Moorish Revival and Onion Domes of Minneapolis

I have always had a fascination and a love for the far east architecture and styles, and apparently so did the Victorians.  The Moorish revival style was popular in the gilded age and popular not only for public buildings, but also private homes, exotic parlors, smoking rooms and Turkish inspired baths.  Minneapolis many be cold and have snow for half the year, but a little bit of Moorish revival came here and survived the past 100 years.  Here are two lovely examples that also have the beautiful onion domes on the buildings as well.


The Bardwell-Ferrant House.
This stunning and aged beauty has a survived despite being abused and neglected for many years. It has been moved, embellished, restored, vandalized, lost to foreclosure and now sits clinging on to it's beauty loosing bits of its fabric as the days go on.  The home was first built in 1883 for Charles Bardwell as a much simpler Queen Anne home and was located at 1800 Park Avenue.  Bardwell was a carpenter and co-owned a lumber and sash company which some suggest account for the heavily carved woodwork throughout the interior.  After only a brief stay at the home Bardwell sold the home to Emil Ferrant, who in 1890 decided the house needed a bit of flair.  Ferrant hired Norwegian architect Carl F. Struck to create his fantasy.  The addition of Moorish towers capped with onion domes, delicate spindle work and flowery inspired front porch were all more typical of Moorish style, however there are some influences of Scandinavian design with hearts and birds on the house.  The home was complete and Mr. Ferrant was free to enjoy the beautiful jewel box that had been created.  In 1898 he moved the home to its present location at 2500 Park Avenue and a bank was built on the lot of his former home.  Good thing the house was moved because today the freeway runs right in the middle of where the home was, and could have easily been lost to history.  As the gilded age came to a close and the years of wars and depression come on the home and the once grand neighborhood this home was in went into steady decline.  The home was in bad shape by the early 1980s.  There had been interest in the home and adding it to the list of historic places but this task was not accomplished until 1983 at a price around $150,000.  In 1984 the home had a little luck and purchased by a two owners who undertook the renovation and restoration of the home and sensitively turned the home into 4 apartments.  After years of detailed restoration the home was complete and it won a preservation award from the city in 1986.  The two owners then decided it was time to sell the home in 2001 and sadly it was purchased by poor landlords that cared little for the precious building.  The wood began to rot from lack of maintenance and some of the renters who resided in the house cared little for its significance.  In 2008 the house was foreclosed on and while vacant vandals got into the house.  Stealing the stained glass, mantles, copper lines and anything else they could get a dollar for to supply their drug addictions.  Currently it is owned by someone, however the exterior is still in poor shape and the interior is unknown.  This precious home's future is unknown as the the neighborhood it resides in can be troublesome and the home has few full time watchmen to keep an eye on it.  Let's all hope this treasure is one day again restored and kept that way for the future to enjoy.

 Detail of porch post and restoration (From Rolf Lokensgard)

 Stair Landing (Photo by Douglas Madeline)

Showing stolen fireplace (Photo by Douglas Madeline)

 Stair Detail (Photo by Douglas Madeline)

Stained glass detail in back 2nd floor bay (Photo by Douglas Madeline)

Another wonderful example of Moorish Revival, albeit it much later is the Despatch Laundry Building from 1929.  Despatch commissioned Louis Boyton Bersback to design an office building for the company and their rug and fur cleaning machines.  As one can see the beautiful onion dome done in copper, the brickwork, the fantastic tile  and rising from the parapets are smaller domes on brick piers. Not to mention the fantastic bay window below the dome.

 Detail of tile on building

Perhaps a few others are hiding around the cities?

If you like what you read and want to see this blog and projects keep going PLEASE feel free to donate something, even if it's only a little bit.  Every little bit helps on this restoration project. Thanks again!