Walking Tour of Shadow Falls Neighborhood
NOTE: Please view the information for the tour HERE.
Welcome to Part 2 of the Shadow Falls Park addition Centennial Party. In his book “AIA Guide to the Twin Cities” Larry Millett, St. Paul author, historian and newspaper columnist presented this picture of Shadow Falls Park: "At least half a dozen small, seasonal waterfalls, bearing romantic names like Fawn's Leap and Silver Cascade, once tumbled into the Mississippi River gorge between St. Paul and Minneapolis. Shadow Falls, lying deep within a long ravine, is probably the most pristine of the surviving waterfalls, and it gives its name to a small park as well as to the 1920s subdivision just to the north that contains some of the Twin Cities' most magnificent Period Revival homes." Today we’ll try to give you a closer look at some of the charm of those homes and the people of Shadow Falls Park.
The development of Shadow Falls Park homes introduced a new architectural design trend described as the “English Cottage” style of architecture. It was embracedby various architects including Worthen, Lundie, Lewis, the Johnstons Sr & Jr. As cited in St Paul Architecture, pg 106: ”The distinguishing characteristics (sic English Cottage) are informality and picturesquesness. The plan is irregular; the rooms are not symmetrically arranged; the windows and doors locate themselves largely where they happen to be convenient. The exterior is also irregular with steep roofs, sharp gables, large chimneys and varying combinations of materials like wood, stone, brick or stucco.”
As you do this Shadow Falls Park walking tour, notice the frequency of these architectural features throughout the neighborhood.
This is a self-guided, public sidewalk tour. Go at your own pace and sequence. But please follow these simple requests:
*Stay on the public sidewalk in front of each house. Do not go on to their private property
*As a backup, a printed version of the information of the participating home is at the location. Please leave the printed version at the home for the next person’s enjoyment.
*The tour and Home History binders have been put together by Marian Biehn & Trish Rowley, divinely curious volunteers, amateur historians and longtime Shadow Falls Park residents. If you see an error or can add some information, please contact us. We are not hard to find.
The tour includes 8 homes, three themes.
*Architects
*ShadowFalls Park (SFP) Residents of Note
*PlanBuilt Homes
The homes are:
1. 2233 Riverwood Place Architect Kenneth B. Worthen
2. 98 Exeter Place Architect Kenneth B.Worthen
3. 52 Mississippi River Blvd Shadow Falls Park resident James “Crash”Ryan
4. 54 Mississippi River Blvd Architect Kenneth B. Worthen
5. 38 Otis Ave Architect Oscar C. Lang
6. 50 Otis Ave Plan Built Home
7. 73 Otis Ln SFP resident Dr. C. Walt Lillehei &Architect Edwin H. Lundie
8. 2269 Riverwood Pl Plan Built Home
Look for a yellow flag at the front sidewalk with the corresponding #1-8
The themes are:
1. Architect: Kenneth B. Worthen was born on April 29, 1899 in Big Stone Lake, South Dakota. He had a reputation for distinct design in St. Paul, where he worked until 1930 as an architectural partner with Percy Bentley. He moved from the Craftsman style tothe English Cottage style and was regarded in the industry as having a“restless imagination.” His wife, Frances Smith, was an interior designer and,after her husband's death, industrial detail designer. Worthen lived in Los Angeles, CA from 1930 until his death in 1947.
Architect: Edwin H Lundie was a master draftsman and architect. He’s noted for his exquisite talent as an artist and his meticulous attention to detail. Lundie stood apart from his contemporaries in his lifelong reverence for tradition. Lundie established his firm in 1917 in St. Paul and worked as an architect in St Paul until his death at 85 in 1972.
Architect Oscar Lang was born in Minneapolis on August 25, 1888. He worked for Minneapolis architect Cecil Chapman from 1908 to 1912 and then attended the School of Architecture of the University of Pennsylvania from 1913-1915, completing a two-year special course in design and drawing.He returned to Minneapolis and worked at various architectural firms. In 1922 Lang formed the partnership of Lang, Raugland and Lewis. The firm became a leader in the Modernism movement. Lang died in Minneapolis in December 1960.
Residents of Note. Since the original home owners, there have been a number of notable, famous and impressive residents of Shadow Falls Park such as the Lampert Lumber and the Murphy Trucking (now Murphy Logistics) families. But two residents stand out for their pioneering work and contributions to life-saving inventions now common in our lives.
Plan Built Homes: The Architecture Small House Service Bureau (ASHSB) was established in the 1920s by a consortium of architects in Minneapolis. Intended as a way for architects to reach the small-home builder, its concept was immediately endorsed by the American Institute of Architects (AIA). Small houses were often built by contractors or carpenters without consulting an accredited architect. The ASHSB sought to bring ‘culture to the masses,’ by offering architect-designed stock plans and related services to the small-homebuilder at a reasonable cost.
Minneapolis became the marketing and sales hub for as many as 13 regional ASHSB offices across the country. Plans were advertised through a weekly newspaper “matservice,” The ASHSB’s monthly bulletin TheSmall Home, plan books such as HomeBuilders Plan Book, and magazines such as House Beautiful, McCall’s,Saturday Evening Post among others.
Edited from information submitted by Christine Dahl, 50 Otis Ave
The Service Bureau or Plan Book home floor plans were designed by architects. People bought the plans and hired their own contractors and builders and couldmake alterations or individual choices on finishes & features. The “plan built” homes were different from “kit homes” which could also be purchased through magazines and outlets like Sears Roebuck. In the case of the kit home,the entire home plan, lumber, roof, fixtures, etc. were delivered to the building site numbered for assembly.
Map of homes on self-guided walking tour
