Property Record
231 S CONCORD ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | WATERTOWN ELECTRIC COMPANY POWER PLANT 1 |
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| Other Name: | Rough and Ready Hydro |
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| Reference Number: | 7154 |
| Location (Address): | 231 S CONCORD ST |
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| County: | Jefferson |
| City: | Watertown |
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| Year Built: | 1909 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 1986 |
| Historic Use: | public utility/power plant/sewage/water |
| Architectural Style: | Commercial Vernacular |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Cream 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: | 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. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND Corbelled brick cornices; rectangular windows with stone sills; foundation extended on south side. This building was constructed as the Watertown Electric Company power plant around 1909. In the 1920s it was acquired by the electric railway company to power the interurban line. The interurban line was shut down in 1940.(1) The electric company began in 1889 and originally operated a small steam generating plant. In 1903 the company acquired the Rough and Ready dam site and rebuilt it. They improved it again in 1909 and probably built this plant at that time. The gas and electric companies were merged in 1905 and in 1915 they were acquired by the Wisconsin Gas and Electric Company. It was probably at that time when electricity began to be transmitted from distant generating plants and this building was sold to the interurban line.(2) HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE This building is significant for local history under National Register criterion A as the location of the local electric company's power generating plant, and later as the generating plant for the interurban. The development of local utilities was a milestone in a community's history. It meant that a community could enter the modern era of electric light and applicances. When utilities were consolidated, local generating facilities were largely lost or remodeled beyond recognition. This building is important because it has such a high level of integrity, representing the local power generation era. The interurban electric railway was a shortlived, but important first step in mass transportation facilities in Wisconsin. Many interurban resources have disappeared. The generating plant is an important remnant of the interurban era in Watertown. ARCHITECTURAL/ENGINEERING SIGNIFICANCE One of the few extant historic industrial buildings in the city of Watertown, the Electric Plant building has retained a fair degree of integrity and exhibits some architectural interest. However, as one of the group exhibiting moderate architectural character, this building is not an architecturally significant example of industrial architecture. |
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| Bibliographic References: | (1) Sanborn-Perris Maps, 1890-1915, on file at the Archives Division of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin. (2) "First electric company established in 89," "Watertown Daily Times Centennial Issue," June 26, 1954, n.p. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |