Minnesota’s Lake Superior Coastal Program

Paul Sundberg, 9/21/07: Terry Nelson and Pokey McClelland, Stonemasons

Gooseberry Falls CCC Stone Table Rehabilitation

Audrey Butts – Asst. Park Manager, Gooseberry Falls State Park
Date of Completion - 6/30/08

Project No. 306A-02-08

Contract No. 306A-02-08

This project was funded in part under the Coastal Zone Management Act, by NOAA’s Office of Ocean
and Coastal Resource Management, in cooperation with Minnesota’s Lake Superior Coastal Program.
Introduction
Conditions prior to project
The main objective of this grant was to accomplish the restoration and rehabilitation of as many as
19 of the remaining Civilian Conservation Corps stone picnic tables at Gooseberry Falls State Park.
To cut briefly to the end of the story, that objective was met in full – 19 tables have had their
original design and function restored.

There were 42 tables shown on the 1939 National Park Service revised “Base Plan” map for
Gooseberry Falls State Park, though it’s not completely clear how many of these were actually
constructed (Appendix #17). Only 30 tables were listed in the National Register of Historic Places
nominating form to create a Historic District at Gooseberry Falls, dated 8-26-88 (Appendix #23).
Many of the 12 missing tables are shown close to the Lake Superior shore on the ’39 map, so they
could have fallen victim to ice and storms prior to 1988, or perhaps the plan was not completed,
once the threat posed by Lake Superior was made clear to the CCC planners.

Hughes collection – ice on Picnic Flow, 1935

At the time I wrote this grant in 2005, one of the 30 nominated tables was gone, 10 had been re-
built during the 1980’s and the rest were in various states of disrepair, including 2 that were no
more than a pile of rocks. Not one of the final 19 tables could be used for picnicking by the
hundreds of thousands of yearly visitors to Gooseberry Falls State Park.

Table Origins
The tables were built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1935, and featured granite side supports
and split log seats and table tops.

Under the stewardship of the National Park Service, the CCC program was instrumental in the
development of a nationwide system of state parks. The program philosphy was to make the built
environment subordinate to the natural, to build facilities that would harmonize with their setting
and leave natural wonders unimpared. Native materials were used in the structures and attention
was paid to all aspects of the work. As a result, CCC structures not only have historic significance,
they also have their own lasting beauty and a clear present-day utility at our parks.
In the summer of 1934, SP-10 Company 2710 of the CCC’s was established at Gooseberry Falls
replacing Company 1720, that moved on to Ely, MN. Over the next 7 years of development, many
buildings, structures (such as the massive Concourse feature) and smaller objects (including the
picnic tables) were constructed. All of this work followed the meticulous plans of the National
Park Service. Rolf T. Anderson, the author of the Gooseberry nominating report, wrote about the
significance of NPS master plan guidance in a 1994 article titled “Minding The Masters:
Minnesota’s State Park Landscape” (Appendix #20). In this article, Anderson writes about the
planning for Gooseberry: “A variety of developed areas both increased the variety of experiences
for the visitor and lessened the impact on the site.” Thus, the “picnic grounds located along Lake
Superior and adjacent to the Gooseberry River, were oriented strictly for day users”, and served to
draw some of the visitor congestion away from the falls area. And this is still exactly how the park
functions today.

Maynerd Antilla collection, spring 1940 – CCC Camp 2710 above

the Upper Falls at Gooseberry Falls State Park.

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Why this project?
Cultural resources are important to the Minnesota State Park system, as noted in our Mission
Statement: “We will work with the people of Minnesota to provide a state park system which
preserves and manages Minnesota’s natural, scenic and cultural resources for present and future
generations while providing appropriate recreational and educational opportunities.”

Gooseberry Falls State Park has an official Park Plan, which identifies a Historical and Cultural
Zone in the park. The plan states that “Activities and improvements should be limited to those
which will not detrimentally affect the preservation and restoration of these sites…” in the Historic
Zone. On a summary page, the plan also lists as one of the objectives of the park: “To develop
trails, primitive camping and picnicking opportunities appropriate for a natural state park.”
(Appendix #21).

