The Sum of Its Parts

Originally, and simply enough, it was a rectangualr two-bedroom cabin on the south shore of West Battle Lake, in west-central Minnesota. Walter Johnson, a carpenter’s apprentice, built the modest structure in 1917, on land his parents had recently purchased.

University of Minnesota, began adding on—starting with a detached summer kitchen so the wood stove wouldn’t overheat the cabin. After he married and fathered two sons, he added another bedroom, which was followed by a screened porch connecting the summer kitchen and the cabin. Next came a living room facing the lake.

As time passed, various influences resulted in an ever more eclectic structure. Johnson’s work remodeling houses provided him with an inventory of diverse materials, including a motley collection of windows that he used in yet another bedroom. At the suggestion of his mother, an immigrant from Sweden, where fieldstone construction is common, he added a stone skirt and a pair of fieldstone fireplaces. Because wells were not reliable at the time, he built a water tower atop the kitchen, though a bathroom with indoor plumbing was not added until later.

The arrival of grandchildren required more sleeping space, so Johnson built a lean-to bunk room off the living room. Then he enlarged the three existing bedrooms and enhanced them with corner windows for additional fresh air.

Johnson's embellishments—including vaulted ceilings and window seats—continued until he was disabled by a stroke in 1973. The cabin’s well-being is now the responsibility of his sons, Walter (“Cork”) and Bruce, who have been, for the most part, content simply to enjoy their father’s work—and not add to it. 

Dale Mulfinger teaches architecture at the University of Minnesota and is a partner at Sala Architects in the Twin Cities. He is the author of several books, including The Getaway Home, published by The Taunton Press.