Property Record
302 N CHURCH ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Kusel, Captain Fred, House |
|---|---|
| Other Name: | |
| Contributing: | Yes |
| Reference Number: | 7131 |
| Location (Address): | 302 N CHURCH ST |
|---|---|
| County: | Jefferson |
| City: | Watertown |
| Township/Village: | |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
| Town: | |
| Range: | |
| Direction: | |
| Section: | |
| Quarter Section: | |
| Quarter/Quarter Section: |
| Year Built: | 1872 |
|---|---|
| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 2004 |
| Historic Use: | house |
| Architectural Style: | Italianate |
| Structural System: | Masonry |
| Wall Material: | Cream Brick |
| Architect: | |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | North Washington Street Historic District |
|---|---|
| National Register Listing Date: | 10/23/2009 |
| State Register Listing Date: | 4/17/2009 |
| National Register Multiple Property Name: |
| Additional Information: | Enclosed south sun porch has been added; arched raised brick window heads with corbelled ends; two story hip roofed entrance bay with side lighted door in angle of house. Frederich Kusel lived at this house between c. 1872 and at least 1915. He was in partnership with his brother, Daniel, in Watertown's largest hardware business, D & F. Kusel. This business began with the elder Daniel Kusel, who was a German immigrant who came to Watertown in 1849. He opened a tin and hardware shop on Main Street and operated it until 1864. In that year his sons took over the store and built the business into a major retail business with a manufacturing arm making dairy equipment. Before taking over the family business, Frederick Kusel had gone to Galveston, Texas and he worked in a hardware store there. When the Civil War broke out, Frederick, a northerner, quickly came back north. He enlisted in the army in 1862 and helped recruit a company of men. The company saw action, but in late 1863, Frederick Kusel became ill and had to return home. Besides being a successful businessman, Kusel also served as mayor of Watertown in 1873-74, 1881-82, and 1893-95. Frederick Kusel was important to the development of commerce in Watertown because of his ownership and development of the Kusel firm from a small hardware store into a large retail business and manufacturer. The Kusel hardware store was the largest in the community, occupying a double storefront on West Main St. and a single storefront in the Schempf building for a time. The store on west Main St. is no longer extant, and the branch store eventually became the Winkenwerder hardware store. Because the resources associated with the Kusel store are rare, this house takes on added significance as the best historic building related to Frederick Kusel in the city. Kusel also contributed to the development of politics and government in Watertown. He was mayor for three separate terms. He was unusual in a city that historically rarely re-elected their mayors. Because Kusel was a significant person in both retail commerce and politics and government, this house meets the criteria for significance in local history. |
|---|---|
| Bibliographic References: | (A) Evelyn Ruddick Rose, Our Heritage of Homes (Watertown Historical Society,, 1980), pp. 28. (B) John H. Ott, Ed., Jefferson County Wisconsin and its People, Chicago: S.J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1917, pp. 104-107. (C) Watertown City Directories, 1866-1930, Watertown, Wisconsin Public Library. “Architecture/History Survey: Reconstruct STH 26 (Church St.): STH 19 To Union Pacific RR.” WHS project number 04-0759/DO/JE. February 2004. Prepared by Carol Cartwright. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |