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Park Ovens in Minnesota
Currently there are two ovens in Minnesota that are in public parks. That’s the good news. The bad news is that the public cannot in general use these ovens.
My excitement with brick ovens began when I stumbled across the web site for Dufferin Grove Park in Toronto. The whole idea of a community oven was and still is very exciting to me.
(For cob ovens, I was excited when I found the site for Shell Lake Park. This showed how easy it be to build a cob oven in a park.)
Eventually I hope that St. Paul can have a community oven like Toronto (which, I believe, has ovens in at least seven of their parks).
I’m also in contact with two other parks (one in Minnesota and one in Wisconsin) that are considering building ovens. The future for park ovens continues to look promising.
Historical Fort Snelling
Historical Fort Snelling contains the oldest wood-fired brick oven in Minnesota. It’s still a working oven, in a limited sense. I believe it dates from 1827 (or earlier). It was used to bake 300 loaves of bread a day, enough for a loaf for every person at the fort.
The Minnesota Historical Society is responsible for running the fort. Sometimes they teach a class on baking bread in the ovens at the fort.
If there were a class scheduled, it would be visible at this link.
There was a class on Sept. 13, 2008, but I don’t see another class scheduled at any future time (as of Oct. 1, 2008).
Gale Woods Farm
Tim Reese, the site manager for Gale Woods Farm decided to build a clay oven.
It was built during a “folks school” class at Gale Woods Farm in June and July of 2008.
This was a cob oven design based on Kiko Denzer’s plans.
There are a couple of photo galleries from two of the three weeks of oven construction.
The oven is built on a trailer so it can be taken into shelter when it needs it or out to where the oven needs to be for different events.
One of those events was a harvest festival on the weekend of Oct. 11 and 12, 2008. I was there baking Oct. 11 from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. I made 40 lbs. of dough without a mixer for making calzones and bread.
In 2009 there was another oven-building class in June. They built a smaller clay oven.
Members of the SPBC also built a couple of stacked brick ovens.
There is now a video feature about our work building ovens on-line thanks to our local television station, KARE-11. This link provides access to the feature itself. There had been a page containing a promo for the feature, but they took that page off-line.
In 2009, the harvest festival is Oct. 10 and 11. (I don’t think I can be there this year.)
Grand Portage National Monument
Grand Portage National Monument has a “Quebec-style” wood-fired clay oven. Apparently they fire it up for their Rendezvous Days and Pow Wow.
In July, 2009, there was an oven-building class taught by Kiko Denzer sponsored by North House Folk School, Earthen Oven Building and Baking (Preserving the Past), that apparently built multiple clay ovens.
These ovens used “several times a week May-Oct.”
The Landing
Jefferson Spilman, the site manager for The Landing, allowed SPBC members to build a stacked brick oven using brick available there.
Four of us did this on May 14, 2009. The oven was temporary, but worth recording. Some photo galleries (1, 2, 3) record our efforts at oven building and bread and pizza baking.
In mid-June, 2009, the bricks that made up the oven oven were relocated to Gale Woods Farm.
Silverwood Park
The oven at Silverwood Park is not (as of April 15, 2010) complete yet. But it is there, and there are plans to present it to the public.
Park Ovens Elsewhere
Forts Folle Avoine
Forts Folle Avoine in Danbury, Wisconsin built clay ovens in 2009.
According to e-mail I received from Al Johnson the oven at the Fort is now available for public use by making a reservation at Forts Folle Avoine. There will be a minimal charge (to cover firewood and get a little for the Fort) and at least 1 person in the group will have to attend a training firing on the oven. The next training session will probably be around Labor day (or, contact Al Johnson to arrange a special event).
Location is at Forts Folle Avoine Historical Park located between Webster and Danbury, WI. on Co. Rd U. The address is 8500 County Road U, Danbury, WI 54830.
From Wisconsin 35 turn West on Co. U 3 miles on the right. If you get to the river you missed it! Twin Cities folks will probably take I-35 to Hinkley, MN-48 east to Danbury, and WI-35 south to U. (Don’t get lost at the Casinos; no clay ovens there!)
For more directions and a map go to www.theforts.org. (No info there on the project, though.)
Contact person at Forts Folle Avoine is Steve Wierschem, Director at the Fort, phone (715) 866-8890, weekdays 9:30-4:00.
Saskatoon Western Development Museum
I saw some “oven news” that mentioned a clay oven as part of the Western Development Museum in Saskatoon. After contacting them via e-mail, I was told that they indeed have a clay oven. Since I inquired they have created a page describing their oven.
So, if you happen to be in the right part of Canada, stop in for a visit.
Western Development Museum - 1910 Boomtown
2610 Lorne Avenue South
Saskatoon, SK S7J 0S6Phone: (306) 931-1910
Fax: (306) 934-0525Delaware Agricultural Museum and Village
I saw some “oven news” that mentioned a brick oven as part of the Delaware Agricultural Museum and Village but their web site didn’t give any details and they were not responsive to e-mail.