Property Record
406 16TH ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | William and Margaret Walker House |
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| Other Name: | |
| Contributing: | Yes |
| Reference Number: | 11023 |
| Location (Address): | 406 16TH ST |
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| County: | Racine |
| City: | Racine |
| Township/Village: | |
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| Year Built: | 1907 |
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| Additions: | 1986 |
| Survey Date: | 199420102017 |
| Historic Use: | house |
| Architectural Style: | Craftsman |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Brick |
| Architect: | A. Arthur Guilbert |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Southside Historic District |
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| National Register Listing Date: | 10/18/1977 |
| State Register Listing Date: | 1/1/1989 |
| National Register Multiple Property Name: |
| Additional Information: | A 'site file' exists for this property. It contains additional information such as correspondence, newspaper clippings, or historical information. It is a public record and may be viewed in person at the Wisconsin Historical Society, State Historic Preservation Office. 1/2 TIMBERED EFFECT ON UPPER STORY. MOVED FROM 845 LAKE AVE. TO THIS LOCATION IN 1986-1987. STILL IN HISTORIC DISTRICT. William and Margaret Walker lived here from 1909 until at least 1936. Gordon and Suzanne Walker lived here from approximately 1939-1952. South Side Historic District Walking Tour Guide: "Mr. Walker and his twin sons, Willard and Warren, established Walker Manufacturing in 1908, and the Walker name became famous, as it still is, for the automobile mufflers the company began to produce in Racine in the 1930s. This was the home of Gordon and Suzanne Walker from 1939 to 1954. Gordon was Willard's son and established Walker Forge in 1950." 2010: Built for William A. and Margaret Goff Walker at the northeast corner of Lake Avenue and Ninth Street, it was moved to its present location in 1986 by Preservation Racine when threatened with demolition for Gateway Technical Institute's expansion. The sunroom was detached from the house and moved separately. At its new location, it was set on a new foundation and reattached. The 250 pound concrete urns on the prominent side of the house, and an integral part of its architecture, disappeared while waiting for the house to be moved. After a sojourn at a Chicago house rehabilitation project, they were rightfully returned one night to the Walker House at its new location. This lot in Racine's Southside National Register Historic District was available, because the Queen Anne style house built there for Judge Elbert I. Hand in 1880 was severely damaged as a result of a gas explosion and fire on December 17, 1969, and was demolished. A year before he built his house, William founded the Walker Manufacturing Company, ignoring the "horse and buggy diehards," who felt that the automobile was just a passing fancy. It was one of the early American companies to tie its future to the automobile, and it became one of Racine's leading industries. Walker Manufacturing was probably best known for later building the "world's finest muffler" or "slicer" as it was then known. |
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| Bibliographic References: | (A) Racine County Tax Roll, 1909. (B) Racine City Directories, 1910-1935, 1939-1952. "Southside Historic District Walking Tour Guide", 1990. "Century Buildings for 2010," Preservation Racine, Inc., Newsletter, Summer 2010. The Improvement Bulletin 3/23/1907. Racine Landmarks Preservation Commission, Racine Frank Lloyd Wright and Prairie School Architecture Tour Guide, 1994. Racine Landmarks Preservation Commission, South Side Historic District Walking Tour Guide, 1993. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |