List of contributing properties in the St. Anthony Falls Historic District

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Power Canal being made deeper with concentrated mills on both sides 1885 (Minnesota Historical Society) [1]
File:St. Anthony Falls-west bank mill district ca.1965.jpg
St. Anthony Falls-west bank mill district ca. 1965 (Minnesota Historical Society) [2]
Saint Anthony Falls looking upstream

The following are all the contributing resources to the Saint Anthony Falls Historic District in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. The District is on the National Register of Historic Places, thus these properties are on the NRHP. The "period of significance" of the District was 1858–1941.[3] [4] The district's archaeological record is considered to be one of the most-endangered historic sites in Minnesota.[5]

The Historic District

The City Beautiful idea of progress was to replace old buildings with grander new buildings (like the Minneapolis Post Office and Pillsbury Library). The Gateway clearance in downtown Minneapolis tore down the now revered Metropolitan Building in 1961. That raised thoughts of historic preservation (thoughts that didn't include the industrial falls area).

By then on the west bank most the flour mills had been torn down, with gravel storage on many of the sites. Waterpower use ended 1960. A few mills operated into the 1960s, with the end of milling, at the Washburn A mill about 1965. In 1969 four of the former flour mills remained standing. For all the historic buildings, use became abandonment, warehousing, light industry, or in one case animal rendering. Second St. had railroad tracks.

On the east bank the mighty Pillsbury A mill ended waterpower use 1955, had limited specialty flour milling after 1975, and ended milling in 2003. Three of the four Main Street historic buildings went from commercial to industrial to empty or storage.

The National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 promoted historic preservation and created the National Register of Historic Places. Minneapolis created the St. Anthony Falls Historic District, and it was added to the NRHP in 1971. The original filing included 21 existing structures. Minneapolis had decided the riverfront and its history was an amenity that could attract people.

In 1980, the Minneapolis Park Board proposed extending the West River Parkway from Plymouth Ave. through the mill district. That triggered a section 106 review. The review found numerous archaeological remains in the mill area, particularly under gravel piles on the river side of the power canal. Remains were also found between the falls and Plymouth Ave.

A great deal of public money has been spent in the Historic District, both on public entities, like the Mill City Museum and Mill Ruins Park, but also (including tax credits) on private redevelopment of historic structures.[6]

A lot was learned about the Historic District, and the NRHP nomination was amended in 1991 with much more narrative on the significance plus over four times the entities. A lot of the additions were the archeological remains and the individual houses on Nicollet Island. [7] [8] [9]

Note that from the falls downstream the river floes substantially to the east. In this area the "east bank" is "north" and upstream is "west"

Extant

Saint Anthony Falls looking downstream, upper dam at left
Pillsbury "A" Mill and 1911 Main Street Station
Pillsbury "A" Mill
Stone Arch Bridge
Third Avenue Bridge
Washburn "A" Mill (right)
Ard Godfrey House

St. Anthony Falls Waterpower Area

The A-mill complex had many buildings, most of which became the Mill City Museum. The complex also includes:
- Washburn-Crosby No. 1 Elevator [1908- ] 15 (3x5) large diameter circular elevators on the north east corner of the complex with " Gold Medal Flour" signs on top: the elevators were among the first to use the circular reinforced-concrete form pioneered by Peavey–Haglin (1900)
- Utility Building, 700 2nd St S, [1914- ] a completely separate building (now Washburn Lofts)
- Washburn-Crosby Feed Elevator [1928- ] 15 (3x5) smaller diameter circular elevators west of Elevator No. 1
  • Washburn-Crosby Company Train Shed, 700 Block of 1st St. S. [1918- ]

Nicollet Island Residential Area

The upstream end of Nicollet Island had historic houses of varying architectural styles, and developed as a predominantly middle and working class neighborhood. Plans for redeveloping Nicollet Island were to demolish the houses for a park. The Minneapolis Housing and Redevelopment agency started buying properties in 1968. Residents wanted the houses to remain. In an epic struggle the residents won in 1983. [21] [22]

  • Adams-Barquist House, 177 Nicollet St.
  • Andrew and Ole Loberg House,[23] 171 E. Island Ave.
  • Andrew and Ole Loberg House,[23] 175 E. Island Ave.
  • Backe-Barquist House, 91 Nicollet St.
  • Baker-Leber House, 95 W. Island Ave.
  • Barquist-Holmberg House, 167-169 Nicollet St.
  • Brookins, George, W., House, 163 Nicollet St.
  • Griswold, Franklin G., House, 15-17 Maple Pl.
  • Griswold, Franklin, G., House, 107-109 W. Island Ave.
  • Grove St. Flats (Eastman Flats), 2-16 Grove St. [1877- ]
  • house, 27 Maple Pl.
  • house, 18-20 Maple Pl.
  • John Mayell House (also listed as "Mayall, John, House"), 93 Nicollet St.
  • Meader-Farnham House,[23] 103-105 W. Island Ave.
  • Murphy, Edward, House,[23] 167-169 E. Island Ave.
  • O'Brien-Meyer House, 185-186 E. Island Ave.
  • Pease, R.M.S, House,[23] 101 W. Island Ave.
  • Pye, James, House, 163 E. Island Ave.
  • William D. Burnett Tenement, 111-113 W. Island Ave.
  • Woodward Flat Duplex, 183-184 E. Island Ave.
  • Woodward Flat Fourplex, 187-190 E. Island Ave.

Other

  • Ard Godfrey House,[24] 45 Ortman St (Chute Square) [1849- ]
  • Island Sash and Door Factory, 95 Merriam Street [1893- ] (now Nicollet Island Inn[25])
  • Lucy Wilder Morris Park, 6th St SE and river bank
  • Minneapolis Post Office[18] - Main Station, 201 1st St. S [1932- ]
  • Old Main Street (Main St. SE)
  • Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, 21 SE Prince Street [1858- ]
  • Pillsbury Public Library, 100 University Ave. SE [1904- ]
  • Third Avenue Bridge [1917- ]

Razed (but with archeological remains)

Arctic, Union, Holly and Cataract flour mills
Minneapolis Boiler Works[26]

Associated with the West Bank Power Canal

The falls was the leading US flour milling center from 1880 to 1930. In the following decline many of the west bank mills were demolished in the 1930s. Into the 1960s most of the rest of the west bank mills were demolished or abandoned. Mills were demolished to the ground surface, leaving foundations, drop shafts, tailraces, headraces and sometimes turbines intact. Abandonment of the riverfront meant those remains were not destroyed by new development. Many of these sites are part of the Mill Ruins Park.

Elevators No. 2 & 3 were large grain elevators east of the Washburn A mill complex. They were separated from the complex by railroad tracks and connected by a conveyor tunnel. Elevator 2 (1916) was just west of 10th Ave S, and elevator 3 (1929) was just east. They accepted grain from rail box cars or trucks (1958) and fed the mills. When milling ended in 1965 the elevators were used for storage, with grain coming in by truck (or rail) and shipped out by rail or river barge (1969). Minneapolis bought the elevators in 1987 and General Mills (Washburn-Crosby) continued to use the elevators until 1993, when use ended and the elevators stood vacant. The end of the once heavy rail use at the falls facilitated redevelopment. The elevators were demolished 1998, and likely nothing remains. Gold Medal Park now occupies the site.[29][30]

Other

  • Bridge No. L-9331, Tenth Ave S, north of 2nd St S., more north [1916-?] (now the Gold Medal Park)
  • Bridge No. L-9332, Tenth Ave S, north of 2nd St S., more south [1916-?] (now the Gold Medal Park)
  • Bridge No. L-9333, Tenth Ave S, immediately north of 2nd St S. [1892-?] (now the Gold Medal Park)
  • Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha RR Roundhouse, 6th Ave N & W River Parkway [~1891-?]
  • Eastman tunnel [1868-1869]
  • Gateway Residential Area, along West River Parkway between Hennepin Ave and 3rd Ave S
  • Hennepin Avenue Bridge Archaeological Site
  • Pacific Sawmill, W of West River Parkway between 1st and 2nd Ave. N.
  • Phoenix Flour Mill/ Pillsbury Rye Mill,[31] 101-103 Third Ave SE [1875-1956]
  • Pillsbury "A" Steam Power Plant, Hennepin Island, E of access road extension of 3rd Ave SE [1903-1960s]
  • Second East Side Platform Sawmills, East river channel between foot of Second Ave. SE and foot of Third Ave. [1871-1895]
  • West Side Power Plant, 3rd Ave. N and West River Road


Panoramic photo from the new Water Power Park, visible from this vantage: the lower portion of Saint Anthony Falls; the concrete wall on the far side of the falls is part of the locks to allow ships to pass the waterfall; to the left is the Stone Arch Bridge, above it is the Guthrie Theater; to the right of the Guthrie are the white silos and reconstructed shell of the former Washburn "A" Mill, now the Mill City Museum; to the right of the museum are a series of redeveloped flour and grain mills making up a significant portion of the city's Mills District.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ River is on the left. Left side mills starting nearest Pillbury B, Excelsior, Minneapolis Paper Northwestern, Pettit, Zenith, Galaxy, Palisade Mill. All but one were demolished by 1931, and the last one in 1932. On the right starting nearest Washburn A Mill, Washburn C Elevator.
  2. ^ Stone Arch bridge center, below it center Washburn A mill Complex and Humboldt mill; right edge Washburn-Crosby Company Elevator No. 2; left edge Northwestern Consolidated Milling Company Elevator A. 2nd St. S., if it exists, runs next to the A mill and Elevator A
  3. ^ Coddington, Donn. "Nomination of the St. Anthony Falls Historic District to be on the National Register of Historic Places". (1971, 1991). US-DOI-NPS. p. pdf 87. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
  4. ^ The period of significance starts with construction of the Horseshoe dam in 1858. (The Upton Block and 1st Hennepin Ave suspension bridge antedate.) The St. Anthony Falls Hydraulic Laboratory is the last resource constructed before the end of the period of significance in 1941
  5. ^ "10 Most Endangered Places". Preservation Alliance of Minnesota. 2008. Retrieved 2018-01-20.
  6. ^ Hart, Joseph (January 7, 1998). "Sold Down the River': Minneapolis's brave new riverfront will have parks, museums, and upscale condos. Who said subsidized housing was just for the poor?". City Pages. Archived from the original on December 27, 2005. Retrieved September 1, 2022.
  7. ^ Coddington, Donn. "Nomination of the St. Anthony Falls Historic District to be on the National Register of Historic Places". (1971, 1991). US-DOI-NPS. Retrieved February 1, 2022. pages 21-26
  8. ^ Peterson, Penny; et al. "Architecture and Historic Preservation on the Minneapolis Riverfront" (PDF). March 2007. The Saint Anthony Falls Heritage Board. Retrieved February 1, 2022. pages 4-10, 74-75
  9. ^ Calvert, Ann (July 19, 2015). "Chapter Two of the Crown Roller Mill Story". Mill City Times. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
  10. ^ [date built - date demolished]
  11. ^ a b The Nomination of the SAFHD to be on the NRHP has 2 pages missing following pdf page 36. That leaves contributing resources #2, #3 and #4 in that part of the list missing. From pdf page 83, #3 is the "St. Anthony Falls Dike". From the map on pdf page 105 #2 is the Falls of St. Anthony Apron, #3 is the dike and #4 is the 3rd Ave. Bridge.
  12. ^ Originally a wood timber sloping spillway for the river, the apron protected the falls and stopped the upstream progression and, when originally built, prevented damage from logs that escaped from the then prevalent sawmills. The wood apron was replaced with a concrete one in 1952 and is the very visible spillway.
  13. ^ The dike is a concrete wall across the river under he limestone cap to fix the Eastman tunnel disaster
  14. ^ This is the location of the waterfall in the east channel (now blocked) of the river around Hennepin Island. It is the only exposed instance of the original falls.
  15. ^ "Humboldt Lofts". Minneapolis Urban Homes. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
  16. ^ a b c d Now part of Saint Anthony Main, a commercial/restaurant complex along Main St. Pracna, which was originally a saloon, led the rediscovery of Main St.
  17. ^ DePass, Dee (July 8, 2020). "Owner of Ceresota senior-living facility in downtown Minneapolis files for bankruptcy". Minneapolis StarTribune. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
  18. ^ a b c Also independently on the NRHP
  19. ^ This tunnel (not canal) near the surface was the headrace supplying water to the Pillsbury "A" mill turbines. It is recently back in use for a hydroelectric generator in the "A" mill. This link has footnotes to engineering studies, including pictures of the tunnel.
  20. ^ "Aster Cafe". Retrieved February 1, 2022.
  21. ^ Coddington, Donn. "Nomination of the St. Anthony Falls Historic District to be on the National Register of Historic Places". (1971, 1991). US-DOI-NPS. Retrieved February 1, 2022. pages 169-180, 185-191
  22. ^ Peterson, Penny; et al. "Architecture and Historic Preservation on the Minneapolis Riverfront" (PDF). March 2007. The Saint Anthony Falls Heritage Board. Retrieved February 1, 2022. pages 7-8. 22-25 and 25-33 for the houses
  23. ^ a b c d e Coddington, Donn. "Nomination of the St. Anthony Falls Historic District to be on the National Register of Historic Places". (1971, 1991). US-DOI-NPS. Retrieved February 1, 2022. pages 169-180, 190
    Peterson, Penny; et al. "Architecture and Historic Preservation on the Minneapolis Riverfront" (PDF). March 2007. The Saint Anthony Falls Heritage Board. Retrieved February 1, 2022. pages 26-34
    Five historic houses have been moved from the east and west bank to Nicollet Island, in some cases to escape demolition.
  24. ^ "Ard Godfrey House". Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board. Retrieved January 1, 2022. The Ard Godfrey house, built in 1848, is the oldest remaining frame house in the Twin Cities. Godfrey came to Minneapolis as the first millwright to build Franklin Steele's sawmill, the first commercial sawmill at the falls. Godfrey and family lived in the house from 1849 to 1853. The house, originally built near Main St., has been moved 4 times to preserve it and at its present location on Chute Square has been extensively restored. The house is also an example of historic preservation. It has been a museum open for tours.
  25. ^ "Nicolet Island Inn". Retrieved September 1, 2022.
  26. ^ Hess, Jeffrey A; Hess, .Demian (January 1990). "Minneapolis Boiler Works Building" (PDF). Historic American Engineering Record. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress. Retrieved January 1, 2022. (Picture) The Minneapolis Boiler Works building was built 1881. In 1908 part of it was demolished to build the Northwestern Consolidated Elevator "A". In 1971 it was recognized as a contributing property to the St. Anthony Falls Historic District. In 1985 the building was demolished for redevelopment at the site. The building does not appear in Nomination, likely because none of the building remains. The site is currently the Riverwest Condominiums
  27. ^ a b c d e As mills were demolished, five of them, with their turbines, were used by Northern States Power Company to generate electricity in what was known as the Consolidated Hydro Plant. This facility ended in 1960 when construction of the lock around the falls blocked the Power Canal.
  28. ^ a b "Water Works Pavilion - history". Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board. Retrieved January 1, 2022. In a commercial rediscovery of the abandoned west bank riverfront, the Fuji Ya restaurant opened in 1968. It was built on the partially exposed foundations of the Bassett Sawmill enginehouse and the Columbia Flour Mill. The restaurant closed by 1990 and the building, bought by the Minneapolis Park board, sat abandoned. The building was demolished and a new Water Works Pavilion and Restaurant, built by the Park Board on the same historic foundations, opened in 2021.
  29. ^ Frame, Robert M. III; Roise, Charlene K.; Gardner, Denis P. (1997). "HAER MN-92: Washburn Crosby Company Elevators No. 2 & 3". Historic American Engineering Record. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress. Retrieved September 1, 2022.
  30. ^ Calvert, Ann (July 19, 2015). "Chapter Two of the Crown Roller Mill Story". Mill City Times. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
  31. ^ The Phoenix mill was opened in 1875, demolished in 1956, and was then used as a surface parking lot. In 2007 "Phoenix on the River Condos" opened on the site and the site behind on 2nd St SE. Maybe the drop pit and tailrace tunnel into Chute’s Tunnel remain?

External links

  • "St. Anthony Falls Historic District Map" (PDF). Minneapolis CPED. Minneapolis Heritage Preservation Commission. December 2010. Retrieved September 1, 2022.
  • Definitive information is in Nomination of the St. Anthony Falls Historic District to be on the National Register of Historic Places: 1971, 1991, the application from the City of Minneapolis to the National Park Service to place the St. Anthony Falls Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places (it was placed there). Consists of the original 1971 application (some pages in the wrong order) and a much longer 1991 addition. It has extensive descriptions of "contributing resources" above, and sections on the significance of the district.
    Location of the sites in the waterpower district can be found on the map on pdf pg 105.
    Much the information in this article from before 1991 comes from this source.
  • Peterson, Penny; et al. "Architecture and Historic Preservation on the Minneapolis Riverfront" (PDF). March 2007. The Saint Anthony Falls Heritage Board. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
    History of the area a little larger than the Falls Historic District and the preservation of the buildings. Good information on the history of structures and their reuse. Also on new construction, some of which fits in with the historic, and some of which definitely doesn't. Good pictures of all.
    A significant source of information in this article.
  • Pictures from the St. Anthony Historic District are available at the NRHP. There are pictures, historic and recent, for many of the properties above.
  • "Engineering the Falls: The Corps of Engineers' Role at St. Anthony Falls". US Army Corps of Engineers. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  • Kane, Lucile (1987). The Falls of St. Anthony: The Waterfall That Built Minneapolis. Minnesota Historical Society. A heavily footnoted standard history of the development at the Falls
  • "A Historic Walking Tour of St.Anthony Falls" (PDF). University of Minnesota. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-04-18. Retrieved July 1, 2021.
    A walking tour of the falls area with 40 stops and descriptions at each stop. About 70% of the features are contributing resources.
  • "St. Anthony Falls map with 40 locations identified". University of Minnesota. Archived from the original on 2015-01-27. Retrieved July 1, 2021.
    A map of the falls area with numbers and a list of what is at that number. The list is the same properties as the tour above.
  • "St. Anthony Falls Historic District". Minnesota Historical Society (nrhp.mnhs.org). Archived from the original on 2011-05-17. Retrieved 2007-07-25.
    Over half of these entries are not contributing resources or are not in the current St. Anthony Falls Historic District
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