Property Record
4811 TONYAWATHA TR
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Schroeder, Otto and Louise, House |
|---|---|
| Other Name: | |
| Contributing: | Yes |
| Reference Number: | 5597 |
| Location (Address): | 4811 TONYAWATHA TR |
|---|---|
| County: | Dane |
| City: | Monona |
| Township/Village: | |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
| Town: | |
| Range: | |
| Direction: | |
| Section: | |
| Quarter Section: | |
| Quarter/Quarter Section: |
| Year Built: | 1932 |
|---|---|
| Additions: | 2004 |
| Survey Date: | 198020192021 |
| Historic Use: | house |
| Architectural Style: | English Revival Styles |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Stone - Unspecified |
| Architect: | FRANK RILEY; Herbert Fritz (studio) |
| Other Buildings On Site: | Y |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Schroeder-Bohrod House |
|---|---|
| National Register Listing Date: | 3/23/2023 |
| State Register Listing Date: | 11/18/2022 |
| 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. 1/2 TIMBERED UPPER STORY. BOHROD WAS AN UW ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE. Otto Schroeder was founder of Schroeder Funeral Home in Madison. In 1959, the Schroeder family sold the home to UW Madison's artist-in-residence Aaron Bohrod. He lived there with his wife Ruth until his death until 1992. Bohrod hired architect Herbert Fritz to design the artist studio that was built over the existing garage. 2004 - addition added to the back of the house. 2018 - The two-and-one-half-story, wood-frame, Tudor Revival-style house has stone foundation and an irregular rectangular plan that includes three front-gable projecting wings on the front (east), rear (west), and side (south) elevations. It has an irregular side-gable roof with three hip-roof dormers; one opens to a small integrated balcony toward the north end of the front (east) facade. Exterior walls are clad in a combination of stucco and stone masonry and many wall surfaces display false half-timbering. Fenestration consists of multi-light windows and replacement fixed-frame windows. A stone chimney is located near the southern end of the house. The 1932 house was designed by renowned Madison architect Frank Riley, who specialized in revival styles, for Otto Schroeder, a prominent Madison funeral director, and his wife Louise. Artist Aaron Bohrod purchased the house in 1959 and served as artist-in-residence at the University of Wisconsin-Madison from 1948 to 1973. Bohrod studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and received many awards for his early paintings, prints, and drawings. During World War II he was an artist correspondent for Life Magazine and the U.S. Department of Army. In 1948 he came to the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he developed a unique “trompe l’oeil” (fool the eye) technique whereby painted objects appear very realistic. The Art Institute of Chicago, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Whitney Museum of American Art all have Bohrod’s works in their collections. Bohrod added many fanciful nature images to the interior of the main house, including fish forms on the vestibule and bird forms on the kitchen cupboards. In 1959 Bohrod commissioned renowned architect Herbert Fritz to design a free-standing art studio on the property, northeast of the main house. The side-gable studio features exterior walls clad in stucco, wood, and stone; distinctive inverted triangular window openings, as well as a wood-frame window wall on the north elevation; and four basement-level garage bays on the east elevation. |
|---|---|
| Bibliographic References: | CAPITAL TIMES 10/10/1995. MONONA COMMUNITY HERALD 5/10/1995. CAPITAL TIMES 5/1/1995. WISCONSIN STATE JOURNAL 9/26/1995. MONONA COMMUNITY HERALD 8/21/1996. Monona Landmarks Commission. City of Monona: Its Heritage and Landmarks. 2nd ed. Monona Wis.: Monona Landmarks Commission, 2011. 44-45. Blueprints and specification book for the house in possession of the owners. Wisconsin State Journal: April 24, 1949, Section 4, p. 3 (illustrated). Wisconsin State Journal: December 11, 1966, Section 4, p. 1 (illustrated). |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |