Property Record
100 W 2ND ST (AKA MAIN ST W)
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | ASHLAND NATIONAL BANK/UNION NATIONAL BANK (A) |
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| Other Name: | NORTHWEST WISCONSIN CEP |
| Contributing: | Yes |
| Reference Number: | 857 |
| Location (Address): | 100 W 2ND ST (AKA MAIN ST W) |
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| County: | Ashland |
| City: | Ashland |
| Township/Village: | |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
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| Year Built: | 1923 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 19832021 |
| Historic Use: | bank/financial institution |
| Architectural Style: | Neoclassical/Beaux Arts |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Limestone |
| Architect: | Egan & Tomlinson |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | West Second Street Historic District |
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| National Register Listing Date: | 2/2/1984 |
| State Register Listing Date: | 1/1/1989 |
| National Register Multiple Property Name: |
| 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. PAIRED COLUMNS IN RECESSED PORTICO. SIX TUSCAN COLUMNS. SEVERELY SIMPLE ELEVATION. ONE OF MANY BANK BLDGS IN DISTRICT. LANDMARK FOR DISTRICT. [Date Cnst:(A)] This bank was called the Ashland National Bank in 1928. The Union National Bank opened in 1933 after the Ashland National Bank closed due to the Great Depression earlier that year. DESCRIPTION: Although the interior, once open two floors in the center, was altered in the early 1960s, the cement exterior of this fine 1923 Neo-Classical Style bank of the Tuscan order is intact, including the distyle-in-antis portico. Similar in style to the Northern State Bank, but employing a different and by far the simplist classical order, the rectangular corner window openings have classicaly inspired swag and cartouche ornamentation below the window's cornice. Six Tuscan columns mark the rhythmn of the long Ellis Avenue facade and the styles simplicity is expressed further by the smooth walls and general lack of decorative ornament usually found in early periods of the Neo-Classical style. SIGNIFICANCE: This severely simple Neo-Classical style bank building of 1921 is considered pivotal in the district and is significant for its architedtural integrity and for its role in Ashland's commercial history. Stylistically, the building is most closely related to the Northern National Bank further west on Second Street (#17). Located on the prominent Ellis corner, this bank stands prominently at the border of the business district and, like the First National Bank, was a visitor's first impression of Ashland. Like the Northern National Bank, this bank was forced to close (in 1933) by the Great Depression which forced the barter system to be used at that time. 2021: Update photo. |
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| Bibliographic References: | [A] ASHLAND SALUTES 100 YEARS OF PROGRESS [B] NRHP NOMINATION FORMS |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |