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American Swedish Institute collection

 Collection — Box: 1
Identifier: N10

Scope and Content Note

The collection contains the plans for two alternative designs for this Turnblad mansion, one by W. H. Dennis, architect of Minneapolis, and one by Frank G. Cauffman, architect of Roxborough, Pennsylvania. The plans by Dennis are originals, ink on linen, totaling 10 sheets of various sizes up to 36 x 18". The Cauffman plans are blueprints, 7 sheets in all, again of varying sizes up to 30 x 20".

Also included in the papers is a set of plans (blueprints) for the new Posten Building, 7th Street and 5th Avenue South, Minneapolis, designed by Christopher Boehme to house the Svenska Amerikanska Posten (1915).

Dates

  • Creation: 1915, undated

Creator

Language of Materials

English

Restrictions on Access

Available for use in the reading room. Advance notice is requested.

Restrictions on Use

There are no restrictions on the use of materials in this collection. Copies can be requested if the condition of the originals warrants it.

Biographical Note

Swan Turnblad (1860–1934) was born in Sweden, immigrated to America with his parents as a child, and was educated in the schools at Vasa, Goodhue County, Minnesota. He took charge of the Svenska Amerikanska Posten in 1886, a Swedish-language newspaper published in Minneapolis. By the turn of the century, he had made the Svenska Amerikanska Posten the largest Swedish-language paper in the United States. In 1903, Turnblad commissioned Christopher Boehme and Victor Cordella, architects of Minneapolis, to design a mansion for him at 2600 Park Avenue, which now houses the American Swedish Institute.

W. H. Dennis was born in New York State in 1845, studied architecture in Paris for 2 years, and is known to have worked in Ohio and Michigan before coming to Minneapolis. He specialized in the design of commercial buildings and large residences. Frank G. Cauffman, an architect from Roxborough, PA, created the second set of alternative plans for the Turnblad mansion.

The Posten Building was built from Christopher Boehme’s design to house the Svenska Amerikanska Posten. Boehme was born in Minneapolis and educated at the University of Minnesota. From 1903 to 1911, he was in partnership with Victor Cordella (1872–1937), during which time they designed the Turnblad residence. The Posten Building was designed while Boehme was practicing alone in 1915.

Extent

2 Cubic Feet

Abstract

Collection consists of two unbuilt plans for the Turnblad residence by architects Frank G. Cauffman and W. H. Dennis. The third set of plans is for the Posten Building, designed by C.A. Boehme.

Title
American Swedish Institute Collection
Author
Archives Staff
Date
undated
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
English

Collecting Area Details

Contact The Northwest Architectural Archives Collecting Area

Contact:

612-625-3550