed.

When restored, Graeser Park will need some new signage.

When restored, Graeser Park will need some new signage.

When Lilac Way’s restored Lilac Park had a grand opening in St. Louis Park, MN in 2009, it included new information signage. When I designed that signage through Laukkonen Design, it featured WPA-era graphics and short blocks of info that told the story of Lilac Way and the park’s restoration.