Venue Reviews - Weddings at Minnesota Farms

In the heart of Minneapolis lie three special farms, each with its own style, available for wedding ceremonies and receptions.

Minneapolis has become a sophisticated and glamorous destination, but its down-home roots are still found in special pockets, such as these three complete farms within the city. Brides-in- the-know are snapping up available Saturdays at these rustic spots - sites that come with all the full-service amenities one would expect from the fanciest of wedding sites but are in the midst of a natural setting. Whether you are looking for the down-home charm of a pioneer farm, the elegance of a famous dairy farmer's Victorian mansion, or the sprawling spread of a Belgian horse farm, Minneapolis has the wedding setting for you.

Historic farm sites that are reviewed here are:

• Earle Browne Heritage Center in northwest Minneapolis
• Gibbs Farm in north St. Paul
• Reidel Farm Estate in northwest Minneapolis

  

 

Earle Brown Heritage Center - a historic location with modern conveniences

Near the northwest area of Minneapolis lies a complete horse ranch, which has been converted into a unique reception hall, the Earle Brown Heritage Center. Where Belgian horses used to be raised, now elegant tuxedoed groomsmen play catch with a football while the bride and her attendants are being photographed. The Center is composed of several historic buildings, which are now connected by modern construction so that wedding guests are always protected from the elements, in case of rain or cold weather. The buildings enclose a courtyard with a fountain, where wedding ceremonies are usually held, and from this position there is no way to tell that one is actually in the middle of a big city.

Receptions at the Earle Brown Heritage Center are held in the historic horse barn, now converted with chandeliers, carpeting, and air conditioning, but still showing the antique oaken beams. Ceremonies are sometimes held in this barn in cold weather, with the reception in an adjoining room. If a wedding coordinator is doing the decorating for an indoor ceremony here, they will often choose to bring potted trees into the site, decorating the space with a fall or winter motif, draping the trees in either autumn colors or bright white.

The Earle Brown Heritage Center, located near the northwest side of Minneapolis in the first-ring suburb of Brooklyn Center, MN, has a hotel attached to the complex, which is especially handy for out-of-town guests. Once they get to their hotel, they can spend the whole weekend with their friends and relatives, and walk to both the wedding ceremony and reception.

To rent the Earle Brown Heritage Center, call 763-569-6300 and ask for the Sales Office. The center does not have a rental fee, just their food and beverage minimums, which start at $3,500 (depending on the size of the room). The Earle Brown Heritage Center can host weddings with 100 to 600 guests.
 

Gibbs Farm - for rustic outdoor weddings on a farm

From the porch of Gibbs Farm, visitors can see the skyscrapers of both downtown Minneapolis and St. Paul. Nestled in St. Paul’s little-known University of Minnesota campus, this 19th-century pioneer farmhouse delights visitors as a museum on most days, but hosts wedding ceremonies and receptions on select summer weekends.  

Children can run around and play in the grass while the adults drink champagne in the tents. Picture a band playing in the old-fashioned traditional red barn, guests dancing, and a spirit of old-fashioned fun and down-home values. Some couples choose to extend the pioneer-farm theme by hiring a bluegrass band, while others like the contrast of hip dance tunes coming out of a DJ’s sound system while their guests are surrounded by farm architecture that hasn’t changed in over a hundred years.

At Gibbs Farm, the main porch is a favorite choice for many couples' wedding ceremonies, with the bride, groom, and minister up on the porch and their attendants fanning out on the steps below them. The wedding guests are then arrayed in rows facing the beautiful hand-built two-story house, a background that  radiates country family values and reinforces the familial nature of the bride and groom’s commitment. Other couples prefer setting up their wedding ceremony under the front yard’s ancient oak trees. In that case, seated guests are shaded from the sun by the canopy of leaves. The wedding ceremony then has a sense of nature, where the soft rustling of foliage in the breeze complements the words of the couple’s vows.

To rent Gibbs Farm for your Minnesota wedding ceremony and reception, call 612-646-8629. Seating capacity for the barn is only about 80 guests, so most couples rent a tent to bring the total capacity up to 200. Note, however, that the parking lot only holds 60 cars. As with the Reidel Farm (below), you'll have to rent your own chairs and tent. I recommend Apres Rental, because they are really good about setting everything up for you. The rental fee for a wedding ceremony and reception at Gibbs Farm is $1,250, and you can use the licenced caterer of your choice.

Reidel Farm Estate - for indoor or oudoor weddings with a laid-back picnic feel

On the more elegant end of the spectrum, the Reidel Farm Estate on the north edge of Minneapolis boasts a grand and stylish mansion, and its large size makes it perfect for cold-weather weddings as well as summer celebrations.  This 1880s manor evokes the sophistication of Victorian times, while being set within a 140-acre park. Down the hill from the estate, the Mississippi River meanders past, and guests can spend free time during the wedding weekend hiking and picnicking. While the mansion was originally very expensive, it's now run by the Park Board, so it doesn't have the super-high-end feel of Summit Avenue or Park Avenue mansions. Rather, it has more of a party-like, picnic-style feel.

Wedding ceremonies at the stylish Reidel Farm Estate are often held in the gazebo, which is about 50 yards away from the main building, with a formal sit-down dinner held inside for the reception.  Because the estate is surrounded by an immense park, hawks are often seen flying overhead, and guests can easily forget that they’re actually inside the city. The farmland itself has been allowed to revert back to a natural state and has become a beautiful wilderness of maple and elm trees, all the way down to the beaches on the river. Photographic opportunities abound, especially in autumn, with scenic paths cutting through colorful fall foliage.

To rent the Reidel Farm Estate for a Minnesota wedding ceremony and reception, call 763-757-3920. The seating capacity inside the farmhouse is 50 to 100 guests. The rental fee for the Riedel Farm is $60-$70/hour, and you can use the licenced caterer of your choice.