Cedarburg State Bank

On our last stop of this tour, I would like to thank you being on this journey with me. Thank you for choosing to explore this historic town, as well as learning about how Cedarburg is a very special community here in Wisconsin. I thank you for your participation, your curiosity, and your drive to learn. Thank you so much, and enjoy your stay here in Cedarburg!

The foundation of the Cedarburg State Bank is another iconic building here in Cedarburg. But its stones and other additions to its structure do not tell the whole story; its foundation and its contribution to the community are what make the real impact here. Its foundations all go back to one of our earliest individuals, John Nieman and Charles Wirth. As we go back to Wirth, we need to remember how his operations in business inspired him, along with John Neiman, to open the state bank. When Cedarburg was founded in the late 1840s, there was no mention of a locally owned state bank. However, once Cedarburg developed into a booming population and business scene. Financial stability to keep them up and running would be crucial. 

Once Cedarburg became a developed community, state banks across Ozaukee County would pop up in Grafton, Port Washington, Mequon, Thiensville, and other communities. Then, in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, with contributions from the community and support from Charles Wirth and the many benevolent societies that dotted the community, Nieman and Wirth would give financial compensation to help build the bank. Years later, in 1908, the Cedarburg State Bank would be established to help address the community's financial needs. Years later, when the bank needed a president to help run it, Charles Wirth stepped up and became its president. Charles Wirth would be president of the bank until he died in 1927. 

The design of the building is another staple of how the bank was constructed. The building has an inspired Romanesque design, with a facade made out of heavy rock-faced limestone blocks. The building's moldings are very trimmed and corniced, which as a result, are carved with smooth-finished cut stone with margins that are vertical pilasters' blocks that are chiseled into a line. Its designs make the building stand out on Washington Avenue, but it just wasn't used for financial purposes. The bank also served as a post office and a telephone company, specifically the Wisconsin Telephone Company, that had a switchboard on the second floor of the building. So, even though significant banks have established themselves in the area, this bank stands out as the town's original bank, making it the icon today in Cedarburg.

Zimmermann, H. Russell. The Heritage Guidebook: Landmarks And Historical Sites In Southeastern Wisconsin. Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Heritage Banks, 1976. 193.

Zimmermann, H. Russell. The Heritage Guidebook: Landmarks And Historical Sites In Southeastern Wisconsin/Highlights Of Historic Cedarburg. Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Heritage Banks, 1976.

A Walk Through Yesterday: In Cedarburg Wisconsin. 2005.

Cedarburg History: Legend And Lore. Cedarburg, Wisconsin. Library Of Congress, 1976.

Wisconsin Historical Society, Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, Cedarburg State Bank, Cedarburg, Ozaukee County, Wisconsin, 13373.