| 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.
F in the photo codes is short for FCS. This rectangular, utilitarian portion of a paper mill and printing plant is a single tall story in height. It has an unusual saw tooth roof with irregularly spaced metal clad skylights of different heights and slopes. The riverside facade has cement silled windows of even height arrayed in an irregular pattern of single and double widths. These windows have been reduced with glass blocks and have small horizontal lights at sill level.
2009--Previously identified as 460 Ahnaip in 1993, the street address is now Curtis Reed Plaza.
The following material is from the 2009 Intensive Survey of Menasha:
This multi-storied, industrial complex (built between 1910 and 1962) is anchored at its east end by a steel-framed, three-story unit that is faced with red brick and is comprised largely of regularly placed, rectangular window openings. The central, Colonial Revival-style door surround includes a transom and sidelights. Brick-faced, steel-framed additions to the west range between one and two stories in height; however, the westernmost block is four stories high. Windows are largely rectangular, glass block openings within which either a single or pair of small, clear panes of glass are located. Original sawtooth skylights still remain on the roof; however, the majority of them have been covered with metal so that they no longer serve their original lighting function.
What began as a hobby and with a printing press in his living room, became a full-time occupation for George Banta Sr. in 1901. That year (following a fire), he moved operations from his backyard to a building on Main Street and, in September of that year, he incorporated as the George Banta Printing Company with a capital stock of $4,000. Two years later, the name was changed to the George Banta Publishing Company. In 1904, Banta Sr. was ordered by his doctor to spend more time in the West, so his wife Ellen took over as the general manager in order to keep the business afloat. Between 1902 and 1910 (and largely under Ellen's direction), the printed materials shifted from commercial work to a specialization in book and periodical printing for educational institutions. After a move to one-half of the Masonic Building (also on Main Street) and then expansion to the other side, construction began in 1910 on a new building at the intersection of Ahnaip and Racine streets. Completed in February of 1911, the two-story, brick building (Building #1) measured 40 feet x 90 feet and a 30 x 40-foot addition (Building #2) was soon to follow in 1913. A period of "explosive expansion" in the business occurred between 1911 and 1916, during which time the firm was printing a significant number of fraternity and sorority publications, as well as primary and high school "workbooks." In 1911, George Jr. dropped out of Wabash College to work for the family firm, which allowed his mother to return to tending to the home.
Between 1913 and 1962, fourteen additions and/or major alterations were made to the original building. In addition to the main plant, a 27.1-acre parcel was purchased in 1943 in the Town of Menasha, upon which a second plant (known as Midway Plant) was completed in 1946. Of interest, the Banta Book Group produced the popular 1980s game, Trivial Pursuit, before being purchased in early 2007 by R.R. Donnelley & Sons.
2015 - No visible changes. |
|---|
| Bibliographic References: | Sign.
Cyril Arthur Peerenboom, The George Banta Company Story, 1902-1962 (Menasha, WI: George Banta Company, Inc., 1965).
Fire Insurance Map of Menasha, Wis. 1906-1926, with updates to 1948.
A timeline and general history of the firm is also found on the following website: www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/Banta-Corporation-Company-History.html, Accessed in June 2009. |
|---|
