Minnesota's landlocked town of Willernie once drew gangsters, funseekers

WILLERNIE, Minn. – If you've never heard of the town of Willernie, you're not alone, even though it's located in the middle of Washington County. 

But between famous gangsters and a famous amusement park, Willernie has quite the history.

Even Mayor Barb Parent herself has a hard time finding anyone who's heard of her little hamlet. Part of that is because Willernie is land-locked, completely surrounded by the city of Mahtomedi. Sort of like a donut hole within a donut. 

"We have a city maintenance superintendent and we have a city clerk/treasurer…That's it," Parent said. 

Because it's surrounded, the population is pretty much the same as it was 100 years ago – about 520 people. But a lot has happened in those 100 years.

"Ma Barker was here. Dillinger was here," Parent said. 

"Running alcohol from Wisconsin. Supposedly Somerset, Wisconsin to St. Paul," said Bob Holly. 

Holly is 85 years old and he has been a Willernie resident most of his life. He even lives in the same home he grew up in. But we caught up with him in front of the house Ma Barker and her gang used as a hideout, right around the time of Prohibition.

"This was a very nice area by the lake where they could spend summers, and just enjoy themselves and take timeout from their 'other' activities," Holly said. 

They might have enjoyed the Wildwood Amusement Park. In the early 1900s, thousands of people would hop on street cars, for just a few cents, and ride them to Wildwood. The park had a pavilion, a Ferris wheel, and the mighty Pippin roller coaster. Next door was a giant waterslide that went into White Bear Lake.

It was all gone by the time Holly was a kid. But part of the structure still remains, you just can't see it from shore.

"You'd swim out and underwater you could see down there. You could see the concrete footings," Holly said. "It was a very nice place to be in the summer and it still is, obviously."

Like a land-locked Mayberry. Generation after generation has taken pride in knowing the town was designed by homesick immigrants, who built Willernie to look like an English village.

"A lot of streets are very narrow because they just fit the horse and carriage," Parent said. 

Too narrow for mailboxes, which is why the post office is such a busy place.

"We are a fiercely independent little place and we like being our own town," Parent said. 

And it shows. Because of its location, the town itself can't grow. But the neighborhoods still can.

"It's still a front porch community. Where we know our neighbors and we look out for our neighbors," Parent said. 

Willernie is just 88 acres. During their annual golf tournament, one of the prizes the city gives away is an historic tour of the town. One of the residents in a golf cart is the tour guide. It's a little bit of what you might call an ironic tour.