Property Record
229 N LUDINGTON ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Henry A. Whitney House |
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| Reference Number: | 3490 |
| Location (Address): | 229 N LUDINGTON ST |
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| County: | Columbia |
| City: | Columbus |
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| Year Built: | 1868 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 1996 |
| Historic Use: | house |
| Architectural Style: | Italianate |
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| Wall Material: | Cream Brick |
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| Demolished?: | No |
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| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| Additional Information: | ROUND ARCHED WINDOWS, WIDE OVERHANGING EAVES, PEDIMENTED PORCH ENTRY AND DECORATIVE BORDER GLASS IN THE WINDOWS ARE LATE VICTORIAN ADDITIONS. ALONZO WAS THE SON OF HENRY A. WHITNEY AND GOT HIS START MANAGING HIS FATHER'S FARMS. "LON" AS HE WAS KNOWN LATER BECAME A PRIVATE MONEY LENDER AND WAS IN THE REAL ESTATE BUSINESS. HE WAS ALSO VICE-PRESIDENT OF THE COLUMBUS CANNING CO. FROM ITS START IN 1900 UNTIL HIS DEATH. HE GAVE GENEROUSLY TO THE FIREMAN'S PARK AND DONATED THE MEMORIAL CHAPEL TO HILLSIDE CEMETERY. HIS HOUSE ORIGINALLY HAD MATCHING PORCHES ON EITHER SIDE OF THE FRONT PROJECTION. The house was built in 1868 for Henry A. Whitney, the builder of the Whitney House hotel (101 S. Ludington St.), and it may have been the work of Milwaukee architect Edward Townsend Mix, although no documentation to support this has been found. "Alonzo H. Whitney, son of Henry A. Whitney, got his start managing his father's farms. "Lon" as he was known, later became a private money lender and was in the real estate business. He was also Vice President of the newly formed and successful Columbus Canning So. from its organization in 1900 until his death. Alonzo Whitney was civic minded and very well liked. He gave generously to the Fireman's Park and donated the Memorial Chapel to Hillside Cemetery. This building, to which a commercial wing has been added, exemplifies the early Italianate style that was quite popular in Columbus in the mid-19th century. Its cross-plan massing and unornamented, widely overhanging eaves are typical adaptations of the style. The building originally had small matching porches on wither side of the front projection. The ornate porch at the left and the decorative border glass in the windows are late Victorian additions." Columbus Historic Architecture Tours, undated. |
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| Bibliographic References: | COLUMBUS HISTORIC ARCHITECTURE TOURS, COLUMBUS HISTORIC LANDMARKS AND PRESERVATION COMMISSION, 1994. Butterfield, C. W. History of Columbus County, WI. Chicago: Western Historical Co., 1880, pp. 980-981. Columbus Democrat: November 19, 1868, p. 1. Columbus Republican: October 14, 1868, p. 3. Stare, Frederick A. The Story of Columbus. Installment No. 467 (pp. 689-690). Take a Walk on Main Street: Historic Walking Tours in Wisconsin's Main Street Communities, Wisconsin Main Street Program, 1998. Columbus Historic Architecture Tours, undated. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |