Property Record
201 W CENTRAL ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Methodist Episcopal Church |
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| Other Name: | TRINITY UNITED METHODIST CHURCH |
| Contributing: | |
| Reference Number: | 3194 |
| Location (Address): | 201 W CENTRAL ST |
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| County: | Chippewa |
| City: | Chippewa Falls |
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| Year Built: | 1892 |
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| Additions: | C. 1917 1960C. 1928 |
| Survey Date: | 1984 |
| Historic Use: | church |
| Architectural Style: | Romanesque Revival |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Brick |
| Architect: | Conover and Porter; Larson, Playtar and Smith |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| Additional Information: | Gable roofed bays with triplicate of round arched windows and with corner piers project from the east, west and north sides if the main structure; rectangular bell tower with full-length round buttresses and round arched entrance door and windows; stained glass windows; round arched windows with brick voussoirs; corbelled brick in gable ends; south addition. Designed to replace an earlier smaller church, the First Methodist Church, designed by Madison architectes Conover and Porter in 1892 (A)(C)(B) in a Romanesque Revival style, is dependent on mass, volume, and scale as in the Richardsonian Romanesque Revival. Constructed by local contractor H. F. Allen (A), the brick church exhibits a large hip roofed main structure contrasted by small gabled bays that are dominated by a massive pyramidal roofed entrance and bell tower outlined by full-length round buttresses. Only round arched windows and entrance portal and single brick piers break the surface of the brick form. Having been well preserved and retaining the architectural details and elements of the original structure, although somewhat altered visually by the gymnasium addition and the education building, the First Methodist Church remains as a significant example of the late 19th century Romanesque Revival style influenced by the Richardsonian mode. The origins of this church began in the 1860's with the formation of a Methodist circuit which, in 1862, included seven members from Chippewa Falls. A church was erected for Chippewa Falls Methodists in 1870. The original church was replaced by the present church in 1892. (A) Trinity United Methodist was designed by Conover and Porter of Madison and built by H. F. Allen. The projected cost was $15,000. During the period between 1917-1928, the basement was remodeled and Sunday School rooms expanded. In 1960 the church was remodeled by architects Larson, Playtar & Smith of Eau Claire, Wisconsin. The basement and lounge were again renovated in 1984. (A)(B) |
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| Bibliographic References: | (A) Irene Hermand and Peg Strand, History of Trinity United Methodist Church, 1982; unpublished paper. (B) George Forrester ed. Historical and Biographical Album of the Chippewa Valley, Wisconsin (Chicago: A. Warner Published, 1981-92), p. 96-97. (C) Building inscription. Take a Walk on Main Street: Historic Walking Tours in Wisconsin's Main Street Communities, Wisconsin Main Street Program, 1998. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |