Property Record
E PARK AVE
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Wisconsin Home for the Feebleminded |
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| Other Name: | Northern Wisconsin Center for the Developmentally Disabled |
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| Reference Number: | 40198 |
| Location (Address): | E PARK AVE |
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| County: | Chippewa |
| City: | Chippewa Falls |
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| Year Built: | 1900 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 1993 |
| Historic Use: | barn |
| Architectural Style: | Astylistic Utilitarian Building |
| Structural System: | Balloon Frame |
| Wall Material: | Board |
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| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| Additional Information: | A 'site file' (Wisconsin Home for the Feebleminded) 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. Small hip roofed addition. The only remaining barn structure from the farm and dairy operation at the Wisconsin Home for the Feebleminded, this basement barn is important to the architectural history of the institution. The Wisconsin Home for the Feebleminded was established by the state legislature in 1895 which appropriated $100,000 to purchase land and construct suitable buildings. The first resident was admitted in June of that year. In 1923, the name was changed to the Northern Wisconsin Colony and Training School. It is currently known as the Northern Center for the Developmentally Disabled. This barn was probably built between 1902-1908. It was used in part of the Home's training program in farm work. A barn was not one of the original six buildings. A 1907 legislative appropriation provided for an addition to the barn. This building is of significant historical interest to the State of Wisconsin because it is part of the historic development of the Wisconsin Home for the Feebleminded. The creation of the Wisconsin Home for the Feebleminded established the State's commitmment to the care of the developmentally disabled. This building is historically significant within the institution because it's the only original farm building that is extant. RELATED BUILDINGS: outbuildings (11/33, 34, 36, 37), cottages (15/21, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, 34, 36), admin/chapel (15/23, 31, 37), residence (15/33). |
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| Bibliographic References: | (A) Wisconsin Blue Book (Madison: State of Wisconsin, 1909), p. 655. (B) A History of the State Board of Control of Wisconsin and the State Institutions, 1849-1939 (Madison: State Board of Control, 1939), p. 179-180, 183. (C) Chippewa County Wisconsin Past and Present, vol. I (Chicago, 1913), p. 290. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |