Property Record
64 S MAIN ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Janesville Public Library |
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| Other Name: | Janesville Leisure Services Senior Center |
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| Reference Number: | 16404 |
| Location (Address): | 64 S MAIN ST |
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| County: | Rock |
| City: | Janesville |
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| Year Built: | 1902 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 1999 |
| Historic Use: | library |
| Architectural Style: | Neoclassical/Beaux Arts |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Brick |
| Architect: | JOHN T.W. JENNINGS |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Janesville Public Library |
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| National Register Listing Date: | 7/1/1981 |
| 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. J.T.W. Jennings was the supervising architect of the University of Wisconsin Buildings and Grounds. The portico is reminiscent of Bascom Hall, U.W. In 1982, the Janesville Public Library was known as the Crossroads Building. At the southeastern edge of Courthouse Park sits the Janesville Public Library, which Jennings designed in the Beaux-Arts Classical style, newly popular for civic buildings. At the first story, the building’s gray brick walls are rusticated with deeply recessed joints that emphasize the horizontal plane. A central portico rises above the arched entrances, its Ionic columns supporting a triangular pediment. Garlands ornament the broad frieze and the pediment’s tympanum, which also bears the building's name and date of construction. At the second story, panels underscoring sets of four windows proclaim with raised lettering: "Free to the People" and "Eldred Memorial." The latter refers to locally prominent merchant and manufacturer F. S. Eldred, who honored the memory of his daughter Ada Eldred Sayre by donating $10,000 to the library to match Andrew Carnegie's grant. In 1932, workers installed a stage, complete with a classical proscenium flanked by Doric columns, turning the building’s second-story assembly hall into an auditorium. It became home to the Janesville Little Theater, one of the oldest little theaters in the country. Historical Statement: Significant for its role in the cultural development of the city primarily through its association with the Janesville Little Theater, which it has housed since 1932. It is one of 63 Carnegie Libraries in the state and was one of the first four granted in the state in 1901. The Janesville Leisure Services Senior Center has resided at the former library building since before 1968. (F). The interior is much altered. |
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| Bibliographic References: | A. Library Board Minutes, 1902. B. Niles & Lennox: A History of Janesville Little Theater. C. HISTORIC JANESVILLE, HERITAGE PRESERVATION ASSOCIATES, INC. MACDONALD AND MACK PARTNERSHIP, CITY OF JANESVILLE DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT, 1994. D. DATESTONE. E. JANESVILLE GAZETTE 6/2/1996. F. December 1998 phone conversation with library employee. G. Buildings of Wisconsin manuscript. H. Main & Milwaukee: Janesville's Downtown Historic Districts, A Guide. Prepared by Landscape Research for the Janesville Historic Commission, 1989. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |