Additional Information: | Architectural Significance:
Structures are a group of small buildings on the North End of the Lumber Yard.
These buildings do not contribute to the historic character of the proposed Krouskop Historic District because of their recent construction date.
Historical Background:
The Krouskop Lumberyard Buildings are a part of the Krouskop Lumberyard whose main mill was erected in 1883. Krouskop may have established the operation as early as 1878. However, he did not acquire most of the land which the milling operation occupies until 1879-1880. His operations eventually covered the area between the river to the west, Haseltine to the north, Main on the east extending to Central to include block 49, and Gage Street to the south (1). The 1883 mill structure burned in 1892, and Krouskop rebuilt and considerably expanded the brick mill by 1893 (2).
The yard reached full built capacity by 1911. Major buildings at that date included a saw and planing mill with a power house, lumber sheds, kiln, yard office, granary, an agricultural implement warehouse, grain warehouse, livestock yards, and the horse barn. The yard sat adjacent to the railroad, a facility indispensable to the transportation of its bulk products. Krouskop shipped many of his goods to Chicago for a broad distribution across the Midwest and Plains as well as engaging in local retail.
Krouskop wholesaled and retailed rough and finished lumber, sashes and doors, windows, oak flooring, moldings, siding, shingles, lathe, fencing, agricultural implements, and other building supplies. He also stored grain, feed, hay, coal, cement, and sand and kept livestock. Krouskop specifically advertised his wholesale business in 1909. He had maintained lumber warehouses occupying several blocks since the mid 1880's which suggests the extent of his business. Krouskop represents one of a limited number of commercial enterprises in Richland Center. After Krouskop's death in 1930, W.S. McCorkle and Carl Barnes gained his lumber operation (3).
The Krouskop Lumberyard Buildings are a post-1927 addition to the storage facilites of the lumberyard (4). Their precise function and date remain unclear.
Historical Significance:
The Krouskop Lumberyard Buildings are an historically non-contributing component of the Krouskop Lumberyard Historic District because of their more recent construction. They post-date most of the contributing buildings within the district which were built prior to 1912 (4). |
Bibliographic References: | 1. Richland County Abstract Company, Indices to Land Records in the Richland County Courthouse (Richland Center: Richland County Abstract Company, n.d.); Democrat, April 9, 1930; Sanborn-Perris Map Company, Diagrammatic and Detailed City Maps Published for Use by Fire Insurance and Mortgage Companies (New York and Chicago: Sanborn-Perris Map Company, 1885-86); Ibid., 1892; Ibid., 1899; Ibid., 1905; Ibid., 1912; Ibid., 1927.
2. Democrat, May 3, 1937; Margaret Scott, Richland Center: A History (Richland Center: Richland County Publishers, 1972), p. 97.
3. Perl L. Lincoln, P.L. Lincoln Papers (Richland Center: Local History Room, Brewer Library, n.d. [Mss. Uncatalogued]); Carl Burdock, The Chicken, the Egg, and the Omelet (Madison: Archives [Mss.], SHS, 1964); George Sinnett, Oral Interview (739 South Park, Richland Center, February 12, 1988); Local History Room, Brewer Library, Mss. 1645, 1073, 226); Sanborn-Perris Map Company, Ibid., 1885-86; Ibid., 1892; Ibid., 1899; Ibid., 1905; Ibid., 1912; Ibid., 1927; Scott, Ibid., pp. 158, 223; R.L. Polk & Co., Wisconsin Gazetteer and Business Directory (Chicago: R.L. Polk & Co., 1909), p. 1131.
4. Sanborn-Perris Map Company, Ibid., 1912, 1927. |