Survey and evaluation of historic properties is conducted for a wide variety of purposes. Reconnaissance level (aka windshield survey) projects are commonly utilized to make a broad review of an area or an assessment of a single property for the purpose of providing a cursory evaluation of the potential eligibility for National Register of Historic Places. Reconnaissance level survey and evaluations are often the initial step in an extended project. As the name implies, intensive level surveys look much more closely at a resource’s National Register eligibility, with research directed at developing historical contexts from which the resource may draw significance. Intensive level evaluation results in a recommendation regarding eligibility to the National Register.
Marshall Lyon County Library- Marshall, Minnesota
The Marshall-Lyon County Library is an excellent example of modernistic architecture, its interior plan is reflective of both its function as a library and the modernist embrace of the open plan and simplicity of design. The building’s exterior incorporates a cross-section of modernistic elements, juxtaposing the simple form of the unadorned south section against the rhythmic façade with its cantilevered cast concrete beam structure, alternating pattern of redwood grille and window, and the use of a brise solei.
An intensive level survey and evaluation of the Marshall-Lyon County Library (funded by the State of Minnesota’s Legacy Grant program) was completed in 2017. The library was found to be eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places as a well-preserved example of a public library representative of mid-twentieth century modernistic architecture. Although the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area was the hotbed of the state’s Mid-Century Modern design, modernistic architecture made its way to Minnesota communities large and small by architectural firms located in the Twin Cities or other large cities – in the case of the Marshall-Lyon County Library, the suburban Minneapolis firm of Kilstofte & Visejpka.
Woodland Park Baptist Church – St. Paul, Minnesota
An intensive level survey and evaluation of Woodland Park Baptist Church was completed in 2018; the project was funded by the State of Minnesota’s Legacy Grant program. The 1907 building is a neighborhood church constructed in the early years of the residential development of this area west of the St. Paul original town. The church was designed in the Gothic Revival style, which achieved renewed popularity in church design in the early 20th century. The design exemplifies the patterns of St. Paul church architecture of the period in its use of a dark brick with light stone trim details, the incorporation of a corner tower, and the dominant use of the Gothic or lancet arch. The church’s form and construction materials stand in contrast to other churches located in the Summit-University neighborhood.
The survey and evaluation project resulted in a preliminary finding of eligibility to the National Register and a recommendation that the church parish proceed with a nomination; that work was subsequently funded by a second Legacy Grant and is underway in 2020.