MINNEAPOLIS — A historic Minneapolis home will likely require additional repairs after starting on fire for the second time in a matter of weeks.
Minneapolis fire crews responded just before 3:30 a.m. to reports of a fire at the John H. Stevens House, located on the grounds of Minnehaha Regional Park. Assistant Fire Chief Melanie Rucker says firefighters arrived to find smoke coming from the rear of the two-story home, which once belonged to a man considered a founding father of the city.
Water lines were laid and crews were able to put down a fire on the exterior rear porch of the home.
Tuesday was the second time firefighters have been called to the Stevens House in the past three weeks. On August 30 they put down a fire burning on the rear wall of the structure. That fire burned into the ceiling of the home, reaching into the soffits and the roof. Repairs to that damage were underway at the time of Tuesday's fire.
At this time the causes of both fires are undetermined. Rucker says investigators are looking into the case. At this point it is unclear whether there are suspicions of arson.
John H. Stevens is known as the "Father of Minneapolis," and his house is treasured because Hennepin County was organized there, the local school district was founded there, and they actually named the city of Minneapolis at a gathering inside those four walls. "It was just this sort of central hub of this early settlement," said Star Tribune reporter Eric Roper, the man behind Curious Minnesota.
These days it serves as a museum, and is operated by the Minneapolis Park Board.
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