Property Record
98 BROAD ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Adolph & Mathilde Wahle Residence |
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| Reference Number: | 60246 |
| Location (Address): | 98 BROAD ST |
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| County: | Winnebago |
| City: | Menasha |
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| Year Built: | 1870 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 2009 |
| Historic Use: | house |
| Architectural Style: | Gabled Ell |
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| Wall Material: | Brick |
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| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| Additional Information: | F in the photo codes is short for FCS. #590. Veranda. Adolph Wahle (1839-1901) was a local flour miller and feed merchant.(A) A native of Germany, he moved to Menasha in 1864 and formed the partnership of Wahle & McGinty, manufacturing flour in the Coral Mill.(B) In 1880 Wahle & McGinty had the second largest flour milling operation in Menasha, contributing towards the continued vitality of flour milling in the Twin Cities.(C) The year before Wahle & McGinty expanded operations to Marinette.(D) Wahle moved to that city to manage the new operation, but in 1886 he returned and later operated a flour and feed store on Chute Street.(E) Active in local and county politics, Wahle built his home on Broad Street sometime between 1870 and 1874.F) The Adolph Wahle House is associated with a prominent Menasha flour miller during the years in which flour was the principal industry of the Twin Cities. Situated within view of the lock and canal, the Adolph Wahle House is a two-story gabled ell residence, set back on an expanse of lawn. The building configuration is "T" plan, and the roof is multigabled. The roofing materials are asphalt shingle, the walls are pink brick with a stretcher bond, and the foundations are stone. The fenestration in the two-story half is double-hung, single paned sash, while the one-story half six-over-six, double-hung sash. A low veranda with doric columns wraps around the one-story portion of the residence. The Adolph Wahle House is architecturally significant as the premiere example of the gabled ell residence form in Menasha. Unornamented yet elegant in its simplicity, the house evokes pioneer hardship and the incipient affluence of an emerging economy. 2009--Last surveyed in 1993; the only apparent exterior alteration to the house is a new door in the front-facing gabled wing along Broad Street. Constructed of orange brick, this gabled ell house is comprised of a two-story, front-facing wing and a one-and-one-half-story ell wing to the east. An additional gabled wing extends from the rear of the ell wing and a wraparound porch with plain columnar supports connects all three wings. The essentially Greek Revival-style main block features regular fenestration, with the doorway and overhead transom being offset at the right (east). Aside from a single, six-over-six example, the remaining segmental-arched openings of the two-story block contain one-over-one replacements, are topped with soldier brick heads and underscored with simple stone sills. However, windows located in the remaining two wings retain their original six-over-six or other multiple-light sashes. Compared to the 1985 survey photo on file, the only apparent change to the house appears to be the replacement of the front door. The following material is from the 2009 Intensive Survey report of Menasha: According to research done as of the 1986 survey report, the house was built between 1870 and 1874 by Adolph Wahle. Wahle was born in Germany and, according to his 1896 passport application, he came to Menasha in July 1867. The following year, he married Mathilde Muhlenbein. At one point, Wahle partnered with Alexander McGinty and together they ran the Coral (flour) Mill; in 1879, they expanded milling operations to Marinette. Two years later, Wahle, along with McGinty, would receive a patent for an improvement in roller-grinding milling of cereals. After selling the Coral Mill to Alexander Syme, Whale operated a flour and feed store on Chute Street. Wahle died in 1901. |
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| Bibliographic References: | #690. (A) Menasha Evening Breeze; May 27, 1901; page 3, column 5. (B) Augustin, C.J. Semi-Centennial Edition of the Menasha Press. Menasha Press, 1898. Menasha, Wisconsin. Page 20. (C) Glaab, Charles N. and Larsen, Lawrence H. Factories in the Valley. State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 1869. Madison, Wisconsin. Page 73. (D) Menasha Press; July 31, 1879; page 3, column 1. (E) Ibid.; February 8, 1896; page 8, column 1. (F) 1870 Map of Menasha, Wisconsin by H. H. Baily. Menasha Tax Records, Second Ward. See 2009 Intensive Survey (page 17-18) for additional citations. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |