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Property Record

201 8TH ST

Historic Name:
Charles Ringling House (Charles E. and Edith)
Other Name:
Reference Number:
46957

Property Location

Location (Address) 201 8TH ST
County Sauk
City/Village Baraboo
Township
Unincorporated community
Town
Range
Direction
Section
Quarter Section
Quarter Quarter Section

Property Features

Year Built 1900
Additions 1917
Survey Date 1977
Historic Use house
Architectural Style Neoclassical/Beaux Arts
Structural System
Wall Material Clapboard
Architect Isenberg Brothers
Other Buildings On Site
Demolished No
Demolished Date
Additional Comments 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 State Historical Society, Division of Historic Preservation. THERE IS ALSO A BUNGALOW STYLE HOUSE ON THE PROPERTY.

This clapboard Colonial Revival house was the first of the Ringling mansions built in Baraboo. The front is dominated by a one-story porch with Ionic columns and a roof balustrade, spanning almost the full width of the house. Ionic columns with fluted shafts are linked by a turned-spindle balustrade. A triangular pediment pierced by a semicircular light punctuates the roofline. The exterior is largely unaltered, but in 1918 an Otis elevator was installed, which entailed the construction of a tower, which rises behind the hipped roof of the core.

The building’s ornate interior combines classical detailing with Craftsman finishes. To the right of the entry vestibule, the dining room displays dark quarter-sawn oak wainscoting, built-in cabinetry, and a false-timbered ceiling, in the Craftsman manner. Leaded-glass windows with a geometric pattern allow natural light to play upon the walls. The library, too, boasts Craftsman woodwork, elegantly executed in warm Honduran mahogany, which conveys the feeling of a gentlemen’s club. Above the built-in bookcases with leaded-glass doors is a tripartite window framed with a heavy architrave and glazed with leaded glass. The library’s classical fireplace is the simplest and yet most imposing in the house. Framing a panel of green Wisconsin marble, the mahogany surround features simple pilasters flanking a large oval and supporting a pediment containing fleur-de-lis, symbol of French royalty. Many of the other rooms feature ornate plaster ceilings and marble fireplaces carved with classical motifs.
Bibliographic References SAUK CO. DEMOCRAT 4/1900, 12/1900. BARABOO NES REPUBLIC 7/2/1995. Baraboo Parade of Historic Homes, 1995, Sauk County Historical Society. Buildings of Wisconsin manuscript.

National And State Register Of Historic Places Listings

National/State Register Listing Name Ringling, Charles, House
National Register Listing Date Mar 21, 1997
State Register Listing Date Nov 06, 1996
Contributing
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Attribution

For a credit line: Wisconsin Historical Society, Creator, Title, Unique Identifier. 

The Unique Identifier can be found at the top or bottom of the page for each item. The name of a downloaded file is NOT the unique identifier.

For bibliographic citations please consult the UW-Madison Libraries Citation Research Guide to ensure compliance with appropriate style guidelines.

 

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