By Mary Mergenthal

Augsburg University academic Kristin Anderson will discuss “All Things Knapp” in her latest architectural history talk.

Anderson’s free talk is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 9, at St. Anthony Park Lutheran Church, 2323 Como Ave. Ave. A professor emerita of art and architecture, Anderson presents monthly talks at SAPLC through May.

In the early 1870s, brothers-in-law William Marshall and Nathaniel Langford—both prominent St. Paulites—had the idea for a grand garden suburb set between Minneapolis and St. Paul. Big ideas require big money, and the project received financial backing from wealthy lumbermen in Menomonie, Wisconsin.

This small group included John H. Knapp, who remained involved in the revised St. Anthony Park of the 1880s and whose family-owned land on the neighborhood’s edges well into the 20th century.

Knapp’s legacy is honored in a discontinuous street spanning the St. Anthony Park and north St. Anthony Park additions, and an intersecting block-long street next to the Methodist church.

Anyone unable to attend in person can view the presentation live online, with a recording available for one week following Dec. 9. Use the SAPLC YouTube channel bit.ly/Sap-history.

You can also access the channel from saplc.org via the worship tab and then to the livestream link.

All are welcome to attend. Presentations remain free, but donations help offset program costs.

Looking ahead, Anderson will discuss “The State Fairgrounds: St. Anthony Park’s Big Neighbor” on Jan. 13. 

Mary Mergenthal a former editor of the Park Bugle and lives in St. Anthony Park.