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Summary
Seventh Day Baptist Church
Milton, Rock County, Wisconsin
Architect: Hugo Haeuser
Date of Construction: 1933-34
The Seventh Day Baptist Church was built in 1933-34 after a fire destroyed its 1882-constructed predecessor. Noted Milwaukee church architect, Hugo Haeuser, designed the building in his most frequently used style for churches, the Late Gothic Revival. He also used his favorite material, limestone veneer known as “lannon stone.” This abundant material was quarried from an area just northwest of Milwaukee, and it is one of the hallmarks of Haeuser’s twentieth century church designs.
The Seventh Day Baptist faith came with the first pioneers to Milton, including Joseph Goodrich, who built the unusual grout-constructed hexagonal-shaped Milton House. Goodrich and many of the families who came later were members of the Seventh Day Baptist faith in New York State and Milton became a center of immigration for church members. Known for their worship on the “seventh” day or Saturday, the faith has been an enduring institution in Milton.
The first Seventh Day Baptist Church was constructed in 1852, and parts of this church were used for the much larger building completed in 1882. Influenced by the Romanesque Revival style, the 1882 church was one of the most distinctive in Milton when it was built. The fire that burned it to the ground in 1933 was devastating, coming at what arguable could be called the “depths” of the Great Depression of the 1930s.
Despite the hard economic times, the congregation moved forward with the elaborate design of Hugo Haeuser and the church was completed in 1934. Haeuser’s design of the church’s exterior is elegant, with gothic details typical of the style, but not overwhelming. Haeuser designed many Lutheran churches and the interior of this church is more in keeping with that or other more formal denominations than the Baptist denomination and it raised some eyebrows among the congregation. But, they built the church as designed and have kept its historic character largely intact, making this building architecturally distinctive both inside and out.
Property Details
Resources Within The Property
Designations
NR2492
State & National Registers of Historic Places
The State Register and National Register recognize buildings, sites, districts, structures, and objects that are significant in national, state, or local history. The State Historic Preservation Office in conjunction with the National Park Service maintains the list for Wisconsin and makes the data available to the public for research and education.
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100002284
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W6647 Berry St
100008109
Located in Town of Millston, Jackson County
742 East Madison Avenue
15000425
Located in Milton, Rock County
