Property Record
38 S 3RD AVE
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Sturgeon Bay City Hall |
|---|---|
| Other Name: | Sturgeon Bay Fire Department |
| Contributing: | Yes |
| Reference Number: | 49764 |
| Location (Address): | 38 S 3RD AVE |
|---|---|
| County: | Door |
| City: | Sturgeon Bay |
| Township/Village: | |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
| Town: | |
| Range: | |
| Direction: | |
| Section: | |
| Quarter Section: | |
| Quarter/Quarter Section: |
| Year Built: | 1910 |
|---|---|
| Additions: | 1935 |
| Survey Date: | 20061982 |
| Historic Use: | fire house |
| Architectural Style: | Neoclassical/Beaux Arts |
| Structural System: | Unknown |
| Wall Material: | Limestone |
| Architect: | Greaves |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Third Avenue Historic District |
|---|---|
| National Register Listing Date: | 10/6/1983 |
| 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. A naive interpretation of the Neo-Classical Revival style, this two-story building is constructed of rusticated local limestone on the first floor with rockfaced limestone on the second. In imitation of a Roman Temple, it has an implied central pavilion with a pediment supported by three case concrete, Ionic pilasters above a recently modified garage door. A corner "Hose Drying" tower has been removed. Despite the modification this building is interestingly detailed and is the most "Classical" of the number of local limestone buildings within the District. A sympathetic addition (1935 B) is to the North. The significance of this building is as an example of the "Municipal Building" type of the period and the detailing of its design motif in local limestone. Originally a stable and a "lock-up" were at the rear and a wood hose tower was at the NW corner. The original Village Hall was located on what is today Michigan Street (Lot 7, Blk.14) The fire of 1880 consumed it, along with most of the Sturgeon Bay central business district. A new Village Hall was erected on the site of 354 Michigan. When the Carnegie Foundation provided funds for the construction of a library in 1910, the City Hall was moved to 38 S. Third. In 1935 the City Hall was enlarged with a single-story annex (see 30-36 South Third) for administrative offices. This building is of significance to the people of Sturgeon Bay as the center of Municipal Government for over seventy years. Notes from Stanley Green, 10/82: This is only the second of our city halls. The first was the former village hall (334 Michigan) converted to a city hall in 1883. The lot and the building were sold to A.W. Lawrence, who, in 1912, moved the building to his farm to be used as a barn. In 1904, an old school building, which was being remodeled to provide city hall facilities, was destroyed by fire before it could be used for that purpose. Previously surveyed in 1982. |
|---|---|
| Bibliographic References: | A. Sanborn Perris Maps of Sturgeon Bay, 1904-1911. B. Carved stone at the cornice. C. (Not cataloged) "Sturgeon Bay Preliminary Planning Report #2, p.169. D. Greene, "Sturgeon Bay's Pioneer Fire Co." The Peninsula Vol. 9, p. 6. The Improvement Bulletin 9/1/1906. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |