Property Record
802 REGENT ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Ben DiSalvo and Sons Grocery |
|---|---|
| Other Name: | Wisconsin Humanities Council |
| Contributing: | |
| Reference Number: | 81960 |
| Location (Address): | 802 REGENT ST |
|---|---|
| County: | Dane |
| City: | Madison |
| Township/Village: | |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
| Town: | |
| Range: | |
| Direction: | |
| Section: | |
| Quarter Section: | |
| Quarter/Quarter Section: |
| Year Built: | 1923 |
|---|---|
| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 1985 |
| Historic Use: | grocery store/supermarket |
| Architectural Style: | Other Vernacular |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Brick |
| Architect: | |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | Yes |
| Demolished Date: | 2022 |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
|---|---|
| National Register Listing Date: | |
| State Register Listing Date: |
| Additional Information: | Map code is 0709-232-2526-7. Built in 1923 by Ben and Frances DiSalvo, who lived onthe second floor and used the first floor for grocery store and food importing business. "As the Italian-American community in Madison prospered, many of its early members were eventually able to realize the dream of most immigrants and purchase land upon which to build their homes and businesses. Prominent among the first generation of this community were Sicilian native Ben DiSalvo and his wife Frances who built this substantial brick building in 1923. The DiSalvos lived in the large sencond floor apartment and used the first floor to house their grocery store and food importing business. This living arrangement was called "living above the shop" and had been practiced in Europe for centuries prior to its introduction in America. DiSalvo's Imported Foods soon became a Greenbush institution. After DiSalvo retired in 1945 the store continued to be run by his sons until Tom DiSalvo retired in 1984. When Ben DiSalvo opened his new store it was once of 16 Italian-owned grocery stores in the neighborhood. DiSalvo's branched out into related areas as business warranted and the store later added a bakery, a meat market, and a liquor department. They also built a one-story annex next door in the same style as the store. Located where the side parking lot is now and used for years as DiSalvo's Spaghetti House, the annex burned down in the early 1960s." The Greenbush-Vilas Neighborhood: A Walking Tour. Madison Landmarks Commission and the Brittingham-Vilas Neighborhood Association, 1991. |
|---|---|
| Bibliographic References: | City directory. Tax records. The Greenbush-Vilas Neighborhood: A Walking Tour. Madison Landmarks Commission and the Brittingham-Vilas Neighborhood Association, 1991. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |