Prairie Skyline Foundation

Youth Arts Center condensed to two pages!

2012-02-01T09:39:00.000-08:00

Here it is, the condensed 2 page version of the "Young at HArt Center." I know people are busier today than ever, so here is your shortcut to something new and exciting for Crookston, MN!

Young at HArt center exec summary.doc

View more documents from Prairie Skyline Foundation, Inc.

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Revised and a New Name for Youth Arts Center!

2011-11-12T09:57:00.000-08:00

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heckyesPres: Lucy Saves Main Street

2011-08-08T15:55:00.000-07:00

"More than a street...it's a way of life!"

heckyesPres: Lucy Saves Main Street

When is a Local Landmark Worth Saving? | Apartment Therapy Chicago

2011-06-19T14:46:00.000-07:00

The comments tell both sides of the story:
When is a Local Landmark Worth Saving? | Apartment Therapy Chicago

Georgia DNR, Historic Preservation Division - Historic Preservation & the Georgia Economy

2011-04-02T17:35:00.000-07:00

Georgia DNR, Historic Preservation Division - Historic Preservation & the Georgia Economy

No Need to Panic

2011-02-13T15:36:00.000-08:00

Faltering Foundation

The Old House Web

My two-story house in rural Indiana was built before 1860. The bricks were made on site, as it was a brick and tile factory during the Civil War. The original house has a stone foundation and crawl space, and the supporting wall is about a foot-thick brick wall that is now disintegrating into powder. What could be causing this? Is there anything I can do to save it? How should I go about stopping the damage before my house caves in?

It may not be possible to arrest the disintegration of the bricks in your supporting wall, but if the wall is a foot thick it is probably providing plenty of support for the time being. Unless there are obvious signs of an imminent collapse, there's no need to panic.

Modern brick-making is a tightly controlled manufacturing process in which bricks are fired and cooled in precise steps. Temperatures inside a tunnel kiln can hit 2,400° F. and the result is an extremely hard and durable building component. Before all this equipment was developed and refined, making bricks was more of a crap shoot, and clay that was dug and mixed on site could have been of uneven quality. Unpredictable kiln temperatures likely produced bricks of varying hardness.

If they were undercooked, bricks could be porous and weak. And when those bricks are constantly battered by weather and the freeze-and-thaw cycles of a northern climate it's no wonder they erode over time.

Make sure the house is stable.

When foundations, sills, and other load-bearing parts of a house fail, the clues should be obvious. They can include diagonal cracks in exterior walls and sagging floors, doors, and windows that no longer open or close properly. Checking for these problems will reveal any obvious first signs of instability.

If none of those things are evident, and floors and walls are sound and straight, you should have plenty of time to figure out a long-term solution. A foot-thick wall will provide a great deal of support even if the outer surface is beginning to erode. Unfortunately, the opposite is also true: If the brick supporting wall shows signs of collapse, or it can no longer support structural parts of the house, you should call in a mason, carpenter, or both for immediate repairs.

Replace what's worn out.

I'd enlist the help of a mason who has worked on old houses. He or she could tell you whether there is any way to reinforce the existing brick or, if damage is limited to a small area, replace some brick without tearing out the entire wall. My hunch is that the old brick should come out, and be replaced with a bearing wall of new brick or concrete block with a brick facing. In the long run, removing suspect materials completely is the right way to go.

It may cost a little more, but it's often faster than trying to work around old problems. And you won't lie in bed at night wondering whether the kitchen floor will still be there when you get up in the morning.

About the Author
The Old House Web

Watch the Movie CARS over the Holidays!

2010-11-27T06:06:00.000-08:00

How the Movie "Cars" is about Preservation and Restoration

by Wood Window Makeover.com on Friday, November 26, 2010 at 9:01pm

Sometimes inspiration comes when you aren't looking.

My Mom and Grandmother were here from Texas for Thanksgiving Day and once the festivities ended we put on a movie - The Disney/Pixar now classic Cars. My mom had never seen it, my boys love it and I just think it contains a great message. So this time as I watched it for probably the 100th time - I saw something new.

If you've seen it you know the theme. A hot shot race car named Lightning McQueen gets lost on his way to the other side of the country and finds new friends that change his perspective and give him a new take on life - a better take. He starts off self absorbed but discovers that relationships mean more than winning a race.

Another theme though is the restoration and preservation of what is lost through progress.

Lightning finds his way to an almost forgotten and disappearing town called Radiator Springs. There are signs everywhere that once upon a time the town was full of life. Vacant buildings where businesses once thrived appear weathered and beaten down - mere skeletons of the life that was once there.

Cut to a scene late in the movie, a friend, Sally, shows lightning what happened to the town. She takes him to a bluff that over looks the valley where the town sits and shows him the old Route 66 rolling and turning with the land and then then interstate cutting straight through the hills bypassing the old highway. Sally explains that life before the interstate was much different - that cars drove for the experience, not to make better time. Using pictures and music, the movie shows the way life used to thrive in Radiator Springs and how the town believed the new interstate going through would bring in even more people to the town. But the town was wrong. The progress of interstate left Radiator Springs behind. Dried up, desolate and alone, all that remained of the town were a few good friends and old memories - until Lightning showed up.

The highlight of the movie is close to the end when Lightning has a change of heart and helps restore the way of life as it once was for the entire town. He restores the main strip and gives everyone the opportunity to see their town again as it once was. It's one of the most enjoyable scenes in the whole movie.

Cars communicates very well the idea that most of us know that something bigger is missing and we all long for something more than just progress. I think we all want progress, but at the same time we don't want to lose that deep sense of connection that we have with one another and our past. Sometimes when an interstate cuts through to make life easier and faster, we don't see what we are trading until its too late. Sometimes what we trade is bigger and more important that what we seek to gain.

In my line of work, windows - but more importantly, craftsmanship - there is a lot that's being traded in the name of progress. I am hanging on to all I can, not to the past, but to the way things were done in the past when people poured themselves into the buildings they built as well as the people around them. Cars reminded me of that. I think the movie will do the same for you. I recommend watching it with a mindset of restoration and preserving not just the architecture of the past, but the presence and soul of what made it so great to begin with.

I found this article on the Notes page of one of my friends on Facebook, the Wood Window Makeover folks. Their website is www.woodwindowmakeover.com. We hope you enjoyed it.

Frozen Music

2010-11-13T18:49:00.000-08:00

Architecture and Music - It's Personal

from Confessions of a Preservationist by landmarkblog@gmail.com (The Landmark Society of Western New York)

Architecture is Frozen Music...

Perhaps you've heard about that quote, from late 18th century writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. Goethe elaborated, by suggesting that architecture produces the same "tone" or effect in your mind as music.

But what about the reverse? If architecture is frozen music, does that mean music is liquid architecture? Are there connections between architecture and music - or more specifically, historic preservation?

Folks at The National Trust for Historic Preservation have given this some thought. Their forum list discussion resulted in contributors building a playlist of songs that refer to the designed environment. Called "Songs of the Preservationist,"
it's a fun read, and amazingly varied - everything from traditional songs (Little Old Sod Shanty on the claim or Stephen Foster's My Old Kentucky Home) to popular 20th century pieces (Rosemary Clooney's Come On - My House or The Beatles In My Life) to contemporary pieces (Vampire Weekend's Mansard Roof or rapper Eminem's "Beautiful.")

You can see the entire playlist here.

They've even put a video playlist on Youtube, where you can enjoy several of the songs and their videos (just be aware that there is a bit of "adult" language in some of the songs. Did I mention Eminem?)

The playlist on Youtube can be enjoyed here:

Goethe was certainly a deep thinker, comparing the effect of architecture to the effect of music on our minds - That it gives you a sense of the art, of what is greater or bigger than ourselves, what transcends our lives. While I appreciate that philosophical perspective, I prefer the way music - and architecture - connects intimately with the personal level in my life.

We've all experienced hearing a song from a past period in our lives - maybe when you were in college, when you were 10 years old, when you were first married - and felt that pull to your earlier time. For a moment it's as if the intervening years have disappeared.

Don't you think the physical environment of the architecture around us has the same effect?

This thought crossed my mind when I heard Miranda Lambert's new song, "The House That Built Me." It's a touching tribute to the memory and meaning of our childhood home. The singer visits the house where she grew up, hoping the new owners will let her in, as she promises to "take nothing but a memory." She hopes the visit will help her recapture her authentic sense of self.

Think about your childhood home. What can you recall about living in that home? Think about how it felt, as a kid, to live there. Remember the feeling of the banister - or the doorknob - or the way the windows opened?

In the historic preservation field, we get accustomed to thinking on a larger scale - the house's architecture, the streetscape, the preservation district, the city. It's enlightening to bring it back to a personal level - and what could be more personal than the spaces you inhabited as a child?

I didn't know that I was growing up in a classic American Foursquare house. I remember the feeling of perching at the top of the staircase when I was supposed to be in bed. I'd peer through the balusters of the handrail at the adults watching TV in the living room.

Those balusters were my "bird blind" - where I got to observe the adult world in secret (at least until the night I fell asleep and got caught.) Is it any wonder I grew up to be someone who liked the secret spaces and staircases of older homes?

I bet you know a bunch of people living in their childhood homes today. I mean the children you know! They are building their memories and future attitudes about the "frozen music" of architecture now. They know their own personal spaces. It's our job as adults to help them see the bigger picture. If the kids you know are in elementary school, check out our summer program "Arch-KID-Tecture" where they will have lots of fun getting a wider perspective. Just visit our website for all the details .

I'm grateful that singer Miranda Lambert's song helped me make this connection between my past and present experiences in architecture.

It's a good thing that her house was still standing.

Posted by Director of Museums and Education Cindy Boyer

Now we will never know...

2010-11-01T07:28:00.000-07:00

Now we will never know if the Wayne/Palace Hotel's supporting walls were structurally sound. In the above floor plan of the fourth floor, areas shown in red are the wooden structures that let light in to all three floors. These are not made like the exterior walls that are six bricks thick.

Now we will never know if some falling brick on the south side meant do some masonry repair, or loss of structural integrity.

Now we will never know if Metro Plains would have been successful if they had tried a third time with the new state historic tax credits and/or different funding sources.

Why? Because Polk County turned down an offer of a free structural assessment from a structural engineer from the Preservation Alliance of Minnesota.

When we drive by on US Highways 2 and 75 and look at that ugly corner, let's remember:

What if the County had replace the roof and cleaned out the building, and put up a for sale sign 10 years ago?

What if the County had forgiven back taxes owed by Marthaler to allow the building to be donated to Prairie Skyline Foundation?

What if the County had set up some housing incentives in 2004 or used our 2010 offer of free grantwriting services?

What if the City of Crookston had tried harder in 1995 to replace the funding gap sought from Minnesota Housing Finance Agency with another source?

What if the City actually had implemented the past downtown development plans?

What if the County had not fear mongered over the last 10 years?

What if the County had patched the roof instead of putting on blue tarp to gather heavy water?

What if Judge Kraker had access to a structural engineers report rather than the opinions of paid employees and demolition contractor?

What if we all could have done it, an artspace for downtown?

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We did all we could with what we had

2010-10-22T13:40:00.000-07:00

The Prairie Skyline Foundation and Preservation Alliance of Minnesota (PAM) were disappointed to learn last Thursday that Judge Michael Kraker denied their request for a temporary injunction to halt demolition of the historic Palace/Wayne Hotel in Crookston. Prairie Skyline and PAM had filed suit against the City of Crookston, Polk County, and the Minnesota Environmental Quality Board (EQB) as a last-ditch effort to save the endangered building, which anchors Crookston’s commercial historic district. The building is a contributing structure to a designated historic district; under the Minnesota Environmental Rights Act, an Environmental Assessment Worksheet (EAW) is mandatory for such properties before they can be demolished in whole or in part. In June, the City and County requested and received an “emergency waiver” from the EQB, allowing them to avoid the preparation of an EAW. An EAW would have required public consideration of alternatives to demolition.

In his decision, Judge Kraker appeared to be swayed by the recent deterioration of the interior wooden light wells on the roof of the Wayne Hotel. The City and County have claimed that this deterioration is indication of imminent structural collapse, although the exterior masonry walls of the building show no sign of structural failure or significant deterioration. The preservation organizations’ request for a Temporary Restraining Order would have allowed them the opportunity to complete an independent structural assessment of the building. PAM, along with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, had offered to conduct and fully fund such a study in July, shortly after the EAW waiver was granted to the City.

Of particular concern to the three preservation organizations involved is the means by which the EAW waiver was handled. The decision to apply for the waiver was apparently made at the administrative level of City government, and required no public notice. Likewise, the waiver was granted by the EQB chair and forwarded to the City without public disclosure or opportunity for comment. Typically, EAW processes and decisions are published in the State Department of Administration’s biweekly EQB Monitor and as legal notices in area newspapers, and public comment is allowed for thirty days following each posting. The waiver rule itself seems reasonably designed to address a real emergency, but the EQB's broad application of the rule, and ignorance of its own language that the emergency action be limited to only that which is immediately necessary, ultimately doomed an important historic resource.

Of particular concern to the Prairie Skyline Foundation is the lack of vision for downtown Crookston and the apparent haste with which the City and County proceeded to destroy a significant building at the heart of downtown. When the local building inspector demands a structural engineer’s plans for all other building proposals in the area, it seems only fair to ask for a neutral structural engineer’s assessment of the Wayne Hotel. When County Commissioners hammered Prairie Skyline for a plan beyond stabilizing the Wayne Hotel, it is only fair to demand a plan from the City and County for the empty ugly space where something grand will be taken away forever without sufficient opportunity for public involvement.

In filing suit against the City, County, and EQB, Prairie Skyline and PAM took the only legal tool available to them as concerned citizen organizations. Hopefully this lawsuit will send a message to all concerned that the public has watchdogs overseeing the application of the EAW waiver rule and local government’s compliance with state environmental laws as they pertain to historic properties.

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Arts Entertainment District Downtown includes Wayne Hotel

2010-10-18T06:36:00.000-07:00

A person walks pass some of the murals painted at a closed building along Dexter Avenue in downtown Montgomery, Ala., on Friday, Oct. 1, 2010. (Montgomery Advertiser, Lloyd Gallman)

Downtown revitalization must include historic preservation, expert says

By Jill Nolin • October 11, 2010

age

Downtown revitalization was once talked about because it wasn't happening. Now, it's being talked about because it's actually taking hold in Montgomery.

Montgomery's success, to date, in revitalizing its downtown is a major focus of the annual Alabama Preservation Conference that started Thursday and ended Saturday. Some of the sessions have offered analysis and commentary on what steps led up to the rebirth that sparked on the riverfront and is starting to push into the rest of the downtown area.
"I tell you, you are doing the right things in Montgomery, Alabama. It's not there yet, but it's never there," said Donovan Rypkema, who is an internationally noted expert on using historic preservation as an economic development tool.
Rypkema, who was the keynote speaker at the conference this year, spoke Friday about the value of historic preservation in economic development, but more specifically, he talked about how historic preservation spurs sustainable development.
"Downtown revitalization without historic preservation? It ain't happening," Rypkema said at a luncheon held in the ballroom at 130 Commerce St. at Alley Station.
Montgomery's story of revitalization has been years in the making, and even though the remainder of its story has yet to be written, city planners and decision-makers are laying the groundwork today for what will unfold in the coming years.
That was the case with the Alley Entertainment District, which was an idea started years ago and that developed into an actual project in 2008. City officials used about $1.1 million in proceeds from the Tax Increment Financing District, which was created to help fund the downtown revitalization effort, to improve the public part of Alley Station. Private businesses have followed the city's lead.
City officials hope to get the same results now on lower Dexter Avenue, where Montgomery is in the process of selecting a developer, or developers, to rework nine city-owned historic properties.
"It's our commitment to not just make old, new, but make old, old," said Mayor Todd Strange about the conference's focus on the city's work to accomplish economic development downtown through historic preservation.

City officials also attribute a degree of the success downtown to a mandatory shift to SmartCode zoning in 2006. They also would pin that achievement on Ken Groves, the city's planning director who passed away recently after a brief battle with cancer.

The zoning, which allows for commercial and residential uses in one location, and the use of historic properties have brought Montgomery to where it is today.
Rypkema said Friday that downtown revitalization is a sustainable growth for several reasons, including: it usually has strong local economic impact; it serves as a natural incubator for small businesses; it attracts a variety of activities in one area; and it fosters a sense of ownership in the community. Unlike large generic shopping centers, a downtown effervesces a sense of place for people who are likely to feel a commitment to see it succeed, he said.
"Downtown revitalization is not about fixing up buildings. It's about people, not buildings," Rypkema said.
Rypkema said cities that are working to bring new life to their downtowns and reverse the urban flight or "white flight" that occurred years ago also should work just as hard to retain businesses that stuck it out in downtown after others fled. After retention, the goals should be business expansion and then business recruitment, he said.
"And that's not sociology. That's economic development," Rypkema said.
Chad Emerson, who is serving as interim assistant planning director for the city, said Rypkema's comments about Montgomery's efforts in downtown have given city officials more confidence in what they are doing.
Even though Emerson said there is still a significant number of "underutilized buildings" downtown -- he uses that description instead of "vacant" because some buildings have one tenant but could handle more -- the progress made during a recession gives city officials encouragement for what is yet to come.

Change is Brewing in Baltimore

2010-09-12T12:55:00.000-07:00

Change is Brewing in Baltimore

Letter to Polk County to allow us to stabilize the Wayne Hotel

2010-09-08T06:14:00.000-07:00

Letter to polk county

View more documents from CrookstonKate.

Our response to City's "No" letter

2010-09-01T07:57:00.000-07:00

Response to august 26 city letter

View more documents from CrookstonKate.

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City's Response to our letter to Save the Wayne

2010-09-01T06:31:00.000-07:00

08 28-10 letter to kay hegge.docx

View more documents from CrookstonKate.

Saving the Wayne/Palace Hotel conversation

2010-09-01T06:15:00.000-07:00

Here is the letter we wrote to the City Council regarding saving the Wayne

Letter to board members and city council members letter

View more documents from CrookstonKate.

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Architecture at the Minnesota State Fair | Minnesota Public Radio NewsQ

2010-08-25T06:50:00.000-07:00

Architecture at the Minnesota State Fair | Minnesota Public Radio NewsQ

A History of the offices and stores in the Palace Hotel

2010-08-24T07:39:00.000-07:00

1904 113 C.L. Bang Candy Manu
115 Edward Wood & Co.
117 Palace Hotel Saloon
117 & ½ Nat Campbell & Moeckel; Carpenter & Stenvick, Crookston Club, Hayes, R.M. Kirsch, M.D., McKinnon, Daniel, Rowe, W.D., Rowe, W.E., U.S. Land Office
119 Farley, Z.J.
121 Basset, Miss L.M.
123 Carpenter, Huggard & M
1908 117 & ½ U.S. Land Co., Clough & Caldwel, A.C. Clausen, Crookston Club, Daniel McKinnon, W.E. Rowe, Lee Sisters, Ernest Moeckel
119 Farley
121 J.E. Carpenter Land Co., City Realty Co.
123 F.B. Harris
1911 113 Miss Florence Huey
117 & ½ Palace Hotel
123 N.H. Yeo
1915 113 Mrs. M. B. Pierce
115 Carpenter Land Co.
119 Palace Hotel
123 N.H.Yeo
1930 113 Munn’s Music & Jewelry
115 Rosemary Hat & Hosiery
117 Palace Cafe
123 Regan’s Candy Shop
1935 113 Munn’s Music & Jewelry
115 Crookston Production Credit
117 The Dutch Room
120 & ½ Wayne Hotel
121 Northwestern Bell
123 Christines Beauty Service
1940 113 Chas. A. Munn, Jeweler
115 Crookston Production Credit
117 Hotel Wayne Coffee Shop
119 Hotel Wayne
123 Vacant
1949 113 Samuel’s Studio
119 Hotel Wayne, Kiwanis Club, Lion’s Club, Wayne Cafe
123 Schuster’s
1952-53 113 Ken R. Johnson Photography Studio
119 Hotel Wayne, Kiwanis, Lion’s, Sidney’s Café, Samuel’s Studio
1956 113 Ken R. Johnson
119 Wayne Hotel, Lion’s, Sidney’s Café,
123 Emerson Insurance Agency
1958 113 Ken R. Johnson
1961 119 Wayne Hotel, Robert W. Stone, Lion’s Sidney’s Café, Toastmasters, Rotary
123 Emerson Insurance Agency
1963 113 Ken R. Johnson
119 Wayne Hotel, Robert W. Stone, Lion’s Sidney’s Café, Toastmasters, Rotary
1964 113 Ken R. Johnson
119 Wayne Hotel, Robert W. Stone, Lion’s Sidney’s Café, Rotary
1967 113 Ken R. Johnson
119 Wayne Hotel, Edward S. Shasky
1970 113 LeMar Photography
119 Wayne Hotel, Arrow Cab, Hasty Tasty Café,
1972 119 Wayne Hotel, Arrow Cab, Robert’s Two Restaurant
123 American Family Insurance
1973 119 Wayne Hotel, Arrow Cab, Robert’s Two Restaurant
123 American Family Insurance & Hagen Realty
1975 119 Wayne Hotel, Arrow Cab, Robert’s Two Restaurant
123 Hagen Realty
1977 115 Vacant
119 Wayne Hotel, The Fireplace, Ed’s Tropical Fish, B&B Jr. Restaurant,
123 Hagen Realty
1978 115 Coffee Klutch, Roger Johnson & Lee Marthaler
119 Econo Apartments, The Fireplace, Ed’s Tropical Fish
123 Hagen Realty
1979 113 LeMar Photography
115 ENB Cafe
119 Econo Apartments, (5 vacant of 15) Greyhound Bus Depot
123 Hagen Realty
? 113 LeMar Photography
115 ENB Café
119 Econo Apartments (3 vacant of 16)
1984 113 LeMar Photography
117 Paradise, Wm. R., CPA
119 Econo Apartments (3 vacant out of 18), Triangle Bus Line
123 Hagen Realty
1986 113 LeMar Photography
117 Paradise, Wm. R., CPA
119 Econo Apartments (6 vacant out of 17), Triangle Bus Line
123 Hagan Realty
1987 113 LeMar Photography
117 Paradise, Wm.R., CPA
119 Econo Apartments (4 vacant out of 14), Triangle Bus Line

123 Lutheran Brotherhood
? 113 LeMar Photography
117 Paradise, Wm. R., CPA
119 Econo Apartments (13 vacant out of 21) Triangle Bus Line
123 Lutheran Brotherhood
1989 113 LeMar Photography
117 Paradise, Wm. R., CPA
119 Triangle Bus Line
123 ?
1991 113 LeMar Photography
117 Vacant
119 Vacant
123 Crookston Area Chamber of Commerce
1994 113 LeMar Photography
117 The Accounting Office
119 Vacant
123 Vacant
1996-1999 113 LeMar Photography
117 Vacant
119 Vacant
123 Vacant
2000 All Vacant

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City Council 7 pm sharp tonight! Save the Wayne for Artspace!

2010-08-23T08:54:00.000-07:00

Don't forget to show up! Tonight, August 23, 2010 at 7 pm in City Hall is our last chance to save the Wayne/Palace Hotel. We will be presenting three new ideas for the historic landmark plus the stabilization costs and a new downtown task force that will cross the arts with the politicians! Be There!

The alley in winter without the Wayne Hotel, everyone traveling US 2 and US75 will see this!

Just show up for 15" that's all we ask of you!

2010-08-22T14:02:00.000-07:00

A gentle reminder,tomorrow, Monday, the 23rd, 7 pm sharp, we are storming City Hall. We only have 15 minutes, so be there on time. You will hear not one, but three new ideas for the Wayne. This is more than the Wayne Hotel! It's about taking back citizen control of our downtown and community. You don't have to say anything, just show up for 15"! The sneak peak at the speech is on "Friends of the Wayne/Palace Hotel" facebook page!

Stabilization Cost to Save the Palace Hotel!

2010-08-17T12:21:00.000-07:00

These Costs are Submitted by Brian J. Carlson, JLG Architects, Grand Forks, ND

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Calling all Prayer Warriors!

2010-07-29T17:52:00.000-07:00

Nothing but tons of prayers will save the Wayne/Palace Hotel from short-sighted "leaders." At this time, we are preparing a proposal to the Polk County Board because we too were waiting for good news from Metro Plains Development.

Is this the Depot that used to be on Riverside Avenue?

2010-07-17T11:00:00.000-07:00

Does anyone remember this Depot on Riverside Avenue? This was before my time, maybe the thirties? I remember the Railroad Tunnel we walked through from the High School to get to Central Park. Help me out here.

Crookston Artspace Report

2010-07-01T08:33:00.001-07:00

Check out this important document for Crookston:

Crookston final report

View more documents from Kay Hegge.

The Artspace Report is Done!

2010-06-26T09:08:00.000-07:00

.Watch for the Artspace Report on www.prairieskyline.com! Here is an excerpt:

"...the citizens of Crookston should make it clear to their elected leaders that they want the building (Palace/Wayne) preserved. While we are sympathetic to the County Commissioners who see the building chiefly as drain on scarce resources, we cannot state too strongly our view that tearing it down would be akin to burning a Rembrandt because you can’t afford to have it cleaned. Every effort should be made to find the money needed to stabilize the building until a suitable reuse can be found. Once gone, it can never be replaced.

Love This House on Houston

2010-06-21T18:48:00.000-07:00

This is the original home of Felix Fournet, who built the outstanding Fournet Block (Four Seasons Clothing, Munn's Jewelry, etc. He was a builder of the highest quality and he built his home on Houston Avenue. I've been inside when it was owned by Dr. and Mrs. Mitchell and the woodwork has remained untouched and is beyond belief stunning.

The Story of the Lost Stained Glass

2010-06-12T09:54:00.000-07:00

Care and Share got the former cathedral church when they purchased the former rectory and adjacent land. The plans were to expand the Care and Share Homeless Shelter and they did that. They never wanted the former Cathedral, but it was part of the package. Minnesota Housing Finance Agency funded part of the project, said Jan Delage. Sister Justina was in charge of the Care and Share Board at that time. People constantly approached Care and Share about the cathedral. People were very interested in its future. Of course, the non-profit homeless shelter did not have funding to tear it down (estimated at that time $35,000) nor did they have a use for the building. The board was concerned about preserving the stained glass. There were problems with the high school kids smoking and lounging behind the church. Stones were thrown and some of the storm window glass was broken.

In an effort to preserve the glass, Care and Share gave the ventilator windows with family names on them to those families and sold the rest of the small ventilator windows. Somehow a priest, Fr. Tom Foster, of the Diocese of Duluth got word of the preservation effort and approached Sr. Justina about acquiring 10 of the windows for a planned new gothic church to replace St. Rose of Lima’s in Proctor, MN. He wanted the St. Rose of Lima window in particular. The priest talked to the congregation about his plans during mass. (Crookston Times)

Sr. Justina sold 10 windows to him for a total of $5,000. (Sister Justina telephone visit) Fr. Tom Foster hired Lightbenders in Fargo to remove them and restore them. Subsequently the new gothic church plans went by the wayside as the Bishop in Duluth refused to build with the intention of using the old windows. Lightbenders never got paid for the work they had completed, so they sold five and still have five windows, some of which they had already completed restoration work. The ones they have may be the Immaculate Heart, the Sacred Heart and two to the left of sacristy door. (Anyone know the figures on those?) Plus they have an angel window. The value of these windows (besides emotional value) is about $3500 a window, based on one window being 30 square feet. These windows were high quality, Munich Art Glass, Tiffany type of landscape glass, and then hand painted.

Lightbenders left the “eyes,” small pieces of red, green, or gold glass behind, but has four Star of Davids. One window remains to the left of the main door, and the stairway to the choirloft goes right next to it. This was common practice in this neo Gothic style.

Sister Justina advertised for bids for the remaining stained glass windows. Pat Spicer, Spicer Stained Glass Studio in LaPorte, Minnesota won the bid for $30,000. He got all the windows except what Fr. Tom Foster got. Pat and Sister Justina tried hard to get these windows back from the priest and were blocked at every turn. Pat Spicer proceeded to advertise heavily in local papers to sell the small pieces: the emblems, and Stars of David to local people. He spent $500 in advertising in Crookston and Grand Forks that these were available to anyone and included the sale of these smaller pieces in the Ox Cart booklet. Does anyone know what year that was? 1993? He sold them at OxCart Days and his booth was packed with local parishioners. There were 12 emblems. A couple of people got them besides Bishop Balke who has two emblems.

Pat heard of the group trying to save the former Cathedral. It was just a committee at that time. He made several attempts to sell the windows back to this new group in 1996, but they weren’t organized yet, and didn’t have that kind of money. Pat restored the large windows and sold them to four churches/convents throughout the nation, just ten years ago! 20 apostle/saint windows were sold. One church needed the four apostle windows, Mary of Aloqui, one more large window plus 16 smaller windows. The Assumption window over the choir loft and the Transfiguration window were sold to two different Sister of Mercy Convents.

Pat will sell back to us at a reasonable rate. He recommends a window committee to decide what we want to do. Fit them back in exactly as they were, hang in the openings, or fit back in with more glass as fill.

It may be possible to reconstruct the entryway of the church by piecing pieces together. He could fill the three clovers if someone would donate one emblem. A great deal of woodworking would be required to install the glass back in the wood openings. Much of the custom made trim is missing and some of the window framing is damaged now, although there are craftsmen available to do the work.

New energy efficient, clear windows are estimated to cost: $157,231 as of August 2006. Grandma's Attic in Bemidji, MN is now selling off the last of the windows belonging to Pat. One is sold already.

Crookston's Musical History

2010-06-11T08:48:00.000-07:00

You just never know when history comes alive! I was delighted to meet the Rigg's family as they toured historic Crookston searching for sites their great grandfather, G. Oliver Riggs, the City Bandmaster before T.W. Thorson took over, may have performed in. Be sure to check out their great blog at http://bit.ly/9mNco2. It is full of pictures and information and SONGS played by G. Oliver Riggs. Watch this blog for song lyrics sung at the old Winter Shows Building, the former Crookston Armory. Who knows, perhaps G. Oliver performed on that stage as well. Former owner, Arnold Lahd, removed the eagle emblem from the stage for safekeeping.

Did you know the original Winter Shows consisted of three buildings? Yes, the former Crookston Armory is just one, the current Crookston School Bus garages are the others. Anyone who knows more about the great Winter Shows and our former great Crookston band master, G. Oliver Rigss, please comment!

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A Planned Ruin for the former Cathedral?

2010-05-25T10:30:00.000-07:00

Rev. Dan Wolpert has suggested once again that we consider a "planned ruin" similar to the St. Boniface ruin in Winnipeg. Despite our open grant for a feasibility study for an arts center, I believe this option should be considered carefully. The difference between St. Boniface and the former Cathedral is that St. Boniface had a fire that destroyed most all of its interior and some of its exterior, whereas the Cathedral doesn't have that reason. Still there is some sad and wistful beauty in the idea of a planned ruin as opposed to waiting for volunteers, and contributors to come forth on the idea of a Centre for the Arts in NW Minnesota or demolition by the County. Please do comment.

Look for your great grandparents here!

2010-05-05T10:28:00.000-07:00

A list of the contributors to the new wing added in 1920 to the former Villa St. Vincent Hospital, Crookston, MN. I found my great grandparents "Electrical Store," contributing $2! Could Charles E. Lindberg be the father of Charles A. Lindbergh. Charles A. Lindberg's father was brought her for treatment. Some of the names were hard to read because they were written in fountain pen. If you have a correct spelling or more history, Please comment!

A Friend	1
A. Friend	0.5
Aesceltat Faces (sp?)	25
Balfour Bros.	1
Ball, Joseph	100
Becker, Nm.	25
Bemington, N.	2
Berget, O.K.	1
Bertlson, Dr. C.L.	5
Boe, Minnie I.	10
Boe, Minnie I.	50
Bray, N.A.	10
Bridgeman-Russel Co.	10
C.O.D. Clothing House	10
Chesterman, G. S.	20
Collins, S.L.	1
Conley, E.W.	1
Corbett, Rt. Rev. Timothy	$350
Crawford & Son, J.	25
Crookston Drug Co.	25
Crookston Milling Co.	10
Crookston Times	10
Daniels, Dr.	5
DeMott, irving P.	5
Dredsesl, G.A.W. (sp?)	25
Dufault, Rev.M.	50
Dunlop, Dr. Alex	10
Duval and Son	10
Electrical Store	2
Ellingson, Ed.	1
Erickson, Ed.	10
F.W. Woolworth Co.	1
Farley, W. H.	10
Farley, W.H.	5
Ferhely, Rev. John	100
Finch-Winslow-Carlisle Co.	10
Flaten, Geo.J.	10
Gavin, J. Leo	10
Gillan, S.B.	1
Golden Rule Bazaar	10
Goodhart, T.W.	5
Gr. Drug Co. (Cr.?)	100
Grulon, G.A.	1
Hagen, Dr.	5
Hagen, E. O.	10
Hanson, A.M.	10
Hanson, Wm.C.	0.5
Harding, E.H.	1
Haslerud, P. J. (sp?)	10
Heldstab Ice and Fuel Co.	10
Hendrickson, J.S.	2
Hodgsen, Dr. H.H.	200
Holte, Dr.	1
Howie, A.W.
Kahala, Dr. A.	5
Kiewel Products Co.	$20
Kirsch, Dr. R.L.	500
Kirsch, J.V.	15
Klemesand, E.	1
LaBlanc, Jr.	25
Laughlin, John	1.5
Laughlin, T.H.	1
Lindbergh, C.E.	10
Lohn, Chas. M.	1
Loring & Youngquist	25
Lowe, Wm. R.	1
Lucian, Dr. A.E.	5
Lundberg (sp?) C.E.	10
Marrotte, W. C.	2
Marsh, H.L.	100
McKinnan, A.J.	25
Mercil & Sylvester	15
Miller, A.A.	50
Miller, H.	1
Morley, Dr. G.A.	5
Morris, Tom	5
Murphy, W.P.	1
N.P. Stone & Co.	10
Neils, T. F.	1
Nelson, Anton	1
Nelson, H.E.	1
New York Store	10
Nolau, Mr. & Mrs. F.	2.5
Norman, J.F.	500
Northern Hardware & Plumbing	10
Northwestern Clinic	5
Nveseu, E.E.	25
O'Brian and Sylvester	10
O'Brieu & Co. , J.E.	100
Olson, F.A.	1
Prudhomme, E.H.	1
Rahala, D. (Dr.?)	100
Rasmussen & Laurent	25
Rasmusson and Laurent	10
Rauenbeihler, M. (sp?)	100
Red River Valley power Co.	10
Remele, Dr. H.W.	5
Richard, Clara	1
Robinson Lumber Co	10
Roy, L	100
Sanberg-Roe Co.	5
Schmidt Bros.	5
Scully Groc. Co.	25
Selvig, C.G.	5
Slocum, Liraneis (sp?) Groc. Co.	50
Smith, Henry L.	5
Spence, Thos.	5
Spence, Thos.	15
Spiving, R.L.	15
St. Hilaire Lumber Co.	5
Steenerson, S.	1
Steenerson, S.	1
Stehn, Freda	2
Stenshoil, N.P. (sp?)	10
Stickney, Dr.	5
Stone Co., N.P.	25
Stroot, George	2
Swanson, Ida	1
Swift (sp?) Mrs. Sarah	1
Thompson, A.Z.	10
Thorson, N.A.	5
Torrance Motor Co	10
Vaule, C.J.	1
Veneaux, J.F.	1
Vesledal, Mr. S	1
Walsh, E.M.	5
Walters, J.	1
Watts, Wm.	2
Webin, Axel G.	0.5
Welte, H.J.	5
Welte, H.J.	25
Wheeler-Misner Loan Co	5
Wheeler-Misner Loan Co.	100
Wurm, Rev. Joseph	100
Wyland, W.H.	1

from the archives at Mt. St. Benedict, Crookston, Minnesota

Our image is great!

2010-04-13T18:18:00.000-07:00

"I am excited to start chasing some of those elusive Minnesota bricks again now that milder weather has come again. I took a trip to Crookston, Minnesota, to look around what remains of Crookston bricks. Amazingly, this community still holds many of its old ties to the past. I would highly recommend a trip over to Crookston if you are looking to see what old buildings used to look like. You can also poke around antique stores looking for old gems. There are a couple of them in old historical buildings in the downtown area. If you look carefully, you can find old signs painted on the sides of some buildings and original hardware still on some of them. What a treat! I took my webmaster along for the ride, and we both enjoyed looking around town.

Several days later, we took another swing through Polk County...and what a huge county it is!! I guess at one time they looked at dividing up the county, but never did. So there is quite a range from east to west, where you go from pine trees to the flat prairie of the Red River Valley. It is not a very populous county, so the towns are mostly small and very rural. However, the views are spectacular and you never know what you will find. " There's more on the permalink.

Crookston Minnesota Photo Gallery

2010-03-12T11:36:00.000-08:00

Crookston Minnesota Gallery is the best collection both quantity and quality of historic buildings I've ever seen!

Imagine for One Minute!

2010-02-26T07:39:00.000-08:00

Imagine if the former Wayne/Palace Hotel was filled with 24 artists attracted to Crookston because of the affordable lifestyle and charming spaces to live. As you walk by the windows you will join with tourists to watch artists at work at welding, construction, forming and firing clay, painting, photographing, and creating all kinds of one of kind pieces. Bicycles will be parked in the rear of the building; artists will bicycle up to "A" Street and over to the former Cathedral on Ash to display and sell their works, where musicians and play practices are going on. Down in the park, you'll see artists at work as well, inspired by the river and the great spaces of the great plains. An "Arts and Learn" opens up in the former Eagle Drug location and other arts related spin-offs fill downtown retail spaces. UMC expands its visual arts classes and purchases the Fournet Block to house arts students. A "white tablecloth" restaurant opens up in the former Carnegie Library. Arts as therapy grows. Because there is increased tourist traffic through Crookston, other shops enjoy increased sales and they can now invest in the upkeep of their buildings. Many of them take advantage of Legacy grant funding through Prairie Skyline Foundation to redo their storefronts in the 1890's style. Our mental health is changed forever. Just imagine if the Palace/Wayne wasn't there.

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Historic preservation is one of the greenest things we can do

2010-01-28T09:13:00.000-08:00

In fact, according to an article by a director of the Association for Preservation Technology International, buildings constructed before 1920 on average consume less energy per square foot than those built in any decade since.

About the Union Building Project

2009-12-29T17:01:00.000-08:00

We looked for the best use of the three-story Union Building and found housing with services (also called “permanent supportive housing”) to be not only much needed in Crookston, but a chance to help people. In order to apply for grants, the project had to have a name. We called it “KT Apartments” after Kari Thompson who passed away the year I started working on the project. When completed the project will contain 11 units for the very low income, (single parents, students, min. wage job workers), 5 of which will be designated for the “long-term homeless” as defined by HUD, (folks who have struggled with homelessness more than a few times.) This 1.2 million project doesn't interest the large developers and is too big for small developers. Only a non-profit could do this project.

The goal is to rehab the three-story brick walk-up building. It is located at 111 W Robert Street in the historic commercial district of Crookston registered with the National Register of Historic Places. The building needs a new roof, asbestos abatement, and sprinklering. KT Apartments is a substantial rehab, acquisition, and rental assistance project. The building is a three story historic building with commercial space available on the main floor. This building was chosen because there are no lead pipes, the building is set up for electric heat in the apartments with individual meters in place, wiring meets code, plumbing meets code, it is structurally sound, historic preservation costs are low, and the basement is dry.

