Property Record
901 Park Ave
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | WEST PARK |
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| Other Name: | WEST PARK |
| Contributing: | Yes |
| Reference Number: | 10789 |
| Location (Address): | 901 Park Ave |
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| County: | Racine |
| City: | Racine |
| Township/Village: | |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
| Town: | |
| Range: | |
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| Year Built: | 1836 |
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| Additions: | 1842 1848 1911 |
| Survey Date: | 1980 |
| Historic Use: | park |
| Architectural Style: | NA (unknown or not a building) |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | |
| Architect: | JOSHUA HATHAWAY, SURVEYOR |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Southside Historic District |
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| National Register Listing Date: | 10/18/1977 |
| 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, State Historic Preservation Office. Set aside for use as a public square when the so-called "school section" in Racine was surveyed and laid out in both 1836 and 1842. West Park was redesigned in 1911. In 1925, E.W. Leach asserted the the State of Wisconsin, and not the City of Racine, owned both West Park and East Park since title had never changed hands. [B] West Park never became as fashionable as East Park, so fewer of its original houses were razed or replaced, although most of the were altered or added to over the years. It is, as a result, an area of "architectural archeology" where one can discover- both on and below the surface- examples of almost every architectural style that was popular in Racine from its early settlement to the 1940s. West Park also has an association with Senator James Rood Doolittle (1815-1897). He was born in Hampton, New York, and did not come to Racine until 1851. Six years later he was elceted to the United States Senate- the only Racine resident ever to achieve that office. He served for two terms, then retired to practice law- both in Chicago and Racine. Senator Doolittle had a house just south of Racine College, but about 1895, just two years before his death, he moved to his daughter's at 932 Park. She was Sarah Pease, the widow of E.H. Pease, who had been a manufacturer of fram equipment in Racine. |
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| Bibliographic References: | Racine Journal News, ?/16/1925 by E.W. Leach, "Who Owns West Park?" 1836 Hathaway survey of Racine's southside. The Grassroots History of Racine Co., p. 149. [B] Southside Historic District Walking Tour. Racine Landmarks Preservation Commission, May 1993. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |