Property Record
100 RIVER ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | George Whiting Paper Co. Office |
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| Other Name: | George Whiting Paper Co. Office |
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| Reference Number: | 61051 |
| Location (Address): | 100 RIVER ST |
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| County: | Winnebago |
| City: | Menasha |
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| Survey Date: | 2009 |
| Historic Use: | small office building |
| Architectural Style: | Colonial Revival/Georgian Revival |
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| Wall Material: | Brick |
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| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
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| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| Additional Information: | Surveyed in 1988: #590. FCS 6/29 - GEORGE WHITING PAPER CO. OFFICE - while the rusticated foundation and round-arched windows of this nearly rectangular, T-shaped, hip-roofed papermill office might evoke the Romanesque Revival, its small scale, trim lines, tapestry brick, and painted wooden trim accord more with the Georgian Revival. The main block, crossbar of the T, has a centered main entry flanked by paired, stone-silled openings with double-hung sash surmounted by fixed transoms in the lunettes. One such window is at the right, front edge of the landward sidewall. There are also paired sidewall windows with shared sills and sash without transoms; a pair on the left of the main block sidewall, and another in the downstream, rear wing. Brick string courses defined an upper wall frieze and support the molded, overhanging cornice of the asphalt-shingled roof. The George A. Whiting Paper Company Office is situated on a small lot within a industrial environment. A one story somber brick cube, the office features a hipped roof and stilted arch windows. The roof material is asphalt, the bonding is American, and the foundations are random stone. The fenestration consists of double-hung single-pane sash windows with stilted arches mostly grouped in pairs. Decorative features include a denticulated brick cornice and stone window sills. Difficult to reconcile all survey photos with extant buildings due to lack of full access to the property. See also AHI#61049, 61047, 61046, 61052. The following material is from the 2009 Intensive Survey of Menasha: While full access was not obtained for survey of this industrial property, the views from River Street and Water Street, as well as an aerial view indicate that this property is comprised of a number of attached brick buildings that range between one and two stories (and, in some cases, plus raised basement) in height. Many, if not most, window openings of the overall complex have been either bricked in or filled in with glass block and most roofs have been covered with metal. A large brick stack remains intact along the south side of the block. Standing separately from the factory complex is the small, one-story, hipped-roof, brick-faced office building that rises from a rusticated foundation. Windows of the office are round-arched and suggest modest Georgian Revival styling. A smaller, one-story addition has been more recently added to the north elevation of the office. The buildings date to as early as circa 1888 (post-fire); however, the complex, as it stands today, was largely in place by no later than 1926. Since last surveyed in 1986, the only building that appears to be no longer extant is a frame, two-car garage. The George Whiting Paper Company was established in 1881, by New York native George Whiting, who was born in 1849. At the age of five, he and his parents headed west and settled in Ripon, Wisconsin, where he attended the local schools. At the age of sixteen, Whiting left Ripon for Neenah, where he began work as a store clerk at Pettibone & Jones, after which he was promoted to traveling salesman. He became aware early of the paper industry and invested first in Kimberly-Clark but withdrew shortly thereafter and became associated with the Winnebago Paper Mills (later Bergstrom Paper). In 1881, he formed a partnership with William Gilbert and built a paper mill in Menasha, which was named the George Whiting Paper Company. Five years later, Whiting purchased Gilbert's interest and, in 1888, the original plant exploded. Fourteen people were killed, but all were bystanders, not actual Whiting company employees. The company was quick to rebuild. Producing high-end custom paper, the firm remains in business today and continues to operate independently, making them one of the few independently owned paper companies in the United States. |
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| Bibliographic References: | #690. Photo Codes. FCS 6/29. Map Code. FCS 6/29. Fire Insurance Map of Menasha, Wis., 1887, 1913, 1926, 1926 (with updates to 1948). "Pioneer Paper Maker of Fox River Valley Still Active at Age of 81," The Wisconsin Magazine (June 1930), 32-33. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |