Property Record
700 STATE ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | J.I. Case Headquarters |
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| Other Name: | CNH America LLC |
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| Reference Number: | 11359 |
| Location (Address): | 700 STATE ST |
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| County: | Racine |
| City: | Racine |
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| Year Built: | 1902 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 1975 |
| Historic Use: | small office building |
| Architectural Style: | Neoclassical/Beaux Arts |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Cut Stone |
| Architect: | Wilson and Guilbert |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| Additional Information: | A 'site file' (Case, J.I., Company Historic District) 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, Division of Historic Preservation. Founded in 1844, the J. I. Case Company helped transform Racine into an important manufacturing city. Jerome Case developed a threshing machine that efficiently separated the grain from the stalk and cleaned the chaff from the grain in one operation. Soon his company became Racine's largest employer and the world's leading threshing machine manufacturer. In 1904, when Case introduced the first all-steel thresher, the company built a new headquarters in the Beaux-Arts Classical style. Inspired by the much-admired Boston Public Library, architects Wilson and Guilbert utilized two-story arched windows separated by classical pilasters along the length of the facade. Classical moldings trim the cornice, and a low-hipped tile roof crowns the building. The entire composition rests atop an elevated basement. Above the central entrance, notice the Case Company’s logo: an eagle perched on a globe. The grand interior space, two stories high, was divided into separate floors in 1957. SEE R#11353 FOR INDUSTRIAL BLDGS AT STATE AND ROOT RIVER. DESIGNATED RACINE LANDMARK IN 1981. The design for the headquarters of the J.I.Case Company was based on the Public Library at Copley Square in Boston, which was designed in 1888 and completed in 1895 by McKim, Mead, and White. The administration building once faced a huge complex of industrial buildings, across State Street, which ran easterly to the river and were built by J.I.Case after 1847. They were torn down to by replaced by Case's new international headquarters. |
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| Bibliographic References: | RACINE JOURNAL TIMES 10/1/1990. Racine Landmarks Map Guide, 2003. Racine Journal Times 4/27/2004. Old Main Street Walking Tour Guide, 1990 Buildings of Wisconsin manuscript. Renewing Our Roots: The Northside, Racine, Wisconsin, Preservation-Racine, Inc., not dated. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |