Maple Bay is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

in Godfrey Township in central Polk County,

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

, United States. A community of

second home The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of Un ...

s and cabins, it lies on the western end of Maple Lake, approximately six miles west of

Erskine Erskine may refer to: Places * Erskine, Renfrewshire Erskine (, , ) is a town in the council areas of Scotland, council area of Renfrewshire, and Renfrewshire (historic), historic county of counties of Scotland, the same name, situated in th ...

. Maple Bay is located on a paved road which connects

Mentor Mentorship is the patronage, influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the perso ...

and

U.S. Route 2 U.S. Route 2 or U.S. Highway 2 (US 2) is an east–west United States Numbered Highway System, United States Numbered Highway spanning across the northern continental United States. US 2 consists of two segments connected ...

with County Road 41 en route to

Fertile Fertility in colloquial terms refers the ability to have offspring. In demographic contexts, fertility refers to the actual production of offspring, rather than the physical capability to reproduce, which is termed fecundity. The fertility rate is ...

. The nearby lake is a summer resort and playground for residents of Crookston,

Grand Forks, North Dakota Grand Forks is a city in and the county seat of Grand Forks County, North Dakota, United States. The city's population was 59,166 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in North Dakota, third-most populous ...

and other nearby communities, and offers excellent ice fishing. The place name dates back to 1882, when Maple Bay Post Office was established in Markham's general store. At various times, a creamery, two churches, a cheese factory, a blower factory and at least two blacksmith shops as well as several residences, were reported in the community. Since the 1920s, Maple Bay has evolved into a semi-rural residential area, usually with at least one general store catering to resort and second home residents of the area. Local lodgings include Ulland's Resort and Campgrounds, Oak Cove Resort, Camp Shalom and Lakeview Resort Restaurant and Lounge (all listed in Mentor's yellow pages), as well as the Inn at Maple Crossing. The Maple Lake dance hall and roller rink, constructed in 1913, was no longer in business at last report.

Sources

Olson, Roberta, ''Fertile, Hub of the "Sand Hill Valley"'', Fertile innesotaBicentennial Committee, 1976, pp. 49–50 Unincorporated communities in Minnesota Unincorporated communities in Polk County, Minnesota {{PolkCountyMN-geo-stub