It is located 2 doors from the Northwest Minnesota Mental Health satellite office and coffee house that employs those with mental illness and disabilities. It is well positioned for tenants to access parks, buses, shopping, services, and schools. The building has parking across the street, behind the building and behind the building in a City owned lot that is available to the project. The first floor space houses a closed consignment shop. The building measures 50’ x 100’ and totals 15,000 square feet, of which 10,000 square feet is apartments. The basement is used for storage.

A long list of proven energy-saving features will be incorporated: airtight envelope, maximum insulation, Energy Star appliances, compact fluorescent light bulbs, Individual electric furnaces w/demand controllers gives tenants an affordable 3cents/kwh rate. Ceiling fans, bamboo shades and low-emissivity windows, are included.

The six-brick thick walls absorb and sequester heat to help keep the apartments cool in the summer and warmer in the winter, cutting down on cooling and heating demands. The building has 36 deteriorated single pane windows some of which have been filled in to a size too small for proper egress or lighting. We will replace the roof with a cool roof” made of light-colored reflective materials, that keeps heat from being absorbed by the roof and conducted into the building, and can provide a 30-percent reduction in peak heat gain into the building during summer afternoons.

The City of Crookston requires sprinkling on all three floors and the basement of the building. There is no elevator; however the stairway and landings are spacious but dark. A skylight will be installed to light up the stairway and common areas and stairs to the second and third floors. The other skylight is damaged and is leaking into a third floor apartment where it once again will be used to light up the stairway and landings. These will be louvered for heat gain and heat escape. The landings will be made into common areas for talking, playing games, and watching TV to give the sense of family so necessary to those who return again and again to the Emergency Shelter.

About 1/3 of the brick needs tuck-pointing, The North, East and West, and South windows will each have the appropriate window to maximize heat gain in the winter, and cooling in the summer. Passive solar water heating will reduce the utilities expense to the tenants and to the non-profit owner. Under study at this time is a combined solar thermal heating and water heating system.

Existing hardwood floors will be restored, low-E paints and cabinets will be utilized as well as the above energy saving treatments.

Supportive services to the five efficiency units for the long term homeless will be provided by Northwestern Mental Health Center, Inc. Rental Assistance Vouchers for the five homeless units will be administered by Crookston Housing & Economic Development Authority. (Includes one-year of funding through Minnesota Housing, and five more years funded through McKinney-Vento SHP “Shelter plus Care.” The goal of permanent supportive housing is to transition people into gainful employment and eventually off the housing voucher programs. Northwestern Mental Health Center will provide the case management to reach this goal with each homeless individual or couple. Property Management will be supplied by D.W. Jones Management, Inc. and the owner, Prairie Skyline Foundation, Inc., will all work together as covered under a Memorandum of Understanding.

The budget includes a live in caretaker $500 per month, (he/she pays own rent,) and other unique operating costs of permanent supportive housing. The net operating income provides a small cash flow of about $1200 per month. A detailed cash-flow analysis for 10 years and a breakdown of total development costs are available on request.

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Union IOOF Building

2009-10-20T18:12:00.000-07:00

Before my post on the Union Building Project, I must ask, Does anyone know why the building's name was changed from the International Order of Odd Fellows to the Union building?

Warren building had no roof and it was made into a Community Center!

2009-10-13T14:29:00.000-07:00

Every now and then, we need to check our points of reference. Prairie Skyline's point of reference for the rehab of the Wayne (Palace) Hotel project is the Taralseth Building in Warren Minnesota. A similar building to the Palace, it didn't even have a roof when the community took another look at their downtown after the 1997 Flood and decided to save it. Please empty your mind of your mental picture of the run-down Palace Hotel and replace it with a vision of the restored Taraseth Building which has on its main floor a large community center, something we need here in Crookston.

About the former Crookston Paint & Glass building project

2009-09-04T16:56:00.000-07:00

After Crookston Paint & Glass had occupied the building for 60 years, and the elderly owner, Edith Krohn, passed away, the building was vacant and listed for sale. Estimates on the sagging east wall of the basement were gathered for the Realtor. They ranged from $6,000 to over $30,000. The heir to the estate decided to donate the building to the Prairie Skyline Foundation, Inc. in Jan 07. The board worked on a proposal to the Minnesota Historical Society and in July of 08 was awarded a grant of $6,000 to be matched by local donations and labor to brace the wall to prevent it from caving in. Our contractor, Ron Geray, started building a new plate for the bracing when the bowed wall caved.

Luckily, we had put in a new beam before the cave-in, saving the entire east wall. Work halted while we figured out what to do next as $6,000 wasn’t going to be enough to do the entire project now. Then, the building inspector required us to get an engineer’s drawing of the new bracing wall and later he asked for an engineer’s drawing of the patch to the wall. Then Rick Nelson donated labor toward the building of a new wall of green treated lumber to stabilize the rest of the east wall.

Last November, the building was rented by “Happenstance” store owner, June Johnson, who did a remarkable job with fresh paint. She opened her store in December but was shut down in six days by the Crookston Building Inspector who was concerned about safety of her business in the West half of the 2-part building. The first problem was how to heat the basement enough to chip out the bottom layers of brick. Then Wayne Grove donated over $100 of time to channel heat to the problem area, Glen Torkelson lent us his heater, and volunteers were able to clean up the site enough to see that the only way the hole could be patched in is by doing the bottom 2/3 from the inside and the top 2/3 from the outside.

Dan Bertils donated his skill to carefully excavate from the vacant lot next door creating a perfect space to work in and without causing any more of a cave in than was already there. There was an old cement base of the building that was there before the vacant lot and tons of bricks to be hauled out, which he helped us with as well. Hebron Brick of Grand Forks donated over $400 of concrete block and mortar mix to the project. More wet weather caused the “hole in the wall” to grow larger and volunteers hauled out more brick and hauled masonry block and cement in on two chilly days in December.

But the Foundation hadn’t received enough donations to hire the work done and nobody wanted to do it as the job site appeared somewhat dangerous. Luckily, in March, the Foundation heard good news from Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart Corporate Giving gave us $1,000 to what we now called “the hole in the wall project.” We asked Ron Geray from Mahnomen to come back and do the masonry patch and him and his son did it quickly. Dan Bertils came back to push the dirt back in the hole. Although, we have much more to do on this building, hopefully, we look forward to the new store, Happenstance, opening for the second time this time this September.

There are still bills to pay, the problems with the front stucco falling off, and proper drainage away from the building yet to do. Those who like to work on buildings or want to serve as clerks in a proposed thrift store to benefit Prairie Skyline Foundation’s efforts are encouraged to volunteer with the Foundation by calling Kay Hegge at 218.289.1246 anytime.

