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Sara Geyers

Kindergarten

class posed for

a photo the sec-

ond day of

school.

Back row-

Billy Bleninger,

Parker

Duncan,

Jasmine

Beaudreau,

Brendan

Adams, Levi

Anderson;

Middle row-Megan Lentz,

Jennae

Quistorff,

Landin Foust,

Nate Benning,

Reed Webster;

Front row-

Chase Mikel,

Kaylene Feda,

Paula Ovens

Kindergarten

class was

happy to sit for

a picture on

the first day of

school.

Back Row:

Joseph

Nedoroscik,

Mackenzie

Strom, Eshetu

Loer, Natalia

Stanaway,

Brady Host;

Middle Row:

Chandler

Davey, Eli

Marquedant,

Kaleb

Murdock,

Danielle

Prather, Elvis

Kneeland;

Front Row: Alli

Olander,

Garett Gaulke,

Natalie Muller.

A community newspaper serving Browerville, MN and surrounding areas. USPS 067-560

Thursday, September 16, 2010

Volume 98; Number 14

www.bladepublishing.net

Wed. Sept. 15

Showers

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Thur. Sept. 16

Partly Cloudy

59/47

Fri. Sept. 17

Showers

54/36

Sat, Sept. 18

Mostly Sunny

53/40

Sun. Sept. 19

Partly Cloudy

54/45

Mon. Sept. 20

Showers

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Tue. Sept. 21

Showers

55/44

Wed. Sept. 22

Showers

56/44

WEEKLY WEATHER REPORT

The class of 2023

Christ the

King class

of 2023

75

By Rin Porter

On August 20, 2010, at the

equest of this reporter,

Auditor/Treasurer Karen Busch

earched for and found the orig-

nal contract between the Toddounty Board of Commissioners

nd John Aiton for the building

f the historic courthouse. It

was in one of the courthouse

aults. The contract is dated

May 2, 1883.

The contract presents an

greement between John Aiton

f Alexandria, Minnesota, and

om Ward, Joshua S. McCay,

Michael Dinkel, S.M. Herbert,

nd Perry Robbins as county

ommissioners of Todd County,

Minnesota.

The contract says that John

Aiton agrees to build erect and

omplete a brick Court House

nd Jail to be built and erected

pon what is termed and known

s Court House in Lincoln

quare in the townsite of Long

rairie.

The building is to be complet-

d in accordance with plans and

pecifications furnished by

Mssrs Kees and Fiske of

Minneapolis and now on file in

he office of the county auditor,

xcept as hereinafter excepted

nd provided.

John Aiton was to receive

20,000 for his work to build

rect complete and finish said

ourt House and Jail in a good

ubstantial and workmanlike

manner in the manner and form

pecified and stated in said

lans and specifications and in

ompliance with and according

o said plans and specifications

n all things whatsoever, except

s follows:

--the brick work to be in

ccordance with the original

lan

--the course of cut stone to

e omitted and brick laid in

lace thereof.

--the water table to be of Ohio

andstone.

--the outside doorsills to be of

auk Rapids granite.

--the inside finish of buildings

o be of pine instead of hard

wood, and to be painted with

wo coats of paint of the color

irected by said board of county

ommissioners and the wain-

coting to be grained in imita-

tion of oak.

--the foundation to be four

feet wide at bottom and thirty

inches at top and five feet and

eight inches high water table

and twenty inches above grade

line.

John Aiton was to finish theCourt House and Jail by

February 1, 1884. He was to be

paid monthly for work complet-

ed, with the last payment to be

received upon fully completing

the courthouse and it being

accepted by the county board.

John Aiton was to furnish all

the materials of every kind and

nature to be used in the building

construction and furnishing of

said Court House. He also had

to give a bond of $10,000.

We dont have Aitons plans or

Kees and Fisks plans or Edward

P. Bassfords plans, and cannot

study them to see what kind ofdetail was included. The

University of Minnesotas

Northwest Architectural

Archives has a manuscript col-

lection from Long and Kees, the

architecture firm that Frederick

Kees joined after he left Kees

and Fisk. The archivist checked

the collection and found there

are no surviving records from

the 1882-1884 period when Kees

and Fisk existed, and nothing on

the Todd County Courthouse.

BUILDER JOHN AITON

John Aiton, the builder of the

courthouse, was born in Ireland

in 1821. When he was 15, heimmigrated to New York, where

he married Nancy Coleman. The

family lived near Lisbon, New

York, for a time before coming to

Minnesota in 1859. John

appears on the 1860 U.S.

Census in Ramsey County, and

on the 1870 U.S. Census in Pope

County, living alone. On the

1880 U.S. Census, his family is

living with him in Glenwood, in

Pope County. John listed his

occupation as building contrac-

tor. The Douglas County News

for April 21, 1881, carries an ad

for John Aiton & Sons,

Contractors and Builders, Alexandria, MInnesota. Brick,

stone-work, plain and ornamen-

tal plastering a specialty.

Aiton operated a brick yard in

Glenwood to supply bricks for

his buildings as well as sell bricks

Continued on page 16

Front: Tiana Sand andGracie Christian. Back:

Connor Berg and Brandon

Tolifson.

The contract forthe historic courthouse,

and the people

who got it built