The heyday of the resource area with its many beautifully constructed brick buildings corresponds to the era of fine craftsmen in bricklaying, between 1880 and the 1930s. Two of the outstanding bricklayers in Grand Forks were Sander Johnson and the Dinnie Brothers, John and James. The Dinnie Brothers firm was established in Grand Forks in 1881. John and James began as common bricklayers and expanded their business into the largest construction firm in the Red River Valley by 1909, at which time they owned extensive interests in brickyards in eastern North Dakota....

Sander Johnson laid brick for the Dinnie Brothers at the turn of the century and constructed his first building in 1907, laying the brick himself. Johnson's older brothers were employed by the Dinnie Brothers and Henry Johnson eventually took over
the Dinnie firm in the 1930s.