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Mark Johnson in the home he built in 1976 that features wood from an old granary that was given to him by a farmer near Rapidan. Photo by Pat Christman

Mark Johnson built the Lake Washington house he and his wife, Sandy, live in from reclaimed wood from an old granary. Photo by Pat Christman

Mark and Sandy Johnson live in a repurposed granary near Lake Washington that Mark built in 1976. Photo by Pat Christman

Mark Johnson has plenty of wood from old cabins and barns awaiting new uses. Photo by Pat Christman

Mark Johnson of Artisan Restoration has carved out a niche restoring old log cabins and barns and building barn homes. Photo by Pat Christman

Mark Johnson in the home he built in 1976 that features wood from an old granary that was given to him by a farmer near Rapidan. Photo by Pat Christman

Mark Johnson has no problem finding people who want him to build them a barn house, restore old log cabins, fix up big stone fireplaces or do pretty much any restoration work on old buildings.

"I'm not worried about finding work anymore. I'm worried about finding people who like doing the kind of work I like doing," said Johnson of the skilled craftsmanship that takes him around the Upper Midwest.

"I'd like to find someone to take over the reins and I can work for them in retirement."

Johnson owns Artisan Restoration and has for decades been the go-to guy for those looking for someone with the knowledge and talents to refurbish or repurpose vintage or historic buildings.

His interest started in 1976 when a farmer near Rapidan gave him an old granary. It's the home he still lives in.

Mark Johnson built the Lake Washington house he and his wife, Sandy, live in from reclaimed wood from an old granary. Photo by Pat Christman

Mark and Sandy Johnson live in a repurposed granary near Lake Washington that Mark built in 1976. Photo by Pat Christman

"I hauled it out in a 1947 International pickup truck and turned it into our house by Lake Washington. The pickup is a lawn ornament now. Hopefully I'll restore that someday, too."

In recent weeks he's been working near Webster, Wisconsin, restoring a log cabin built in the 1950s. It's a cabin he worked on years ago, owned by a couple who lives in California.

In between jobs he has another project going on next door to the home he and his wife, Sandy, live in near Westwood.

"I bought back the earth home next door that I built 25 years ago. I'm going to fix it up, add some solar, and resell it."

Johnson dabbled in earth homes in the mid 1980s. "We had the energy crisis hitting us and I thought of building houses differently. But it was tough for banks (to finance) because they had no comps for it, so not a lot of people were going that way. Instead people got more efficient furnaces and built walls thicker with more insulation."

Mark Johnson has plenty of wood from old cabins and barns awaiting new uses. Photo by Pat Christman

After doing earth homes and some general contracting, Johnson began focusing more on renovation of old structures and for the past decade has focused mostly on barns, barn homes and log cabins.

This summer he'll be heading to Green Lake near Spicer to build a barn house and to northern Minnesota to restore a cabin. "It's a tiny cabin north of Hinckley that has at its core an 18-foot by 20-foot cabin."

On his to-do list is also a barn home in Wisconsin that he's working on with friend Richard Jefferies of Mapleton, who's been taking down barns for reuse for 20 years.

Oh, and he has a couple of buildings in Webster City, Iowa, to get at. And the Iowa Department of Natural Resources has projects for him in some old buildings they manage.

Mark Johnson of Artisan Restoration has carved out a niche restoring old log cabins and barns and building barn homes. Photo by Pat Christman

"I'm restoring four fireplaces for the DNR that has smoked worse than the chimney does since they were built back in the Depression. I'm doing other work or bidding on projects for the DNR down there. I think we're the only bidders on a lot of them. It's the niche I've created. I'm working on buildings that are twice as old as I am," said the 66-year-old Johnson.

Work in restoration of barns has been strong as barns age and need straightening and repair before they collapse, or as people convert them to be venues for weddings and other events.

And barn homes remain popular. "They are reconstructed barns that are pretty much the same footprint as before, but we do things with the roof to make it look more like a house. I have an architect working on the project in Spicer and we're working on finding a draftsman to work on one near Paynesville."

Of all the old stuff he restores one type of project is dearest to his heart.

"The old log cabins that we've salvaged and restored. Last year I had the privilege of buying an 1888 cabin that my grandparents had purchased after WWI out in Denmark, Wisconsin, and bringing it back to Minnesota," he said.

"The last cabin I build I hope is one for my wife and I on a lot I have across the road from our barn house."

Follow Tim Krohn on Twitter @TimKrohn

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