| Additional Information: | Gold color steel mesh covers upper two floors and a red brick veneer occurs along the first floor. The rear and west walls and probably the upper two floors of the other elevations are cream brick.
The First National Bank represents three retail spaces. The bank expanded into Spurgeons.
In 1863, Joseph E. Wells entered the hardward business as a clerk for I.W. Bacon who began his hardware in 1856. Bacon appeared in the 1860 census as a manufacturer of tin and sheet iron ware. In 1874, Wells purchased the inventory of the Bacon estate and with partners P.J. Barkman and H.W. Williams, he began his own hardward business. J.E. Wells & Co. operated in 1877 as "Wholesale and Retail Dealers in General Hardward, Stoves, Farming Implements, and Manufacturers of Tin, Copper, and Sheet Iron Ware." In 1880, Wells opened his store in the center of the new Phoenix Block at 102 W. Cook and had established a branch firm in Waupaca. By 1885, the hardware company placed its show room on the first floor and its stoves and tinware and tin shop on the second floor. After 1903, Thomas Wells possessed an interest in the hardware company, and P.J. Barkman became the owner of the company in 1912. In about 1917, Charles Kutzke of the Kutzke-Senger Hardward Store founded in 1908 purchased the stock and building of J.E. Wells & Co. at 102 W. Cook. The Kutzke-Meyer business remained at that location through 1929. Spurgeons occupied the space in 1955 (Merrell, Wood & Co. 1877; Butterfield 1880: 933; Portage Daily Register 12/23/1889; 2/7/1922; Democrat 7/30/1897; Jones 1914 [2]: 622; U.S. Bureau of the Census 1860; Jones 1914 [2]: 638-39).
Waterhouse and Davis established their drug company on the south side of W. Cook near W. Wisconsin in 1867-1868. A clerk with the drug company since 1867, Edmund S. Purdy purchased the company in 1871. With partner Henry Merrell, he formed the drug company of Purdy and Merrell. At the death of Merrell in 1876, he maintained the business as sole proprietor of the Purdy Drug Company. The Purdy Drugstore located at 102 W. Cook after the burning of the Pettibone Block in 1880. It remained there until 1907 when replaced by the First National Bank. While at that corner, it occupied both floors and basement of the 20 by 100 foot business space. In 1877, Purdy advertised their business as "...Wholesale and retail dealers in Drugs, Medicines and Chemicals, Books and Stationary, Paints, Oils and Dye Stuffs" (Merrell, Woodard & Co. 1877). By 1889, the drugstore also manufactured and sold soft drinks including Purdy's Carbonized Root Beer, Ginger Ale, and Kahla Cream. They were advertised as temperance drinks. Ben D. Merrell joined the Purdy Drug Company by 1890. The company moved to the 132 W. Cook (57/13) in 1907. In 1909, Oscar A. Klenert succeeded the Purdy Drug Company. By 1929, the Johnson Drugstore and by 1948 the Service Drug Company located at 130-132 W. Cook (Butterfield 1880: 663, 920-921; Portage Public Schools 1948-51; Portage Daily Register 12/23/1889; Register-Democrat 2/2/1924; 4/27/1923; Democrat 7/30/1897: 7; Portage Public Library n.d. [photo]).
