Sometimes the most complete history resides not in books or historical documents, but in memory. “I can walk down the streets of Como and if you give me an address, I can tell you who lived there,” said Harvey Johnson. “Or give me a name and I’ll point out the address.” If you give him the name of a particular street, say 14^th Av. SE, he will tell you what he says no one else seems to know – that the Tuttle Elementary School was originally located there.

The Johnson family has known the Como neighborhood for more than 100 years. Johnson’s grandfather moved into a house in the neighborhood in 1891 and Johnson and his wife resided in a nearby duplex built by his father until a year ago last March.

Recently, when he and his wife, Audrey, read the “History of Marcy Open” in the August issue of the Angle they recalled going to an open house celebrating the renovation of the Tuttle school years ago. When the Tuttle school opened after its renovation, “They had pictures and history on the wall,” said Audrey. “That was when we found out there wasn’t any more information than that. The people who had done the research for the display had looked into everything at the Minnesota Historical Society.”

Lois Skinner, Community Liaison for the Tuttle School said, “When we researched the school then, this is all that was found.” The display provides a brief history of the present building, at 18^th and Talmadge avenues SE, and on the life of Calvin A. Tuttle. With only the mention of the present building, Johnson feared that some information of the old school would eventually be lost. He said that before the present Tuttle School, the school had existed at a previous address: 1051 14^th Av. SE. And he said this because his mother, who attended the school, had told him stories about it.

According to a spokesperson for the Minneapolis Public Schools, the Tuttle School always existed at its present location, but it’s possible that another school under another name was located on 14^th Avenue SE. But, last spring, Johnson did some investigating at City Hall in the Property Records department and found a contract for deed on the property signed by Tuttle in 1882. He also discovered records that showed the transfer of the 14^th Av. property to the Minneapolis Board of Education a year later. A document from the Inspector of Buildings records a permit granted in 1890 for the construction of a 60 foot by 62 foot brick school building that was later demolished in 1920, about the time the present Tuttle School opened.

“The cornerstone on the present building is 1919,” said Johnson. “And I started kindergarten in the present Tuttle School in 1925.”

Skinner said, “If some more information is available, we’d be interested to see it.” The Johnson’s don’t want the information to be left behind and plan on presenting the documents to the Minnesota Historical Society in the near future.

Harvey said he did the research because he “couldn’t bear the thought of the [full] history of the Tuttle School ever being known.”

Audrey said, “It’s gratifying to find the proof of what Harvey has been saying all along. You’re glad to find things to back you up.”