Historic Devils Lake Commercial District

Historic Devils Lake Commercial District. . , Forty-seven downtown properties comprise the Historic Devils Lake Commercial District, a U.S. national Park Service recognized historic district, listed in the national Register of Historic Places. The Commercial District is contained within a triangular boundary configuration, roughly defined by 6th St NE, 6th Ave NE and the Great Northern Railroad right of way. Historically, the Commercial District was platted along 4th St NE and 4th Ave NE, a condition which is still true today. , With the arrival of rail service to the city, an influx of immigrants and improved milling techniques, Devils Lake launched into its first boom cycle. These events are marked by a frenzied period of building with the construction of sixty-five wood-frame buildings in only four weeks. These buildings, which comprised the first commercial district, were destroyed by fire in 1884. After the fire, new commercial buildings were required to have brick and stone exteriors, similar to what we see today. The buildings that make up the Devils Lake Commercial District were built between 1885 and 1937 and belong to four distinct construction periods. Most of the buildings within the district were built during the Second Dakota Boom (1900-1915) and the Post-Boom (1916-1937) periods. Major historic influences for these later periods include a second influx of immigrants after the opening of parts of the Fort Totten Indian Reservation to private land acquisition in 1904, the growth of Devils Lake as a commercial center and railroad hub, and the adoption of automobiles for local transportation. , 1879 . First Dakota Boom . 1887 , 1 Historic Building, 1887 . Between Booms . 1900 , 5 Historic Buildings , 1900 . Second Dakota Boom . 1916 , 23 Historic Buildings, 1916 . Post-Boom . 1939 , 18 Historic Buildings, Although the properties in the district are primarily two-story brick and stone buildings, a variety of architectural styles are represented. Attention to stylistic details and adherence to common architectural themes were outweighed by the urgency of assuring functional and fire-resistant commercial buildings. The most common building material was brick from the Red River Valley Brick Company of grand Forks. Consequently, the Devils Lake Commercial District demonstrated the melding of popular eastern design trends with the functional needs of a boom town economy expressed in locally available materials. , The Devils Lake Commercial District provides a glimpse of an evolving community during several dynamic periods of growth. As tangible links with the railroad-agrarian heritage of Devils Lake, these buildings link present day Devils Lake with the events in commercial history, building innovations and planning that shaped the community.