History
The story of Grant, MN & how Dellwood Barn Weddings came to be...
The Barn
The Dellwood Barn, previously known as the Arcand Farm, was homesteaded in the 1860's. It operated as a dairy farm for five generations of the Arcand family. 150 years after its commission, the barn is now renovated into one of the finest wedding venues in the Minneapolis / St. Paul area.
The transformation from a dairy barn to a wedding venue didn't happen over night. In the early 2000's Dellwood Barn Weddings was no more than just a dream, but a decade later work began. The end result is nothing more than spectacular with the perfect fusion of old world charm and the modern amenities.
The City of Grant, MN
“In 1858, Minnesota became a state. In the same year Grant became one of the very first organized townships in the state.
Prior to 1858 pioneers began arriving in the area mainly from New England and New York lured by the lumber industry and potential farmland more productive than the stony, exhausted farms of the Northeast. When Minnesota gained its statehood from its status as a territory, there was a sufficient enough population in the Grant area to allow the establishment of a township government.
The original township was the standard 36 square miles (36 sections) running westward from present day Manning Avenue to the Ramsey County line. Grant’s original name was Greenfield Township named after a resident’s hometown in Massachusetts. During the Civil War (1861-1865) several young men from the community served in the Union Army. By 1964 President Lincoln had appointed Gen. Ulysses S. Grant as Commanding General of the Union Army. Hope was in the air that the Union would finally triumph. There was another Greenfield Township located in Hennepin County. So with the twofold purpose of eliminating a duplicate name and honoring a war hero, the resident renamed the township as Grant.
Over the first 60 years a pattern of settlement took place. The eastern 2/3 of Grant was agricultural. The western 1/3 situated on or near White Bear Lake developed into cottage and residential areas. In the early part of the 20th century this difference in lifestyle came to a head. In 1918 the western portion separated from Grant and became Lincoln Township; the more settled communities in that area incorporated over the year to become Mahtomedi, Dellwood, Willernie, Birchwood Village, and a portion of Pine Springs. There are even small parcels of the original township located along the East County Line Road that are a part of the city of White Bear Lake.
In 1972 the balance of the southern portion of Lincoln Township merged with Mahtomedi. The remaining rural part of Lincoln which included portions of Sections 5 and 6 had rejoined Grant making up our northwest corner. Present day Grant consists of 27 square miles (approximately 17,000 acres).”
- by Gene Eastlund. From the book: Growing up in Grant: History of the City of Grant in Washington County (2010)