Thanks to West St. Paul Chiropractic and Blue Sky Bookkeeping for their support.
The McDonald’s playland came to West St. Paul in 1975, drawing children from all over the metro. The unique and iconic playground, with its signature train, created memories for a generation of children before disappearing by the early 2000s.
West St. Paul’s McDonald’s
Originally opened in 1961 by Gerald McKay, the West St. Paul McDonald’s was the fifth McDonald’s in Minnesota and 291st in the world.
Playland
Built in 1975, the playland included 18 pieces of playground equipment modeled after McDonald’s characters. The half-acre park is believed to be the second largest playland, behind one in Hawaii, and the first in Minnesota.
“It’s the most memorable of anything in West St. Paul,” said John Ramsay, who helped build the playland…