All of which gives us the official groundwork for the project. On a more personal level (as
Assistant Manager of Gooseberry Falls State Park), I found it difficult to walk by the old tables and
not wish there were a way to make them whole again, both for the use they could provide modern
visitors and as part of the legacy of the CCC men (and boys) that built them. Finding funding was
the problem. While preservation of these cultural resources is clearly a priority, the Minnesota
State Parks Division must live with financial realities that do not always allow for every wish to be
made real. If restoration funding is available, it must go to the highest and best use first, such as
maintaining historic park buildings. This is completely logical and appropriate. This grant helped
open the door for a different kind of project, though it turned out to be not so small after all.

Tom Hughes collection – tables at Gooseberry Kayak Site and Picnic Flow, 1930’s.

This project was supported by Parks Division staff, including NE Regional Manager Jim Willford,
NE Regional Park Operations Supervisor Mark Kovacovich, Parks Division Archaeologist Dave
Radford, Parks Resource Management Specialists Tavis Westbrook and Harley Hanson, and
Gooseberry Falls State Park Manager Paul Sundberg. I also received critical assistance from two
other Division employees – NE Regional Naturalist Retta James-Gasser and Judge C.R. Magney
State Park Manager Tom Ludwig.

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Work completed
This project included research into historic CCC table design and construction techniques,
development of construction specifications, execution of a contract for table restoration work, GPS
mapping of the contributing elements to the Gooseberry Falls NRHP Historic District, and
development of an interpretive sign about the tables and the CCC at Gooseberry Falls State Park.
Information about many of the above points will be presented in later sections – I’ll start with a
walk-through of the reconstruction process (task #2). The exact project specifications are laid out
in the Project Manual, Solicitation No:2007-127-02 (Appendix #9).

Task 2 - Reconstruction Process

The tables are spread between 3 sites at the park: the Picnic Flow area on the shores of Lake
Superior, Lady Slipper Lodge and the Kayak Site near the mouth of the Gooseberry River. Some
had stonework that was relatively intact, but all needed tuckpointing new wooden tabletops and
benches. A map of the table names and locations can be found in the Appendix (Appendix #3).

As previously mentioned, their condition at the start of the project varied, but none of the 19 tables
in question was intact. Some of them had wooden tops and benches, and some did not. None of
the wood parts were original. Some tables were missing a few stones, two were nothing but a pile
of rocks. All had various types of plant material growing on them, from picturesque orange lichens
to grass and mosses. Some were buried in the surrounding vegetation. A photo collection in the
Appendix documents the condition of each table in 2005 (Appendix #5). Here are just a few
pictures:

LS2 - Audrey Butts, 9-16-05 PF2 - Audrey Butts, 9-17-05

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 PF2 - Audrey Butts, 9-18-05 PF6 - Audrey Butts, 9- 21-05

LS2 - Audrey Butts, 9-26-05

PF8 - Audrey Butts, 9-7-05

Removal of tops – There was some discussion during the design phase as to whether the painted
wooden tops and benches should be salvaged, but the 1988 NRHP nominating report stated that the
original logs had been replaced and these were in poor condition, so there didn’t seem to be much
point in doing so. This point was clarified in the Addendum to the Project Manual/specification
book (Appendix #10).

Tops removed - Audrey Butts, 9-15-07

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 Cleaning – We liked the look of orange lichens against the
stone, but the first step of the rebuild process was to clean
the structures, including removal of vegetation. Some of
the orange crusty lichen survived, but all of the moss and
surrounding vegetation was removed, giving a clean slate
for the re-pointing of mortar joints.

PF2 or 4 - Audrey Butts, 9-18-05

LS2 before cleaning - Audrey Butts, 915-07

LS2 after - Audrey Butts, 9-

De-construction – All loose mortar and stones were removed from deteriorating structures. Stones
were salvaged and cleaned in preparation for re-setting.

Terry Nelson on KS5 – Paul Sundberg, 9-17-07

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 PF1 - Audrey Butts, 9-19-07 LS1 - Audrey Butts, 9-23-07

Pokey McClelland & Loren Mesedahl, KS4 – Paul KS4 – Audrey Butts, 9-15-07
Sundberg, 9-17-07

PF7 – Audrey Butts, 9-23-07

Repointing/Stonework – According to the NRHP nominating report, materials for the original CCC
structures were acquired in this manner: “The red granite was quarried in Duluth near the College
of St. Scholastica, while the darker variety was taken from an outcropping near East Beaver Bay,
just north of the park. The sand for the mortar was brought from Flood Bay, south of the park, and
logs were obtained at Cascade River State Park.”

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A big concern on this project was that all new stones and mortar should match the appearance, color
and texture of the old materials as much as possible. It was not acceptable to use a new type of
stone or to have bright white mortar joints on the finished product.

Fortunately, we had matching CCC-era rocks available at our shop, salvaged over time from other
construction projects in the park. These matched the tables perfectly in color and texture. Local
(Gooseberry or Lafayette Tunnel) basalt is more porous and subject to disintegration than the rock
used by the CCC’s, so was not an acceptable alternative.

Shop rockpile - Audrey Butts, 9-15-07 Audrey Butts, 9-15-07

The mortar mix used by the CCC had heavy sand/aggregate texture, often with a reddish coloring.
In order to match this, the contractor started with 4 test panels of possible mixes. One was selected
and a specific sand/aggregate formula was then used to achieve the desired effect. The techniques
used to brush and tool the drying mortar were also important. The ‘recipe’ used is included in the
Appendix (Appendix #15).

Old mortar on KS7 – Audrey Butts, 9-23-07

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Audrey Butts, 9-15-07 Yellow/Brown gravel - Audrey Butts, 9-15-07

Test panels (# 4 selected) - Paul Sundberg, 10-10-07

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Pokey McClelland working on PF3 – Paul Sundberg, 9-20-07

Loren and Steve Mesedahl at PF9 – Audrey Butts, 9-19-07

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 KS1 – Audrey Butts, 9-15-07

KS1 – Audrey Butts, 9-15-07

Acid wash – After drying several days, the stonework was treated with an acidic bath to remove
some of the portland residue from the joint surfaces. This is brushed on and let alone for an hour or
so until the aggregate comes through, then it’s washed off. The result is a more ‘aged’ appearance.

PF8 – Audrey Butts, 9-23-07 PF1 – Audrey Butts, 9-23-07

KS3 – Audrey Butts, 6-2-08 KS3 – Audrey Butts, 6-2-08

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 PF1 – Audrey Butts, 9-23-07

Logs – The logs finally arrived in October, supplied by Chippewa Forest Products. A non-toxic
preservative had been used on the red pine logs, called “Envirosafe Wood Treatment”. The
process was time consuming, with the chemical being shipped fresh from Florida to Bemidji, where
the logs were treated. The orange color will gray as the logs weather.

Audrey Butts, 10-12-07

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 Park Shop - Audrey Butts, 10-29-07
Paul Sundberg, 10-12-07

Paul Sundberg, 11-05-07 Picnic Flow - Audrey Butts, 11-10-07

Fitting the Logs – This turned out to be a complicated process, due to the natural differences in log
dimension and shape, even within standard size specifications. Also, the plans were somewhat
vague on the fine details, so some negotiating needed to take place with the contractor. Some of
the discussion points included the width of the benches (11”), how much to trim the edges of the
logs, how many logs to use across the tabletop (5 shown in the drawing, but only 4 needed for width
of 33”), the proper knee height between bench and tabletop (12”), etc. The tables that were re-built
in the 1980’s on the Picnic Flow have a narrow knee height that can be uncomfortable, so we
wanted to be sure this kind of detail was attended to this time. We also wanted a somewhat
random look, more than a cookie cutter approach. It was time consuming to work through all of
this, but the contractor finally put together a routine that could be used for all the tables, and work
progressed quickly after that.

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 Steve and Loren Mesedahl - Paul Sundberg, 10-22-07

Pokey McClelland and coworker –

Paul Sundberg, 11-16-07

A network of bolts was used to anchor the logs to the stone bases, and the bolts were held in place
with epoxy. The nuts and washers in the middle were used to set the height of the sill logs, in order
to reach the proper knee height for the tabletops.

Steve Mesedahl - Paul Sundberg, 10-22-07 Audrey Butts, 10-29-07

Audrey Butts, 10-29-07

KS1 - Paul Sundberg, 10-23-07

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 Roger Erickson and Steve Mesedahl negotiating at KS2
- Paul Sundberg, 10-31-07

Pokey McClelland and PF7

- Paul Sundberg, 11-02-07
KS1 Audrey Butts, 4-30-08

KS2 - Paul Sundberg, 10-31-07 Terry Nelson at PF8 - Paul Sundberg, 11-02-07

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Alternate Design – Two tables of an alternate CCC design were included in this project – PF3 and
PF6. Once again, there were many design issues to work out, including the shape of the ends of
the logs (point or wedge) and the addition of the lengthwise logs under the tabletop lumber (they
were first put together without them.

PF6 - Audrey Butts, 5-14-08

PF3 - Audrey Butts, 5-8-08

PF3 Audrey Butts, 6-6-08

PF3 Audrey Butts, 6-2-08

PF6 Audrey Butts, 6-6-08 PF6 Audrey Butts, 6-6-08

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Finishing Work – The last step after fitting all the logs to each table was to complete the remaining
mortar work under the sill logs. Sometimes - to get the desired knee height - this required
additional stones to fill a large gap.

PF2 - Audrey Butts, 5-14-08 LS1 - Audrey Butts, 5-14-08

KS4 - Audrey Butts, 6-2-08

Once the top mortar dried, another acid bath was needed to finish off the look. With the wood tops
in place, when the ‘bath water’ spilled on the logs and was not rinsed off right away, they became
discolored by the chemicals. The only solution for this was to scrub the wood with bleach water,
which removed most of the black coloration.

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 Jon Hendrickson examining KS1
- Paul Sundberg, 6-2-08

Acid bath for KS7 - Paul Sundberg, 6-2-08

LS1 - Audrey Butts, 6-6-08 PF4 after rinsing - Paul Sundberg, 6-2-08

Bolt holes – Another final detail was the need to finish the holes made for bolts in benches and
table-tops. We originally decided to go with a wooden plug, but wood plugs don’t last forever and
eventually would need to be replaced. The contractors asked if they could fill the holes with wood
putty, which they thought would last longer and look just fine.

However, the execution of this plan was hampered by wet spring conditions – the putty never had a
chance to cure in the larger holes. In the end, all the bench holes were filled with wooded plugs,
and putty was used on the table-tops.

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 PF2 - Audrey Butts, 6-2-08

CSI worker at KS1

-Audrey Butts, 6-2-08

LS2 finished top LS2 finished bench

- Audrey Butts, 7-12-08 - Audrey Butts, 7-12-08

Some other finishing touches included sanding the log edges smooth and removing some knots that
protruded under the tabletops. These were a hazard to bare knees on the benches below.

PF7 sanded - Audrey Butts, 6-2-08

PF2 marks - Audrey Butts, 6-2-08

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Gravel – After the contract work was complete, the park undertook an extension to the project.
Several tables had so much erosion around their base that their ‘feet’ were exposed. Two volunteer
youth groups were employed to spread gravel under tables at the Kayak and ‘beach’ (PF7-9) areas.
Later, a youth group from the Minnesota Conservation Corps summer program finished the latter
site, and also spread gravel on the trail approach to these tables. All of the kids were enthusiastic
and hard workers – we’re grateful for their help!

KS3 before - Audrey Butts, 9-18-07 KS3 after - Audrey Butts, 7-05-08

KS4 after -Audrey Butts, 7-05-

KS4 before -Audrey Butts, 9-

PF7 after - Audrey Butts, 7-05-

PF7 before - Audrey Butts, 5-14-08

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 Christa Miller and MCC crew
- Audrey Butts, 7-18-08 MCC Crew at PF9 - Audrey Butts, 7-18-08

CSI Workers

Steve Mesedahl, Foreman - Paul Sundberg, 9-20-07

Loren Mesedahl and Pokey McClelland, Terry Nelson - Paul Sundberg, 9-20-07
Stonemasons - Paul Sundberg, 9-27-07

