Effort underway to save home of first Black resident in Fergus Falls

FERGUS FALLS, Minn. (FOX 9) - A home on East Summit Avenue in Fergus Falls currently serves as the office for a local nonprofit, but it is also an important piece of the city's history.

History of the house

"It not only tells about the diversity of our community, it tells that great story about the movement west of people after the civil war," said Chris Schuelke, Executive Director of the Otter Tail Historical Society.

Freed slave Prince Honeycutt built the home in 1885, after becoming the first African American to move to Fergus Falls.

Honeycutt not only opened a barbershop in town, he is also believed to be the first Black baseball player in Minnesota and the first Black mayoral candidate in the state.

"Can you imagine you are the one person of color in the community that is almost 100% white, but he was able to carve out a life for himself and he did well," said Schuelke. 

In recent years, the home fell into disrepair and was going to be demolished until the city donated it to Flowingbrook Ministries, which raised enough money to restore it.

Preservation efforts

The nonprofit now says it doesn't have the funds to pay a $10,000 assessment for a city utility improvement project from a few years ago.

If it's not paid by Nov. 1, the home will be forfeited to Otter Tail County and auctioned off.

"They need help. They need help," said Schuelke.

Local preservationists say the goal is for the home to be placed on the National Register of Historic Places, so this piece of the past doesn't become history itself.

"It's on life support. We don't want this to be demolished. If it's torn down, if its lost, we can never replace it," said Schuelke.

The owner of the home has started a GoFundMe to raise the $10,000 needed for the assessment.