Digital Division
422 & 424 Division St
Bjoraker Building
ca. 1870
Dating back to about 1870, the Bjoraker Building is one of the 400 block’s oldest buildings. The two shopfront properties enveloped by this building have at times throughout its history been split and at times been conjoined. The interior, with history as a hardware firm, jewelry store, bakery, drugstore, and tailor, has seen some serious variation to say the least, but the look of the exterior has been fairly constant in the downtown. Other than the dropping the original cornicing details of the overhang on the roof in favor of a simpler metal canopy, the front of the Bjoraker Building, overlooking Division Street and its corner with 5th, looks just about the same as it did back in the 19th century.
Its limestone frame mirrors much architecture in Northfield and the United States as a whole prior to the 1880s, when this material went out of fashion. A one-story addition, unnoticeable from Division St, was also implemented in 1941. Seven years prior, in 1934, the building had found its longtime proprietors, whose furniture store would remain here for decades—the Biermans. In the Northfield area since 1896, Bierman’s Home Furnishings and Floor Coverings has since moved to Bollenbacher Drive, where it continues to serve the community. This space, meanwhile, has been taken up by Farmstead Bike Shop and its accompanying cafe, The Raven’s Nest.
