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Manfred House on National Register of Historic Places

Subhead
'Save the Manfred House' lobbies for structure, state DNR will decide
By
Lori Sorenson

The Manfred house atop the Blue Mounds State Park is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places, thanks to efforts of the nonprofit group, Save the Manfred House.
“Obviously our group is pleased with the recognition both for cultural importance it has and the design significance of it,” said Tom Brakke, a member of Save the Manfred House. “That recognition is fantastic and supports our mission in wanting to save it.”
The designation, announced June 3, means it would qualify for grant funding. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources owns the structure and recognizes the historic designation.
“It is a tribute of recognition to the significance of the place especially relative to Mr. Manfred’s writing,” said Bob Welsh, DNR Resource and Asset Management Section Manager.
“We will proceed through a thorough review as is required when making any kind of alterations to historic structures and we are prepared to mitigate in whatever way is necessary.”
The house is deemed unsafe due to moisture issues affecting structural integrity, and the Minnesota DNR decided to dismantle the building, leaving behind a portion of the home’s footprint as the base for a Fred Manfred landmark.
For background, Welsh said the DNR in 2019 hired an architectural and engineering consulting firm to evaluate the Manfred house and surrounding area, and to develop three conceptual designs for the future use of the area as the “Eagle Rock Vista” trailhead and day-use facility.
“A final design for the trailhead facility includes elements from all three of the concepts,” Welsh said. 
Save the Manfred House
News of the DNR’s plans to dismantle the house prompted friends, family members and colleagues of Manfred to form the Save the Manfred House in 2019 to prevent demolition.
First on their agenda was to get the structure listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and they hired historic architect Rolf Anderson to submit the nomination.
The nomination included some background on the regionally acclaimed author who built the house.
“Frederick Manfred was larger than life. At six feet nine inches tall, he was a towering figure. His lifelong goal to produce a body of work that gave voice to an entire region over a span of 200 years was perhaps larger than life as well, and a remarkable literary achievement,” Anderson wrote in the nomination.
“The Manfred House on the Blue Mounds was also a remarkable achievement. Perhaps it is not surprising that someone who was so closely connected to land would wish to build a house that was equally united with the land. The result was a design both bold and extraordinary in concept with its incorporation of living rock and integration with the natural landscape. The Manfred House represents one of Minnesota’s most unique and powerful architectural expressions in residential design.”
Brakke and other advocates of saving the house are now urging state officials to pursue new funding avenues that the historic designation provides.
“We hope the recognition and possible funding sources will prompt the DNR to get a qualified historical architect to properly assess it,” Brakke said.
 
DNR recognizes
Manfred’s significance
In response to public interest, Welsh said the design process is carefully considering Manfred’s cultural and historic significance.
“The DNR is working with the consulting firm to incorporate elements of the former Manfred House into the design in an attempt to balance recreational opportunities, natural resource protection, and the significance of the place that inspired Mr. Manfred's writings,” Welsh said.
“Specifically, the consultant has been asked to propose an alternative that incorporates Mr. Manfred's writing room. Feedback from the public has included comments that the DNR ‘should at least save the writing room.’ The DNR will be reviewing the consultant's revised concept design and will share it with the public when ready.”
 
History of house
Fred Manfred built the house in 1961 and he and his family lived there until the 1970s when financial difficulties forced a sale to the state.
It served for many years as a park interpretive center, but closed in 2016.
In 2017 the state began considering options for repairing it, and estimates were more than $400,000.
However, at that time there were more pressing capital emergencies, such as contaminated park water and addressing flood destruction of 2014 that blew out the dam and drained the lake.

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