F.J. Kopesky’s Barn was the site of many community dances in 1928. It was described as on County Farm Road, 3 miles south of Hopkins. County Farm Road is now Highway 169, and the location is in Eden Prairie. Based on info from some Facebook folks, we set out looking for it, and found a barn at Shady Oak Road and Flying Cloud Drive. Fortunately, the man who owned that property was there. He was a Dvorak, a neighbor to the Kopeskys, who lived just north of him and had a truck farm there. Many “Bohemians” farmed in this area, as can be clearly seen in the Census. The spot is now the Flying Cloud Business Center, and the general area is the home of Starkey Labs.

Frank Joseph Kopesky was born on July 27, 1900, to parents from Bohemia. The eldest of seven children, he apparently inherited his parents’ fruit farm. He would have only been in his 20s when he opened his barn to dances – sounds like fun!