Property Record
EAST SHORE, SAND ISLAND, APOSTLE ISLANDS
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Plenty Charm Cottage |
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| Other Name: | |
| Contributing: | |
| Reference Number: | 229397 |
| Location (Address): | EAST SHORE, SAND ISLAND, APOSTLE ISLANDS |
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| County: | Bayfield |
| City: | |
| Township/Village: | Bayfield |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
| Town: | 52 |
| Range: | 5 |
| Direction: | W |
| Section: | 24 |
| Quarter Section: | NE |
| Quarter/Quarter Section: | SE |
| Year Built: | 1940 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 2014 |
| Historic Use: | house |
| Architectural Style: | Cross Gabled |
| Structural System: | Balloon Frame |
| Wall Material: | Clapboard |
| Architect: | Clyde Nylen |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| National Register Listing Date: | |
| State Register Listing Date: |
| Additional Information: | Plenty Charm Cottage is a one-story cabin located on the eastern shore of Sand Island near East Bay. Clyde Nylen, a local craftsman, constructed the cottage in the 1940s for Gertrude Wellisch, a school teacher from Saint Paul. Wellisch had family ties to the island because her father was a founding member of the West Bay Club, a social organization that built a clubhouse on the west side of the island. Prior to building the cottage, Wellisch rented the Sand Island Lighthouse and lived there during the summers. The National Park Service purchased Plenty Charm Cottage in the 1970s and used it as a ranger station for several years. It was also home to an artist in residence program offered by the National Park Service, but that has been abandoned and the cottage is currently vacant. (see related AHI numbers: 122059; 229398; 229399; 229400) |
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| Bibliographic References: | Johnson, Lucas P. “A Historical Geography of Sand Island 1870–1944.” Master’s thesis, University of Nebraska, 2013. Mackreth, Robert. “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun.” The Retread Ranger Station. http://http://bobmackreth.com/wellisch.html (accessed October 2, 2014). Männikkö, Nancy Farm. "Determination of Eligibility: Plenty Charm." 2001. Report on file at Apostle Islands National Lakeshore headquarters, Bayfield, Wisc. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |