Our family remembers filling jugs of water at the Fredrick-Miller Spring to fill our aquarium when we lived in Eden Prairie over 20 years ago. After meeting family at Staring Lake Park last week some of us went on to check out the spring and see if it had changed. Nope. Fredrick Miller dug a trench to divert the spring from the other side of the road to make the water available to the public in 1890… and it is still flowing, free to anyone, in 2020.
The Miller family purchased it when Fredrick died and although numerous area bottlers wanted to market the water, they continued to maintain it privately and keep it open to the public. In 1968 it was deeded to the city of Eden Prairie, along with about 1/10 of an acre. The city made improvements in 1972 and 2003 and maintains it as a park amenity, including testing the water once a month for bacteria. It has been closed due to bacteria only once since the city has been maintaining it… and it looks much as it did in 1890.
There isn’t a big parking lot, but it isn’t needed… cars keep streaming in and out, filling their jugs with the fresh, free spring water and going on their way.
It is located at 9995 on the east side of Spring Road (County Rd 4), 1/4 mile north of Flying Cloud Drive, on the edge of the Prairie Bluff Conservation Area with over 3 miles of trails. It’s not far from famous Lion’s Tap burgers if you want to make an outing of it.
Sharlene Hensrud, RE/MAX Results – shensrud@homesmsp.com
