Property Record
806 W GALE AVE
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Tollef Jensen House |
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| Other Name: | |
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| Reference Number: | 56624 |
| Location (Address): | 806 W GALE AVE |
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| County: | Trempealeau |
| City: | Galesville |
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| Year Built: | 1913 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 1981 |
| Historic Use: | house |
| Architectural Style: | Queen Anne |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Clapboard |
| Architect: | |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Jensen, Tollef, House |
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| National Register Listing Date: | 9/18/1984 |
| State Register Listing Date: | 1/1/1989 |
| National Register Multiple Property Name: | Multiple Resources of Galesville |
| 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-Public History. This house is a large, rambling two and a half story residence built in the late Queen Anne tradition. The house has an assymetrical roofline with projecting gables. The gables form pediments and are decorated with fish scale shingles. There is little detail on this house, with the exception of scroll brackets with ornamental pendants on brackets in the attic soffits at the gable corners. There are many openings in this house, including most of the original double-hung sash type windows. The house is sided with clapboards and wood trim which are in excellent condition. Highlighting the first floor is a broad veranda with a simple stick balustrade and widely spaced narrow columns supporting the veranda roof. The veranda base is decorated with a lattice porch skirt and broad wooden steps lead to two of the entrances. Over the east stair, the veranda is decorated with a shingled pediment; the front (south) stair is marked by a blank entablature. Like many Wisconsin communities, much of Galesville's existing housing stock consists of residences built around the latter 19th century and early 20th century and feature elements of the Queen Anne style. While the best examples of the Queen Anne style in Galesville are the pivotal buildings in the Ridge Avenue Historic District, this building is the best example of the latter Queen Anne residences in the community. The building's overall form and massing belong to the Queen Anne style, but its simpler, more symmetrical details and columned porch suggest the Colonial Revival style, which was emerging at the turn of the century in smaller communities. The house's massiveness and siting make it stand out as a landmark in the area, and combined with its high integrity and state of preservation, it is the best example of the late Queen Anne style in Galesville. Elias Jensen acquired the property in 1887 and his oldest sone, T.E. Jensen, and the rest of the family held on to the property until 1953. City Tax Records indicate that the house was built in 1913. T.E. Jensn owned an ice cream and confectionary establishment in Galesville. His store was a center of local gatherings and social for a number of years. |
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| Bibliographic References: | (A) Office of the City Assessor, Tax Records - Galesville. (B) Edward S. Buncey to Elias Jensen, March 9, 1886, Deeds, Vol. 30, p. 159. (C) Marie Jensen to Frank M. Smith, Oct. 30, 1953, Deeds, Vol. 114, p. 551. (D) Galesville Industrial Review, (n.p., 1913), p. 19. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |