Property Record
111 N BRIDGE ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | FIRST NATIONAL BANK |
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| Other Name: | FOREIGN 5 GIFTS AND PLANTS |
| Contributing: | Yes |
| Reference Number: | 3155 |
| Location (Address): | 111 N BRIDGE ST |
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| County: | Chippewa |
| City: | Chippewa Falls |
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| Unincorporated Community: | |
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| Year Built: | 1873 |
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| Additions: | 1898 1888 1887 |
| Survey Date: | 1984 |
| Historic Use: | bank/financial institution |
| Architectural Style: | Romanesque Revival |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Cut Stone |
| Architect: | |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Bridge Street Commercial Historic District |
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| National Register Listing Date: | 6/24/1994 |
| State Register Listing Date: | 1/21/1994 |
| National Register Multiple Property Name: |
| Additional Information: | Large projecting cornice with classical trim and cut-stone frieze; round arched windows with stone surrounds; three columns "in-antis" with Romanesque capitals of intricate leaf pattern ornament the store front brick rear and side elevations. RUSTICATED STONE, ARCHED WINDOWS. [Date Cnst:(PLAQUE)]. Originally constructed in 1873 and enlarged in the Italianate style in 1888 (A)(B), the facade of the First National Bank was remodeled using random coursed sandstone to create the appearance of the massive Richardsonian Romanesque style in 1898. Characterized by sandstone columns with Romanesque capitals composed of stylized leaf and facial forms that extend across the lower facade, the facade is further ornamented by Romanesque round arched windows encased in stone mouldings and a plain cornice. The First National bank is architecturally significant as the best extant example in Chippewa Falls of the influence of the Romanesque Revival. The First National bank received a charter to commence banking operations in 1873. A brick bank building was erected the same year. Original officers of the bank were Chippewa Falls businessman Thomas Hulbert, and H.S. Allen (A). In 1887 a rear addition for coal sheds was built (B). In 1888 the bank was enlarged to two stories including operations on the first floor and office space on the second floor. Chippewa Falls resident Judge R.D. Marshall, later a Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice, housed his offices on this floor between 1884-1889 (C). Extensive remodeling was accomplished in 1898, giving the bank its present exterior appearance. Exterior alterations included a new sandstone facing with columns. This bank building is historically important to the City of Chippewa Falls as the best preserved representative of the city's nineteenth century banking operations. |
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| Bibliographic References: | (A) Chippewa County Past and Present, vol. 1 (Chicago: S.J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1913) p. 264. (B) Chippewa County Independent 25 May, 1887. (C) The Daily Independent 16 August, 1888. 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 |