Established with a capital of 75,000 dollars, the First National Bank received its charter from the United State Treasury in 1890. It served as a depository of Columbia County and the City of Portage. When first formed, the bank occupied the building replaced by the west portion of 108 W. Cook (57/34). Thomas Armstrong, Jr. served as its first president until 1892 when J.E. Wells replaced him and remained in that office until 1906. In 1893, the bank moved to 101 W. Cook (25/23) which was erected in that year. The First National Bank relocated to its current address at 102 W. Cook in the east third of the Phoenix Block (25/21) in 1907 (Columbia Co. Treasurer 1863- [1907]). In that year, the bank added the savings deposit to its services. In 1914, it joined the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. The First National Bank received a permanent charter in 1922 when the federal government extended national bank charters from every several years to 99 years. To survive the depression of the early 1930s, the bank sold a majority of its stock to the Wisconsin Banking Shares Corporation in 1930. Like other national banks, the First National Bank of Portage became a member of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in 1935. Major remodeling of the interior of the bank building at 102 W. Cook occurred in 1933, 1945, and 1954. Brick and concrete replaced the wood coping in 1934 (Portage Daily Register 9/26/1936). In 1963, the bank expanded west into 104 W. Cook, purchasing the former hardward store from the Wright estate. Remodeling of the building continued into 1965 (Portage Public Schools 1948-51 [1950]; Portage Daily Register 1966 [5/9: 10-11]; First National Bank of Portage 1966; Jones 1914 [1]: 202).
Sanborn-Perris Map Co.:
102 W. Cook St.:
1929: bank
1918: bank
1910: bank
1901: drugs and stationary with doctor's offices second, at rear are music and hand printers.
1889: drugs and stationary with sleep room and offices second.
1885: same-Phoenix Block E2/3
104 W. Cook St.:
1929: store
1918: hardware
1910: hardware, office at rear
1901: hardware with warehouse and tin shop second
1889: hardware, stoves and tinware with workroom and tin shop second
Columbia Co. Treasurer 1863-:
102 W. Cook St.:
1910-1930: Stockholders of the First National Bank
1907: Purdy sells to bank
1895-1905: Mrs. Helen Purdy
1885-1890: Helen Purdy
1880: Abram Hatfield-new property description, marked Phoenix Block, change in valuation.
The Phoenix Block was built in 1880. The west side was remodeled by Carroll and Klug and is designated as 108 E. Cook.
104 W. Cook St.:
1910-1930: E.J.S. Wright
1895-1905: Joseph E. Wells & Co.
Directories:
1955: (102) First National Bank; (104) Spurgeon's Store (Johnson Printing Co.)
1937, 1948: (102) First National bank; (104) ? (Commonwealth Telephone Co.)
1929: (100) First National Bank; (104) Kutzke-Meyer Hardware STore (Smith Baumann)
1917: same (Farrell)
1915-16, 1913-14: J.E. Wells & Co., hardware, Peter J. Barkman, prop. and Kutzke-Senger Hardware Co. (R.L. Polk & Co.)
1911-12: J.E. Wells Hardware (R.L. Polk & Co.)
1910: (DeWitt and Cook) First National; (104) J.E. Wells & Co., hardware (Voshardt)
1908-09: (104) J.E. Wells & Co., hardware; First National Bank, cor. DeWitt and W. Cook (S.H. Moore)
1905-06, 1903-04 to 1893-94: J.E. Wells & Co., (Joseph E. Wells, Peter J. Barkman), hardware (R.L. Polk & Co.)
1905-06, 1901-02, 1897-98, 1895-96: Purdy Drug Co., E.S. Purdy, pres., drugs and bottlers (R.L. Polk & Co.) moved to 132 W. Cook, drug company closed by c. 1910 (R.L. Polk & Co. 1909-10; Voshardt 1910).
1893-94: Purdy, Edmund S., drugs and manufacturer of proprietary medicines, cor. of Cook and deWitt (R.L. Polk & Co.)
1890: J.E. Wells & Co., wholesale and retail hardware, stoves, tinware, and sporting goods; Purdy and Merrell, Edmund S. Purdy and Ben D. Merrell, druggists, paints, oils and glass, stationers, newsdealers and booksellers, artists' materials, and bottlers of root beer, kahla, cream, gingerale, fruit sodas, mineral waters, etc., 2 w. Cook (Wright).
1885: Purdy, Edmund S., druggist; Wells, J.E. & Co., hardware (Maher and Eckstein).
1884-85: same (R.L. Polk & Co.)
1873: (different building) Purdy and Merrill, drugs and books and J.E. Wells not yet formed (Platt). |
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