Lakeland Shores, Minnesota, is a small, mostly residential city, population 355. Nestled on the West bank of the St. Croix River, just south of Interstate Highway 94 and surrounded by the City of Lakeland. This small community shares the history of Lakeland Township and the Village of Lakeland.
In the early 1800s, logging interests spurred the first non-native settlements in this area of the St. Croix River Valley. The loggers were followed closely by settlers, supply stores, churches, a saloon and a school. Originally, the area was known as Shanghai Coulee, after the large and presumably tasty Shanghai chickens raised by early settler Freeman Tyler. By the mid-1800s the loggers began to move on, leaving behind a small agricultural and rural residential community.
In 1858, this community officially organized, naming itself Lakeland for the small village of Lakeland which was first platted in 1839. Life remained rural, slow-paced and peaceful. It was not until almost a century later that large-scale development began.
Most of what is now Lakeland Shores was once a single farm, owned by William and Mary Jones. In the 1940s the Jones family had their farm surveyed and began selling off 100 to 150 ft. lots along Lakeland Shores Road. Transforming so much land from agriculture to residential greatly changed the dynamics of the town, and led to a dramatic increase in taxes for the local residents. In protest of the high taxes, and to protect their lifestyle, area residents incorporated their own city, Lakeland Shores, in 1949.
The community has stayed quiet and residential. Spread out on 443 acres between the river and County Road 18, the city has no industry or shopping, but is close to those facilities in other cities along the river. City Council meetings are held the first Thurday of each month at the Lakeland City Hall.
