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Door County Library - Sturgeon Bay Branch

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DOOR COUNTY LIBRARY - STURGEON BAY BRANCH

The National Register of Historic Places Third Avenue/Downtown Historic District is of historical significance because it is associated with the developing and maturing of the city of Sturgeon Bay as the traditional focus of commercial activity within the community and the region. It is of architectural significance because it is the most intact and representational grouping of late 19th and early 20th Century commercial and civic buildings in Sturgeon Bay. It is not characterized by any dominant architectural style but reflects a wide variety of traditional commercial building modes common throughout Wisconsin and the Midwest during the decades that bracket the turn of the century. Few of these buildings have been substantially eroded, and many examples both of anonymous craftsmanship and the use of distinctive local limestone remain. 

This is Part 1 of a two-part tour of the District.

112 South 3rd Avenue

66(70) South 3rd Avenue

50 South 3rd Avenue

This is the third
municipal building that Sturgeon Bay has had. The first Village Hall was
destroyed by fire in 1880, the first City Hall was displaced when the
"new" library was being constructed in 1910. In 1935, an addition or
annex (30-36 S. Third) was constructed. Originally a stable and a "lock
up" were located at the rear and a hose drying tower of wood construction
was at the northwest corner. In 1919, the fire-fighting operation boasted of
"three paid men and four horses.” The building is designed in a local
interpretation of the Classical Revival style and is built of grey, local
limestone. The design of this building is in imitation of a Roman temple with
an implied central pavilion with a pediment fashioned of blocks of limestone
and supported by three carved Ionic pilasters (Bedford limestone) all above a
new and enlarged garage type door. The first story is of alternating width
courses of grey, local limestone laid as rusticated ashlar. The upper story is
of regularly coursed, rock-faced ashlar. A one-story addition to the north,
also of local limestone, was built in 1935. The City Hall is of architectural
significance as the most "classically" detailed of the local
limestone buildings located within the District.1

STURGEON BAY CITY HALL AND FIRE HOUSE, 1910

38 South 3rd Avenue

30-36 South 3rd Avenue

This building was
built in the early 1870s by James McIntosh and served as Sturgeon Bay's first
grocery store until about 1880 when it was purchased by John Masse. It was
steadily improved since that time achieving its present appearance in about 1893.
Masse was the son of C.A. Masse, a Green Bay real estate entrepreneur. First
used by him as hardware and tin shop, it was then used as a saloon and, in the
early 1890s as a furniture store. This well maintained, plainly detailed
commercial building is of architectural significance as the last remaining wood
sided commercial structure within the District. A central oriel window,
rectangular in section and capped with a central pediment, accents the primary
facade giving it a hint of the Italianate style. Otherwise this is a simple,
vernacular building. Although the storefront has been modernized, the original
architectural character of this now unique example of a building type and style
once common in downtown Sturgeon Bay is remarkably intact.1

22 South 3rd Avenue

The Merchants Exchange Bank was founded in 1881 and its first building was located on another site. This building was built in 1908. The bank failed in the depression of the 1930s. This two-story, pressed brick (rust-brown) building has been extensively and sympathetically rehabilitated by the present owners and, for this reason, is an excellent example of a typical, turn-of-the-century bank building --solid and conservative. The late Classical Revival style shown in the detailing of the modillioned, limestone cornice and terra cotta frieze at the parapet, and the carved limestone of the entry surround, highlight this visually prominent corner building.1

10 North 3rd Avenue

22-30 North 3rd Avenue

12-20 North 3rd Avenue

50 North 3rd Avenue

This single
storefront commercial building was built in 1905/1906 by Frank Conjurske and
was used as a barber shop with apartments on the second story. It is in the
same use and family ownership today. Designed in a
local interpretation of the Classical Revival style, the building is faced with
grey, local limestone set in alternating width courses as rock-faced ashlar. An
entablature is built up from smaller sized stones corbelled to imply classical
detailing. The parapet is accented with a central gable, also made up of stone
blocks, and rounded limestone caps accenting the vertical members. The
storefront and the side entry to the second story are also of interest because
they appear to be unaltered from the original. This building is an excellent
example of the adaption of the hard, difficult to work, local limestone to the
ornate detailing required of this architectural style. Also, it has one of the
few unaltered storefronts within the District.1

36 North 3rd Avenue

This double
commercial block was used as a furniture store during the 1880s although it may
have been constructed earlier than that. The second story is clad with large
concrete blocks, or panels. This type of building material, which was
manufactured in Sturgeon Bay by a Captain Kirtland in the years 1881 to 1882,
may have been applied as a veneer to an earlier frame structure. An ornately
detailed wood cornice, supported by scroll sawn brackets, remains. One side of
the building housed a saloon while the other was a furniture store and
undertaking establishment. Although both of the present storefronts have been
substantially modified, this building is of architectural significance as the
only example within the District of the application of this locally produced
building material.1

40-44 North 3rd Avenue

49 North 3rd Avenue

33 North 3rd Avenue

This
three-storefront commercial block has undergone a continuing series of
transfigurations over time. For this reason, it is difficult to attribute
specific improvements to either individual owners or dates. Originally clad
with wood, the two building sections to the north were veneered with brick
prior to 1898. The third section, to the south, was built at about that same
time, although of solid masonry. The three units were refashioned prior to 1904
in their present form. Numerous businesses including a saloon, a restaurant,
and a cigar factory were located in the newer section and a tailor shop in the
north bay. This block is of painted brick, two stories in height and topped by
a shingled mansard roof, also painted white. The upper facade is accented with
three gabled, oriel windows. The newer bay is somewhat more ornately detailed
in the Eastake style. The three storefronts are relatively intact with
modifications occurring within the masonry openings. This commercial block is
an interesting accent and is of significance as the only Queen Anne / Eastake
style building within the District.1

13-23 North 3rd Avenue

This large commercial block is only three bays wide at the front but extends back to the full depth of the lot. It is designed in a simplified, local interpretation of the Renaissance Revival style with the half-basement level finished with grey, local limestone set as rock faced ashlar. Two stories of grey brick top this and are crowned with a corbelled brickwork frieze which is, in turn, capped with a pressed sheet metal cornice. A shallow third story appears to have been added sometime after 1911. This addition does not detract from the architectural integrity of this highly visible corner building. It is an excellent example of a simply detailed, local interpretation of this style.John J. Pinney was the editor of the Door County Democrat, a political and commercial rival to the present Door County Advocate.The first building at this location was the John P. Graass building, erected on this corner of Cedar (3rd Avenue) and Spruce (Michigan Street) in 1881. It was one of the first saloons located in the city. The Graass family lived there also. In 1906 it was moved to the northwest corner of Spruce (Michigan Street) and Court (4th Avenue) to be replaced by a new up-to-date building (The Pinney Building) which will be utilized by the Wisconsin Telephone Co and others.When this building was built in 1906, it housed a business college, the public library, the telephone exchange and the post office. By the 1920s, it was used in part by the city hospital. Leasum Hospital was founded in 1927 by Dr. Charles Leasum.

The west side of North Third Avenue begins with the three bays of the John J. Pinney Block, built in 1906. The Pinney Building, formerly the Fairfield Building, anchors this prominent downtown corner. The shops and other businesses in this block continue to define the character of the Third Avenue Historic District.

11 North 3rd Avenue

31 South 3rd Avenue

The Joseph F.
Stroh Block was built in 1890 and probably constructed by the owner as he was
in the construction and building business in Sturgeon Bay. At the time of its
construction it housed a bakery/restaurant, a dry-goods store, and on the
second story what was known as the "The Commercial Hotel," operated
by Stroh. By 1898, the hotel occupied both stories and outbuildings--used as
salesmen's sample rooms--were at the sides. By 1914, however, the hotel
function diminished and the primary use of the building was for a series of
retail establishments. Stroh was a partner, with C. Leonhardt, in the hotel,
sewing machine, and construction businesses. This six-bay, two-story painted
brick building is crowned with an ornately detailed cornice fabricated of cast
iron. While Italianate in massing, the cornice, cast iron lintels, and cast
iron "voussoirs" forming a curiously off-center Gothic arch pediment
at the building’s parapet, point to the eclectiveness of the building's design
and the availability of stock building parts. These details, together with a
remaining original storefront (north side), show the richness of the original
ornamentation which make this building significant as the best example of this
late, local interpretation of the Italianate style within the District.1

37-45 South 3rd Avenue

History -

The building was completed in 1939 as a
museum.&nbsp; It was&nbsp;during the Great Depression&nbsp;and was built as a
WPA project during the presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt.&nbsp; Long before
this time a local man, Harry Dankoler, began collecting things that were old,
realizing the importance of saving the parts of history so that others might always
be able to appreciate it. At the same time,
another Door County resident, Hjalmar Holand, also with a great interest in
history, was busy preserving the written memories of the
County.&nbsp;&nbsp;With the backing of the newly formed Door County Historical
Society, they worked to provide the basis for this museum.&nbsp; Early photos
show it as it was - the typical museum of its time with shelves and shelves of
old things being preserved, but not necessarily interpreted as is done today. Some of the unique things on display at the museum include:Pioneer
Fire Company -The museum's fire station is a replica of the
turn-of-the-century building that served Sturgeon Bay's original "Pioneer
Fire Company".&nbsp; It houses three fully restored trucks and
fire-fighting artifacts.&nbsp; Children of all ages may sit on the replicas. You
will also find other larger displays including a jail cell from the vacated
jail building and an old horse drawn hearse.Orchards - &nbsp;Door County has been
known for its apple and cherry orchards for years.&nbsp; Why is it that Door
County is well suited for these crops?&nbsp; Why not Kewaunee or Brown Counties
to the south?&nbsp; Learn of the earliest beginnings of this business and see
some of the equipment used in the growing and processing of these fruits.&nbsp;Ethnic History -The majority of the original European settlers
came to Door County in the mid to late 1800s during Wisconsin’s early statehood
years.&nbsp; There were, however many native peoples who had settled here much
earlier.&nbsp;Many groups brought their traditions with them.&nbsp; Which of
them began the fish boils that have now become famous? Learn more about early
settlers at the museum.War History -&nbsp;Like all areas of our
country, many&nbsp;Door County men&nbsp;served during the several wars in our
history.&nbsp;Folk Craft -In the days when
shopping was not as convenient, many crafts were done by both men and women.Door
County had its share of them and many examples left by these artisans are on
display at the museum.Wildlife Diorama -&nbsp;Mike Orthober, national
award winning artist and taxidermist, created a spectacular natural history
wildlife diorama.&nbsp; It encompasses four seasons and features a life-sized
beech tree along with native species including over 100 birds, white-tailed
deer, bear, badger, fisher and more.&nbsp;New -&nbsp;A phone app for a walking/driving tour of Sturgeon
Bay’s remaining incised sidewalk stones.&nbsp; The incised cement blocks were
originally installed in the early 1900s, on corners to mark street names or in
front of local homes or businesses. &nbsp;They are a part of our history that
is slowly disappearing when sidewalks are replaced.&nbsp; Also included on the
app is a short history of original homes located nearby.&nbsp;The lower level of the
museum features a street scene that includes storefronts and rooms representing
many early Door County businesses such as a seamstress, grocery, Blacksmith,
pharmacy, bank, printer, dime store, music shop, photo shop, post office and
schoolhouse. You will also find a display of Old fashion equipment.

The Door County Historical Museum was founded in 1939 in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin. The original building was built as a project of the Works Progress Administration, one of the government-led Great Depression work programs. The basis for the museum's collection came from two men, Harry Dankoler and Hjalmar Holand. Dankoler was a collector historical items from the area and Holand preserved written memories of people in the county. The Door County Historical Society acquired the men's work and opened the museum. The museum has expanded over years and now includes several exhibits such as the wildlife diorama, the replica 1900 Pioneer Fire Company building which houses three restored trucks, and a typical Door County street scene featuring a school, grocer, pharmacy, etc. Admission to the museum is free.

 

Sturgeon Bay Third Avenue Historic District Tour - Part 1

DOOR COUNTY LIBRARY - STURGEON BAY BRANCH

Introduction

Images

Backstory and Context

Additional Information