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Task 3 – Map
The National Register of Historic Places nominating form says “The Gooseberry Falls State Park
CCC/Rustic Style historic Resources are included within a 640 acre historic district defined by the
original boundaries of the park. The district contains 88 contributing elements ranging from large
scale construction projects to picnic tables and drinking fountains, all built along the dramatic falls
of the Gooseberry River and the shoreline of Lake Superior.” (Appendix #23)

Task 3 called for taking a closer look at the list of 88 elements and mapping them with GPS
technology. The list includes major buildings and structures in the park, but it was the smaller
structures and objects that interested me at this time, like the picnic tables. I wanted to find all 88
items on the list and document their location and condition. I hoped the resulting data would be
useful for making future management decisions, as well as for interpretive purposes.

This was actually some of the most enjoyable work in the whole project for me. It wasn’t hard to
find everything I was looking for (but some of it was new to me), and I ended up finding more CCC
things to document than the original 88, including some interesting remnants at the former 2710
camp. As the camp remnants were not intended to be part of the park, it’s logical that these aren’t
on the NRHP nominating form. But, they’re still a part of our history, and certainly a curiosity
when you stumble on them in the woods!

In the appendix, there is a list that includes the 88 NRHP elements and the other items mentioned
above (Appendix #26). . Following that is a section containing photographs of everything on the
list. I also searched our park’s photo collection to finds historic images of these same items, and
the ones I found are paired with the current ones in this same section (Appendix #27).

The work of collecting GPS points was mostly done by two capable individuals -Tom Ludwig and
Harley Hanson - over several field sessions. A bit more of the point data came from previous field
work, and Tom put all of it together in one complete shape file. Tom also created the final
Microsoft Publisher map from this data (Appendix #25). The printed map is a nice overview of
the entire list of CCC elements, but it’s probably the shape file that will be of the most help in the
future. The data can be viewed on the Landview program (Landview is the ‘common person’ GIS
tool for non-technical MN DNR staff members), and it includes a data table with more information
about each item on the map. Landview enables us to zoom in on a specific area and see these CCC
elements in conjunction with other park features, like trails, campsites, roads and newer facilities.

There was one other step early on, and that was the creation of a shape file for just the picnic tables.
Tom also did this work, and we attached ‘hotlink’ files to each table, which could be brought up
when a table was selected in the Landview program. These ‘hotlink’ files and the associated shape
file are also included as deliverables for this project (Appendix #5).

As part of this task, various historic files and maps were consulted for information relevant to this
project. Some of these findings are also included in the Appendix, including a couple of pages
from the CCC Camp 2710 monthly reports to Washington. The September, 1934 monthly
narrative report includes a couple of photos of “Project #155, Table and Bench Construction on the
Picnic Flow”. The Picnic Flow tables seem to have been completed by late summer 1935, as
indicated by another page in the Progress Report for the months of August and September, 1935.
These reports were obtained in 1994 on a visit to the National Archives by a MN State Park
research team (Appendix #22).

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Task 4 – Sign
The fourth task called for the creation of an interpretive sign about the project that would be placed
on permanent display near one of the three table locations. Early on, a temporary sign
acknowledging the Coastal Program involvement in the project was put up on the trail through the
Kayak Site area. After some discussion, it was decided that this would also make a good location
for the final sign.

Temporary sign at Kayak Site - Audrey Butts, 9/23/07

The development of the sign rested heavily with our former Gooseberry Falls State Park Naturalist,
Retta James-Gasser. Retta had already spent several years developing a series of interpretive signs
about the CCC’s at Gooseberry, which she called the “CCC Legacy Self Guided Tour” sign series
(Appendix #29). There are a number of these already installed around the park, and this new sign
would be made to fit into that series, matching their look and content. Partway through the project,
Retta was promoted to the NE Regional Naturalist position for MN State Parks. This made the
execution of this phase of the project more difficult, as she suddenly had a huge new set of
responsibilities, but Retta managed to continue helping me with this sign, and I think the resulting
product is terrific! (Appendix #30)

As I write this, the sign is the only part of this project that is not 100% complete. The development
phase is over, a frame has been purchased, the sign has been ordered from a company called
‘Pannier’ in Pennsylvania, but we do not yet have it back from them (Appendix #31). When it
arrives, we will immediately install it at the chosen site.

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Results
Gooseberry Falls State Park includes over 1687 acres of land on the north shore of Lake Superior,
one of the most popular tourism regions in the state of Minnesota. When the park was developed,
the picnic grounds were placed right on the shores of the lake so that visitors could enjoy its natural
beauty. The restored tables again invite this recreational activity, and stand as a functional
testament to the historic CCC program and the work of the ‘boys’ of Camp 1270.

As it turns out, many members of the public were also glad to see the restoration of our park’s
historic structures. We’ve received many favorable comments from visitors as the work has
progressed – often including a phrase such as “I’m so glad to see these in use again!” Of course,
like anything else, they’ll become part of the background and be used or not used as favorable
weather and visitor attendance numbers fluctuate. But having them back restores an opportunity
that was previously missing, and it makes the picnic areas complete again. Each of the 3 locations
has it’s own charm:

Kayak Site – On the wooded shore of the river near the mouth, this is a place protected from the
coolest lakeshore conditions, and is always interesting to visit. Spring brings high, fast water in the
river that opens up the sand bar at the mouth. Summer is more placid, as the river drops to its
lowest level. Wading is common here, where the CCC once built a swimming area. Fall brings
fierce weather that re-builds the sandbar, and winter freezes the river solid. Fishing is popular at
the mouth, and many visitors hike the trail down the river from the Visitor Center, which passes
through the site. High up on the opposite bluff is a small stone picnic shelter, also a CCC
construction project. There is also a Lake Superior Water Trail campsite at this location - a place
for kayakers to find overnight shelter when traveling on the lake:

KS6-7 -Audrey Butts, 7-05-08

KS1-5 - Audrey Butts, 7-05-08

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 Park visitors at KS5 - Audrey Butts, 7-05-08

Picnic Flow – This is a gorgeous wide rocky shelf on the shore of Lake Superior. It’s splendid on a
hot summer day (with bright sunshine and a cool lake breeze), a foggy spring morning, or anytime.
The lake is a tremendous sight to experience – you can see across to Wisconsin, northeast to the
features of Split Rock Lighthouse State Park (Day Hill and Corundum Point) and lake vessels pass
regularly in the distance:

All Picnic Flow photos above by Audrey Butts, 7-05-08.

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3 of the Picnic Flow tables (PF7-9) are over the back edge of the lava flow, situated near a pebble
beach. This is a nice shady spot to stop and watch the waves or count driftwood sculptures:

PF8 - Audrey Butts, 4-30-08

PF7 & 8 - Audrey Butts, 7-05-

PF9 - Audrey Butts, 7-05-08

Lady Slipper - This a more secluded setting, quiet and peaceful, off the beaten path, a lovely
wooded grove near the historic Lady Slipper Lodge:
Audrey Butts, 7-05-08

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Thinking back to the application process, I’d have to say all the goals that were set forth at that time
have been fully met. All 19 of the historic tables in need of rehabilitation were attended to, an
interpretive sign will be permanently located at the Kayak Site to inform visitors about this project
and to give information about another aspect of the CCC contribution to the park, and new tools
were generated to help the park manage it’s historic resources through the GPS mapping portion of
the project.

All of this will benefit park visitors most directly, but it will also benefit the people of Minnesota in
indirect ways, such as when park visitors spend money in local establishments or when Minnesotans
bring visitors from around the world to the park to ‘show off’ their state treasures. The people of
Minnesota are the ‘owners’ of our state park system, and they are due a healthy and well-managed
system, with facilities that stand the test of time.

Copies of this report will be made available to the State Historic Preservation Office and to Park
Archaeologists, as well as Gooseberry Falls State Park interpretation staff members.

Conclusion
Issues & lessons learned
This entire process was a learning experience for me, as project manager, but it was also very
satisfying to be able to see it through to a successful ending. There were many small issues to deal
with along the way, but there were also a few larger concerns to overcome:

Funding - One of the larger problems to resolve was the financing of the project. The grant was
written to work on up to 19 of the tables. $15,000 of the matching funds was to come from the
State Park Resource Program through the Working Capital account. These are funds generated
from merchandise and consumable sales in state parks. I had a ‘ballpark’ estimate of what each
table might cost, but I knew there would be no accurate numbers available until the end of the bid
process. I did know it would be expensive, so I wrote the grant figuring that we would do what we
could for the dollars available, which might only be a couple of tables. I could write another grant
at some point in the future for the balance of the work.

Management Resources became involved after the grant was received, and Architectural Drafting
Technician Al Meyer was assigned to draw up the plans and write the contract specifications
(Appendix #9). My intention was not clearly communicated to him, so the bid specs he wrote
called for one complete bid price, not a per table cost. This meant we couldn’t pick a few of the
tables to work on - it was all or nothing. In the long run, this was definitely the right way to
proceed – all the tables would get finished at the same time and the overall cost should be lower
than if only a few were done at a time over several years. However, when the bids were opened,
the total cost was far and away above what was budgeted. 5 bids were received – the highest was
$152,000 and the low bid was $85,000, or $4475 per table (Appendix #11).

What to do? One option was to do the entire bid process over on a per-table basis, but the timing
for this was not good – we were too near the end of our fiscal year (the bid opening date was
5/31/07, FY07 ended 6/30/07), and funds devoted to the project needed to be encumbered, lest they
disappear and put the outcome in jeopardy. The design process had been slowed down when Parks
and MN DOT became interested in combining several projects (rebuilding the Split Rock

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Lighthouse highway overlook, restoration of the Falls View Shelter and Concourse wall at
Gooseberry) into one bid to get a lower overall price. After some delay, it was decided that the
table project should move ahead on its own because this one was so much smaller than the others
and the timing wasn’t quite right for the other projects.

The second option was to come up with the extra $45,000 (the $50,000 grant included $10,000 of
in-kind funding and $40,000 total cash). I wasn’t privy to all the discussions happening above my
head, but in the end, the project became a priority and dollars were found. This was chiefly from
Accelerated Maintenance end-of-year funds, and thanks go to many people for this decision. In
particular, I’d like to thank DNR Parks Development & Real Estate Manager Larry Peterson for the
work of coordinating and approving the funding. The Management Resources/Engineering costs
were also not directly charged to this project, which meant more dollars could go to the actual
contract work. It turned out that the same contractor won another project at Gooseberry that
happened at the same time (the shop warehouse addition), so the oversight of both projects was
convenient to arrange.

The alternate project that was a part of the bid could not be done, due to the high overall cost. This
was for maintenance on the 10 tables re-built in the 1980’s on the Picnic Flow.

As I mentioned, this was the right way to proceed, but the issue might have been avoided if the
grant had been written for a larger dollar amount in the first place. But there’s also the chance that,
if I had asked for more money from the Parks Division, I would not have gotten approval to even
apply for the grant. So, I’m happy with the result - I hope others are, too.

NE Regional Parks Manager Paul Maurer, RPOS Mark Kovacovich and Larry Peterson
contemplate work on PF9 - Paul Sundberg, 10-01-07

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Length of logs – Because of the delay in bidding and another paperwork issue after the project was
awarded, the Notice to Proceed was dated 8/2/07 and the pre-construction meeting did not happen
until 8/28/07. In the fall of 2007, work was progressing nicely, until an error was discovered in the
length of logs ordered for the project. All the logs that came with the first order were of the same
length, 9’. After the log work had begun and parts were being assembled, we realized that there
were no logs long enough to fit about half the tables – these needed 12’ logs. Due to the length of
time needed for re-ordering logs of the correct length and the late fall weather, an extension for the
grant was needed (and granted).

Why was this mistake made? Information was in the specs about the varying size of the tables and
the final plans showed that an 18” log overhang was needed (beyond the stone base). The contract
also included language stating that the contractor was responsible for verifying existing conditions
before proceeding with the work and that they were to match the original historic CCC design as
closely as possible. They did not do this, and so the contractor paid for the new logs. For me,
working with the contractor was a most educational experience.

KS2, a 9’ table - Paul Sundberg, 10-12-07

KS1, a 12’table - Paul Sundberg, 10-12-07 KS4 - Audrey Butts, 11-05-07

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 Pokey McClelland and Steve Mesedahl at PF6
-Paul Sundberg, 11-09-07 PF9 - Paul Sundberg, 12-15-07

Time, or the lack there-of – Task 3 and 4 were very interesting, but I needed the expert help of two
other DNR staff members to see these through – one with a great deal of GIS experience, the other
with the technical and interpretive knowledge needed to create a quality sign. Turns out that it’s
not so easy to meet deadlines when you are dependant on other people’s schedules. Tom Ludwig
has his own park to attend to (Judge C.R. Magney), and he spends the winter working on many
other GIS assignments. Working with me was something he didn’t have to do, and I am extremely
grateful for his help. Retta was the Gooseberry Falls Park Naturalist when I started this project, but
right about when I should have been finalizing some of the design details for the sign, she got a
wonderful new opportunity and moved on to become the NE Regional Naturalist for Minnesota
State Parks. Which brought her an entirely new set of duties, all very pressing and time
consuming. Again, she did not have to help me with this project, and I’m extremely grateful that
she was still able to do so.

I guess the moral is to be patient, but persistent. In the end, the mapping project was completed
before the deadline (grant end date of 6/30/08), but it wasn’t possible to submit the order for the
sign before early July, 2008. As I write this report, it will still be a couple of weeks before the sign
arrives and can be installed. In the meantime, our temporary Coastal Project sign is in place, and
I’m still practicing patience.

Pictures/project oversight – I do not have a deep background in the area of historic facility
rehabilitation, so I knew I would need to rely on many other people to get this project done.
Particularly, I counted on the professional DNR staff in the offices of Management Resources –
both for their expertise and because of the dollar size of the contract. Architect Al Meyer,
engineer Jon Hendrickson and Region MR staff members Roger Erickson and Tim Bradshaw were
the guys that made this project work. Roger was especially helpful, visiting the park on a regular
basis to meet with the contractor and park staff members.

I would also like to extend my thanks to my supervisor, Gooseberry Falls Park Manager Paul
Sundberg. As Manager of Gooseberry since 1983, Paul has plenty of experience working with
development projects, including the building of our Visitor Center facility and the new Hwy. 61
bridge. This was small in comparison, but Paul was an excellent guide for me to learn from in this
process, taking a close interest in all the details and negotiations. Even better, Paul is an expert
photographer, and took many of the pictures in this report (all the good ones). I’m grateful for all
the help I received.
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Expansions

It’s funny how unrelated events sometimes converge around a common theme. During the summer
of 2007, a bronze statue commemorating the work of the Civilian Conservation Corps was installed
and a dedication ceremony was held at Gooseberry Falls State Park. The statue is of a CCC
worker, and he stands below the Concourse wall, gazing up at this historic structure. There were
several members of Company 2710 that attended the dedication, and it was wonderful to talk with
them about their experience.

At about the same time, a Minnesota Conservation Corps youth group was at the park working on a
project. They cleared brush from and excavated two of the cabin foundations at the actual CCC
camp area. They also exposed a stone walkway there, and have returned in 2008 to work on some
other parts of the camp. In the future, we hope to provide more interpretive signing in this area.

The project to shore up the masonry of the Concourse wall is currently underway, under the
guidance of the MN Department of Transportation (the wall is within the Hwy. 61 right-of-way).

Also this summer, we are developing a paved bike trail at Gooseberry Falls, the Gitchi Gami Trail.
A great deal of work went into planning the route through the park so that historic resources would
not be compromised. The happy coincidence is that the trail runs by the refurbished tables, ending
at the Picnic Flow parking lot. This has the potential to bring many more visitors down to this
beautiful area in the future, and I hope they’ll put the tables to good use.

As for what comes next, there’s more work to do. Historic features at the park that are in good
condition now need to be maintained, and there are other historic elements that need to be repaired,
including the stone pillars on the picnic flow, drinking fountains and fireplaces. There are
challenges and opportunities enough to keep the staff at Gooseberry busy long into the future. Let
me end by thanking the people at Minnesota’s Lake Superior Coastal Program for helping us with
this project – I think it’s made a wonderful improvement in our facilities at Gooseberry Falls State
Park.

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