Blue Mounds

 

 

Latrine 
Builder: WPA
Architect: O. Newstrom 
Date: 1939-1942

The Latrine is a 32' x 18' gable roofed structure that follows a standard design used in many state parks. However, the building is one of the most striking visually in the state park system because of the bright rose-colored quartzite used in its construction. Stone walls, 5'9" x 9'6", extend from the sidewalls to form entrance screens. Each screen is 5' high. Paired 6-light casements are placed on both principal facades and are separated by rough clapboard siding. Three 6" x 8" lookouts project from each gable and four 6" x 10" openings pierce the sidewalls to provide ventilation. The building still retains its original plank entrance doors. In 1964, the interior was remodeled and skylights were added. Although construction was begun in 1939, the Latrine was not completed until 1942, due to difficulty in obtaining WPA funding.

 

 

Upper Dam
Builder: WPA
Engineer: Division of Drainage & Waters 
Date: 1938

The Upper Dam consists of a 61' spillway and a 65' dike constructed of stone that blends with the existing quartzite along Mound Creek. A stone abutment is constructed on the west side of the spillway and extends 200' in the form of a riprapped dike with a 50' stone core wall. An 18" sluice gate is placed at the base of the spillway.

The dam was constructed through the cooperative efforts of the Works Progress Administration, the Emergency Relief Administration, and the Minnesota Department of Conservation.

Rustic Style

By 1933, when the National Park Service first sent work groups to Minnesota, a design philosophy called National Park Service Rustic Style had emerged as the standard for state park development. The design philosophy insisted on emphasizing natural features rather than man-made ones.

Rustic Style buildings were designed not to call attention to themselves but to blend with the natural environment. They were constructed with whatever materials were locally available and often have a hand-crafted appearance.

Minnesota's Rustic Style resources tell the story of its land. Log construction took place in the northern portions of the state, where timber was plentiful. Stone buildings were more typical in the south and northwest. A combination of log and stone is common in the central section of the state. Minnesota stonework includes limestone in the south; basalt rock and sandstone in the east; colorful quartzites in the southwest; granite and gabbro near Lake Superior; and fieldstone in the west, north and northwest.