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Stories Subject to Change

2009-08-21T08:00:00.000-07:00

Stories subject to change according to donations. Check out http://tiny.cc.cdjbx

Former Cathedral on Ash Street Project

2009-08-08T10:32:00.000-07:00

Eyewashes prepared by Brian Carlson, JLG Architects, Grand Forks, ND

When the Diocese of Crookston built a new Catholic Cathedral in 1991, the Care and Share Homeless Shelter bought the former rectory, and land to expand their services to the homeless. The empty former Cathedral was included even though Care and Share had no use for it. Not wanting to lose the Tiffany style Stained Glass windows to vandalism, they sold some of them. See the complete story of the stripping of the former Cathedral on prairieskyline.com.

In 1996, Jennifer Peterson founded the Skyline Preservation Foundation, Inc., a non-profit, public charity to purchase the three-spired church. The former board researched the history and applied to be on the National Historic Register, which it is today. They fought a long legal case to be free from property taxes as an undeveloped building. They endured loss of leadership, loss of a grant-writer, and struggled to keep the building up with small fundraisers and their own funds. The tired board members handed over the reins to Kay Hegge in 2002.

Our first grant written was turned down on a technicality, the McKnight Foundation, the biggest supporter of the arts put a moratorium on capital grants, fundraising letters brought in a few donations, enough to publish a newsletter. Ever busy with life, there was little time for board members to promote the project in person. Even with Kay’s past experience in fundraising for the Crookston Public Library makeover, and at the Northwest Regional Development Commission, she and new board members could do little to raise funds even for plywood amongst the fear, tear down and build new mindset of Crookston during those years. Small successes include a structural analysis showing the building is sound as a rock, repairing the steeples, putting the screening back up where the bell was taken out, and painting the crosses on the three steeples. Now, with a new administration, we hope for fresh new minds to help with the project.

The project concept, originally called “The Skyline Center,” morphed into the “Cathedral Gallery and Store” and now still the best use for the building is a Center for the Arts, Community center, or Visitor Center. Combining all three uses will work the best and access the most funding. Sources of funding that we have found for the approximately $1.2 M project include a “Brownfields” clean up grant, Dept of Transportation, “Gateway to NW MN information center” grant, Small Cities Block Grant funds, McKnight Foundation, and as a last resort - bonding year project.

The first step is a feasibility study. We did a preliminary survey on line to see if local artists in Northwestern Minnesota want this space to show and sell their work. They all loved the idea and were willing to pay up to a 30% commission on sales of their art, but that’s not a good enough study to figure out if the Center can pay for itself. We need to pay Artspace or some other firm about $3,000 to do a complete Feasibility Study.

The second step is to raise $40,000 in smaller grants and local donations to show that the community of Crookston is behind this project which will create a central location and one of a kind space for the performing and visual arts in Crookston. This will leverage the Brownfields grant of $160,000 to clean up the pigeon damage in the sacristies. Then we have $200,000 of real leverage for the larger grants!

I am willing to do the grant writing, but our small board can’t do it all, and we are getting tired. We will need everyone in Crookston to get behind this great project. Arts can be encouraged through classes, apprenticeships, the arts is a great therapy and a place to gather around. Many towns have used this strategy to increase traffic to their towns. Bemidji, New York Mills, Fergus Falls, and little Stephen, Minnesota are a few of them. We are close enough to Grand Forks, Fargo, and Winnepeg to pull this off successfully. I can see the vision, can you?

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About the former St. Vincent Hospital building

2009-07-27T12:49:00.000-07:00

“Benedictine sisters began their work in the area that is now the Crookston diocese in 1899, when Mother Scholastica Kerst of Duluth opened St. Anthony’s Hospital over a store in Bemidji. In 1900 she arrived in Crookston to assess the need for a hospital in this lumbering center. After some study she opened Riverside Hospital in a frame building on Pine Street west of the Great Northern Railroad, on the bank of the Red Lake River. The first medical insurance in the state was sold to lumbermen for $2.00 a year. In 1902 the sisters purchased land on Seventh Street and there built St. Vincent’s Hospital.” (The Benedictine)

In 1901 the Diocese of Crookston was created from dividing the Diocese of Duluth. The Benedictine sisters from Duluth started and staffed many schools and two hospitals. In 1919 Bishop Timothy Corbett asked the Mother Eustacia Beyenka to come to Crookston with sister companions to establish a new priory. “St. Vincent’s Hospital served as the community convent for two years.”

Of interest is that Lindbergh’s father was taken to Crookston to receive care at the Villa St. Vincent.

The addition to St. Vincent’s Hospital was built in the 20’s or 30’s under the direction of Bishop Corbett. The new wing was exactly matched to the brick of the hospital. See picture with the porch above.

In 1950 the new St. Francis Hospital replaced St. Vincent’s Hospital for acute care, and St. Vincent’s became a home for the elderly under the direction of Bishop Schenk.

When St. Francis converted to a board-and-care home in 1973, a new east wing was added to St. Francis for long-term care patients. In 1978 the patients were moved here from St. Vincent’s and the whole complex was named Villa St. Vincent.

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News from Prairie Skyline Foundation

2009-05-12T09:49:00.000-07:00

Watch for your postcard in the mail! We are sending out a SPRING FUNDRAISING POSTCARD ONLY to those that support the Arts, History, and Theatre. Because after all, what is Architecture but artistic, historical and drama?

When you get your postcard, check your favorite project or projects, enclose just $20 and the card and return to us within 7 days for your FREE COPY of our first newsletter since 2007, (yes, we've been that busy!) containing great historical articles and lots of pictures. Remember this is your chance to "vote" on your favorite project by checking the appropriate box or boxes on the card. We want your money to go directly to where YOU WANT IT TO GO!

1. Right now, we need funds to hire "Artspace" to do an Working Arts Center Feasibility Study on the former Cathedral on Ash Street. An earlier pre-study revealed over 100 active visual artists in NW Minnesota who would LOVE to display and sell their art in such a "jewel on the prairie" space. Remember the feasibility study is the "ticket" to grant dollars.

2.We need to finish up the emergency wall repair at the former Crookston Paint & Glass Building. The grant from Walmart and the grant from the Minnesota Historical Society have gone a long way but the building inspector says we need to do more yet!

3. We need local matching funds for the grants written for the former Union Building or Quist Trading Post. We call the project KT Apartments afer Kari Thompson and the Historic King of Trails. This permanent supportive housing project will have five units for the long-term homeless and six units for very low income people, you know, single moms working at McDonald's etc.

4. We always need general operating funds and ideas for future projects. General operating funds include printing and postage, signs, and displays, etc.

Also NEW and to WATCH FOR is an upcoming article on the KT APARTMENT PROJECT in the Crookston Daily Times. This article should explain everything and how the project could come together with your help.

Thanks for visiting this page!