Property Record
1305 2ND AVE
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Cumberland Public Library |
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| Other Name: | Cumberland Public Library |
| Contributing: | |
| Reference Number: | 28736 |
| Location (Address): | 1305 2ND AVE |
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| County: | Barron |
| City: | Cumberland |
| Township/Village: | |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
| Town: | |
| Range: | |
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| Year Built: | 1905 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 19992020 |
| Historic Use: | library |
| Architectural Style: | Neoclassical/Beaux Arts |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Brick |
| Architect: | C.H. Patsche |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Cumberland Public Library |
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| National Register Listing Date: | 6/25/1992 |
| State Register Listing Date: | 4/10/1992 |
| 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 State Historical Society, Division of Historic Preservation. A Minnesota architect designed this library, which the community built with funds from the Carnegie Foundation. It is one of many Beaux-Arts Classical libraries erected in the Progressive era, for classical architecture had long symbolized democracy, republicanism, and civic order in the American imagination. But while the style was part of a national trend, the materials used to construct this one-story building also expressed local sensibilities. Chequamegon brownstone quarried on Lake Superior’s Apostle Islands trims the orange brick walls. The building's focal point is an impressive portico formed by four smooth granite columns with brownstone Ionic capitals and a triangular pediment. Beneath the portico, a massive brownstone lintel and a small triangular pediment crown the entry. Inside, the library remains much as it was when it opened. The reading room dominates the upper level with its massive, octagonal wooden circulation desk. On the green-tile fireplace, Ionic columns and a serpentine mantel are especially lovely. Resurveyed in July 2020 by UWM-CRM as part of the WisDOT USH 63 reconstruction project. Appearance unchanged. |
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| Bibliographic References: | Buildings of Wisconsin manuscript. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |