Last week Northfield Construction Company workers started a historic restoration project at
the Dodge Center Courthouse in Mantorville, Minnesota. This is a lovely old building and we are proud to be assisting with repairs to keep it going strong for many years more use. From what I understand, the original stone courthouse was constructed between 1865 and 1870. As it has Court chambers on the second floor of the building, I suspect it may be the oldest courthouse still used for court duties in Minnesota.
Our work involves a significant amount of structural repairs to the roof itself, as well as restoration of the cupola, roof fascias, flashings, exterior paintings, etc. The building will be encased in metal scaffolding soon so we can safely accomplish our work. The original beam and
carpentry work in the roof area reveals lots of care taken by craftsmen from years ago. There are neat pegged and spliced joints, carefully sawn scarf joints, and generally good fits throughout.
It will be a bit of a challenge working on the building while so many public functions must also take place, but that is the nature of this type of a project.