Property Record
101 W MAIN ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Old Waukesha County Courthouse |
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| Other Name: | Old Waukesha County Courthouse |
| Contributing: | |
| Reference Number: | 52562 |
| Location (Address): | 101 W MAIN ST |
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| County: | Waukesha |
| City: | Waukesha |
| Township/Village: | |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
| Town: | |
| Range: | |
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| Section: | |
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| Year Built: | 1885 |
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| Additions: | 1893 1938 |
| Survey Date: | 1980 |
| Historic Use: | courthouse |
| Architectural Style: | Romanesque Revival |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Limestone |
| Architect: | Rau and Kirsch, Milwaukee (main block) |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Old Waukesha County Courthouse |
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| National Register Listing Date: | 3/27/1975 |
| 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, Division of Historic Preservation. "Location, size and function, as well as the striking appearance of the section built in 1893-94, have made the former Waukesha County Courthouse the principal landmark of downtown Waukesha. Similar to H.H. Richardson's renowned Allegheny Courthouse, the east wing is Waukesha County's foremost example of the Richardsonian Romanesque style. And though less impressive, the west wing, erected in 1885, is also of interest architecturally." The Waukesha County Courthouse was built in three stages on the site of the original county buildings which date back to the 1840s. The west wing, originally a new County Jail, was constructed of local limestone in 1885. The main block, designed by Milwaukee architects Charles Rau and Robert Kirsch, was constructed in 1893 and 1894. The connecting wing was built in 1938. This building served as the seat of county government from 1894 to 1959. |
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| Bibliographic References: | Waukesha Freeman 5/22/2000. Waukesha Freeman 10/10/2000. Waukesha Freeman 5/9/2003. Penn Loerke, Jean. "The Spires of Waukesha: Ten Churches Plus One" Waukesha County Museum, May, 1975. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |