300 STUNTZ AVE | Property Record | Wisconsin Historical Society

Property Record

300 STUNTZ AVE

Architecture and History Inventory
300 STUNTZ AVE | Property Record | Wisconsin Historical Society
NAMES
Historic Name:ELLIS FIRE STATION
Other Name:CENTRAL FIRE STATION
Contributing:
Reference Number:807
PROPERTY LOCATION
Location (Address):300 STUNTZ AVE
County:Ashland
City:Ashland
Township/Village:
Unincorporated Community:
Town:
Range:
Direction:
Section:
Quarter Section:
Quarter/Quarter Section:
PROPERTY FEATURES
Year Built:1920
Additions:
Survey Date:19822017
Historic Use:fire house
Architectural Style:Other Vernacular
Structural System:
Wall Material:Brick
Architect:
Other Buildings On Site:
Demolished?:No
Demolished Date:
NATIONAL AND STATE REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES
National/State Register Listing Name:Not listed
National Register Listing Date:
State Register Listing Date:
NOTES
Additional Information:1982: This red brick fire station remains intact and in excellent condition. Elaborate brickwork and cement sills and dintels add decoration. Faces Ellis Park. Elaborate symmetrical front facade with namestone and original windows. Building represents the last major period of growth in Ashland, built in 1920.

2017: windows replaced but form remains very intact.

2017 report information:

Rising from a concrete foundation, this two-story, brick fire station was built in 1920. Oriented to the west, the building’s primary elevation consists of three overhead garage doors, the central bay of which is shorter than the two outer bays. Each of the openings is topped with a stone header with a central keystone; atop the middle example is a stone inset that includes the station name, “Ellis.” The second floor consists of a single, central sash opening at the center, while each outer bay carries a tripartite grouping. All windows are topped with a stone header with central keystone and underscored by a plain stone sill. Embellishment of the parapet roofline is limited to stone coping and a row of soldier brick that runs beneath the large stone inset that reads “Central Fire Station.” Regular openings with plain stone headers and sills punctuate both the north and south elevations of the building, with glass block infilling most of the first-floor openings. A brick chimney rises from the rear of the building. Alterations to the building are limited to window replacement (historic images indicate that original windows were three-over-one light sash), overhead door replacement, as well as the minor downsizing of the central garage bay.

Fire service in Ashland was established with local volunteers in 1883. Four years later, the Town of Ashland established an official volunteer service and the first Ashland city ordinance that addressed fire service was put in place that same year. Although all of the earlier stations were of frame construction (none of which remain extant today), the new Ellis station was built of brick in 1920. The following year, Beaser Station was built on Third Street West; it served as an active station until 1997, after which it was used for storage. The Beaser station has since been purchased by a private owner and is currently being remodeled into apartments. Despite some modernization, the Ellis Station continues to serve the Ashland Fire Department.
Bibliographic References:1982: [A] NAMESTONE 2017 citations for information below: A brief history of the Ashland Fire Department is found on their website at www.ashlandfiredept.com/ history.html, Accessed June 2017; Smith and Goc, eds, Looking Backward, Moving Forward, 32-35.
RECORD LOCATION
Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin

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