Fantastic Architectural Detail in Des Plaines, Illinois

I traveled to Des Plaines, Illinois this week while visiting family in Chicago, and came across the Des Plaines Theater. It has some amazing architectural details influenced by the Art Deco period along the top of the building's exterior.

Designed in 1925 by architect William B. Betts, the building was built to house the Polka Brothers Chicago circuit, held nearly 1000 people, and had a stage and orchestra pit. As you can see from this photo dated 1925, there were originally pillars on top of each little dome of the roof ridge line.

Hidden Italianate Home in Nokomis

5028 Hiawatha Ave, Minneapolis

This fantastic example of Italianate design his a hidden gem in the Nokomis area of Minneapolis. Built sometime around 1875, it is one of the oldest surviving historic homes in the area. In the recent past, the home has been restored, and the colors chosen really make the home stand out in the neighborhood. The home originally has a cupola on the roof, since removed, and evidence still exists on the roof with the square cap. Looking at the front of the home, I would guess it also had a front porch, as the lower windows do not have window hoods, and the siding is different where a roof line would have been.

Beautiful decorative window hoods still adorn the windows.

Blue Queen Anne in Saint Paul

431 Ashland Ave, Saint Paul

Built in 1890 by Ole Ask, this beautiful home is one of my favorites on Ashland. I am not sure if it is the perfect shade of blue that does it for me, or the white gingerbread trim around the house, but the home just stands out on its street. Amazingly, according to Larry Millett, the home was originally built at 825 Dayton Ave, and was moved to this location in 1977.

Here is a photo of the house that use to stand at 431 Ashland Ave.

Advertisers Needed for Historic Homes Tour Book

The Ramsey Hill Association in Saint Paul is currently looking for businesses interested in advertising in the upcoming Ramsey Hill Historic Home Tour to be held this fall, September 2009. If you are interested and would like a rate sheet of ad space available, please send an email to Jennifer Kirby, Jennifer@theLuxuryAgent.com . As a neighborhood association, the funds generated by the house tour go directly to running the organization. We would love to see local businesses in or surrounding the Ramsey Hill area, Crocus Hill, Summit Hill, and Saint Paul participate, but welcome others outside the area. We would appreciate responses by May 31, 2009.

Copyright

A recent incident that is now recurring is forcing me to write this post about copyright of photos used on this site. (Notice the "Do not Copy" notice on the leftside of this blog.) To some people, it is ok to go onto the Internet and lift photos of other peoples work. They then use these photos on their websites without permission. They either do not care or don't know the law, but either way, what they are doing is stealing....oh, and Copyright infringement.

As a visitor to this blog, I am sure you can easily see that I travel around the area taking photos of historic homes, then post them to my blog with a story about the home. It's what I do, and the whole reason for this blog, which is to educate locals and others about the great historic resource we have in Minnesota through our homes and buildings. Taking these photos takes time, energy, patience, and creative thought.

What many people fail to realize is that even though the Internet is public domain, the content is not free for all to use. The general rule of thumb (in this instance) is that once a photo hits a hard drive, it is considered copywritten. The photo does not have to have a copyright notice on the photo, nor a big C. In order to use a photo, one must obtain permission from the source. So for those people out there that "right click and save" and then use the photo, you are committing copyright infringement.

Any excuse you give does not matter. Taking something created by another without permission is wrong.

I could go into greater detail, but I don't want to clutter up my nice blog with a post such as this. I just want you to know, that I work hard to write this blog, so please do not steal my stuff. Simple as that.

If you want to learn more about Copyright law as it pertains to blogs and websites, please visit a great lady's blog regarding copyright law, Lenn Harley, for in depth articles on the subject.

Historic Fort Snelling Buildings Might Get a Face Lift

For those of you who read my blog, you know I focus on more than just historic homes. I like to feature churches and buildings,too, and anything with historic significance. Today I read that the Upper Post buildings at Fort Snelling could be getting funds to fix a few buildings sorely in need of repair.

"On Tuesday, the Hennepin County board accepted $500,000 in state grant money to provide emergency stabilization for two buildings on the Upper Post. Then the board approved seeking $6.75 million in federal stimulus money to restore the Post Headquarters building and the officers' quarters building."

If this goes through, it will be a great addition to the fort. As some of you know, the Upper Post was declared one of the most endangered sites in the US three years ago. If you want to learn more about Fort Snelling and the Upper Post, please visit the following sites:

Friends of Fort Snelling: http://www.fortsnelling.org

Upper Post Website: http://www.upperpost.org/

The Burwell House in Minnetonka

13209 E. McGinty Rd, Minnetonka

Built in 1883, the Burwell House was constructed by Charles Henry Burwell for his growing family, second wife and four children. Mr. Burwell was the Manager of the Minnetonka Mills Company beginning in 1874 until the mills demise in 1886. The land was purchased from the mill at a cost of $1000, and the house was built from a design found in the Palliser's American Cottage Home catalog, or so the story goes. It is said to have cost a mere $3260 to build.

While the home is said to be in the Italianate style, I really feel it is an "in-between" house. The home does not have any strong Italianate features like window hoods, bracketed eves, or low pitched gables. In my opinion, it is more a cross between an Italian Villa, which features a central tower, and the Victorian Folk style. The home was built at the very end of the Italian popularity, but in the middle of Folk period. It is not always easy to pin down a single style to Victorian homes, but it is easy to see architectural influences in some of them. One part of the home not originally built in 1883, is the wrap around porch. Added on somewhere between 1989-1906, it is a good example of the Eastlake influence, with its elaborate spindels and woodwork.

The cottage (upper left) was moved to the site in 1894 from the Minnetonka Mills site, to house Mr. Burwell's widowed mother. It is one of the original 15 cottages constructed to house

mill workers. The summer kitchen (upper right) was added to the home in 1892.

The mill office (lower left) was Mr. Burwell's office and was moved to the site in 1894. It now serves as the Minnetonka Historical Society building.The final photograph is of the original ice house (lower right).

The site is open for tours during the summer months.

Greek Revival Historic Home in Prescott

606 North Lake Street, Prescott, WI

Today I was traveling through Prescott, Wisconsin to list a home for sale and I came across a great representation of the Greek Revival style. Built in 1854 by Hilton Doe, the home sits just off the St. Croix River, and probably at that time, had an even better view of the river (no houses in front of it). Mr. Doe was apparently a pioneer of the area, with the home remaining in the Doe family until 1867. Around 1895, Julius Knoblach acquired the property and the home was in his family for the next 57 years. In 1994, the home was restored and looks fantastic for its age.

The Church of the Holy Comforter

While driving through southeast Minnesota along the banks of the Minnesota, I came across the small town of Brownsville. On Main Street stands a simple Gothic style Episcopal church which was built in 1869 by Charles Brown, who founded the town in 1849. The Church was restored by the Houston County Historical Society in 1980. Though it is not currently in use, it is available by appointment and for weddings.

Grand Mediterranean Home on Lake of the Isles

2427 Lake of the Isles Parkway East, Minneapolis

Last week I had the chance to tour the recently listed historic mansion on Lake of the Isles. It is a beautiful Spanish Revival home that was built in 1911 by architect Frederick Soper, presumably for Charles Buchholz the president of the Western Biological Supply Company.

A photo of the home as it looked in 1974 shows how the original entrance looked before the front stairs and terraces were added in 2005. The home is a standout inside and out, and features a grand staircase in the middle of the home, which gives an atrium feel to the home. It is currently listed for sale for $5.495 Million, one of the most expensive homes on Lake of the Isles.