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Town of Minong, WI. - The Wisconsin Historical Society placed the Bishop Stanislaus Vincent Bona Cabin (Town of Minong, Washburn County) in the State Register of Historic Places on August 14, 2020.    

The cabin is a fine example of Rustic style architecture, a style blending indigenous log and stone with a form influenced by Adirondack summer homes and National Park lodges, blending the building into the surrounding natural environment.  The romance of the unspoiled forest and crystal blue lakes that were teaming with fish brought tourists and fishermen to Washburn County.  At first tourist travel was only by train, confining vacationing to the wealthy.  As the popularity of the affordable automobile grew and the forty-hour work week was cemented into daily life, traveling for vacation became a possibility for the ordinary American worker.

The charm and ambiance of the Northwoods was enhanced with Rustic style architecture.  Northern Wisconsin log cabins are examples of local materials (pine, tamarack and cedar logs, and native stone) used in designs that came to symbolize northern Wisconsin. It was a complete departure from the Victorian, Classical Revival and Arts and Crafts style architecture found in their home cities.  The exterior logs are a commanding presence; inside smaller logs, bark and twigs were used to create whimsical bars, built in cupboards, walls and stairways. The log cabins and lodges captivated the romanticism of the American wilderness and made a vacation or fishing trip feel like an excursion into uncharted territory.  As sportsmen began purchasing their own recreational lands, Rustic architecture offered an inexpensive way to build a cabin that would endure and provide a charming escape from their urban environments. The Bishop Bona Cabin became just that- a delightful woodland escape for ten priests to fish and relax.

The Fuldner Heritage Fund paid for the preparation of this nomination.  This endowed fund, created through a generous donation by the Jeffris Family Foundation and administered by the Wisconsin Historical Society, supports the nomination of historically and architecturally significant rural and small town properties.  The State Register is Wisconsin's official list of state properties determined to be significant to Wisconsin's heritage. The State Historic Preservation Office at the Wisconsin Historical Society administers both the State Register and National Register in Wisconsin.

To learn more about the State and National Register programs in Wisconsin, visit www.wisconsinhistory.org. 

About the Wisconsin Historical Society
The Wisconsin Historical Society, founded in 1846, ranks as one of the largest, most active and most diversified state historical societies in the nation. As both a state agency and a private membership organization, its mission is to help people connect to the past by collecting, preserving and sharing stories. The Wisconsin Historical Society serves millions of people every year through a wide range of sites, programs and services. For more information, visit wisconsinhistory.org.

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