Property Record
34TH ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | J.O. PIERCE LOG CABIN |
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| Other Name: | Volk Field ANG |
| Contributing: | |
| Reference Number: | 73327 |
| Location (Address): | 34TH ST |
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| County: | Juneau |
| City: | |
| Township/Village: | Orange |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
| Town: | 17 |
| Range: | 2 |
| Direction: | E |
| Section: | 15 |
| Quarter Section: | |
| Quarter/Quarter Section: |
| Year Built: | 1875 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 1989 |
| Historic Use: | house |
| Architectural Style: | Front Gabled |
| Structural System: | Log |
| Wall Material: | Log |
| Architect: | |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| National Register Listing Date: | |
| State Register Listing Date: |
| Additional Information: | A 'site file' for Volk Field 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, Division of Historic Preservation. UPDATE AUGUST 2006: As noted in a survey of Volk Field CRTC conducted in August 2006, the J. O. Pierce Cabin is in ruinous condition (Map Name Volk Field CRTC, Map Code 6/33, Photos 6/33 and 6/34). The J. O. Pierce Cabin is located in the northeast portion of Volk Field CRTC and was acquired during the 1950s expansion of the airfield. The cabin is the only built resource that was not constructed for military use. The small log cabin, which appears to have been constructed during the late nineteenth century, stands within a field and is surrounded by tall grasses. The one-story, one-bay by one-bay building measures approximately 12 x 14 feet; the gable roof clad with wood shingles has collapsed (Salkin 1990:45). The cabin rests on a Portland cement foundation and has a dirt floor. Exterior walls are built of logs that are adzed flat on the outer sides and chinked with Portland cement; corners exhibit half-dovetail joinery. A collapsed door frame is located on one gable end, and a window opening is present on one long elevation. Wire nails are visible. During a previous investigation by Philip Salkin in the late 1980s, the J. O. Pierce cabin was documented as comprising one room and a possible loft (Salkin 1988:54-61; Salkin 1990:45-61). The roof was intact, and gables were clad with horizontal weatherboard. Photographs depicted several small trees surrounding the cabin; these trees are no longer present. Ruins of a former farmhouse and a former barn located north of the cabin also were documented in the late 1980s. In August 2006, these ruins were not visible from the cabin; however, some portion of the ruins may be present but concealed by grasses. Archeological artifacts associated with the homestead primarily dated to the early and mid-twentieth centuries. According to historic maps, four owners held title to the Pierce homestead between 1876 and 1964 (Salkin and Zeitlin 1988:112-122). The Map of Juneau County prepared by Nash and Morgan in 1876 depicted the homestead as the residence of J. O. Pierce. According to the 1898 Plat Book of Juneau County by Foote and Hood, the property comprised 80 acres owned by W. R. Mason. This same ownership was depicted on the Atlas and Farm Directory of Juneau County prepared by The Farmer in 1914 and on the 1924 Plat Book of Juneau County by W.W. Hixson and Company. In 1938, W.W. Hixson and Company completed another Plat Book of Juneau County, which depicted Benjamin Mason as owner of the 80-acre homestead. Benjamin Mason retained ownership of the property in 1952, as depicted on the Plat Book and Business Guide of Juneau County by Rockford Map Company. During the mid 1950s, the State of Wisconsin purchased the portion of the homestead that included the buildings, as shown on the 1964 Rockford Map Company's Farmers Atlas and Resident Directory. Agricultural development in Juneau County did not commence until the mid-nineteenth century (Salkin 1988:111). The 1876 map depicted only a few farms in the vicinity of the Pierce homestead, including the Christianson farmstead to the east. The Wisconsin Military Reservation established in 1888 occupied most of the area in the late nineteenth century. The installation grew and eventually encompassed the former Pierce and Christianson properties. The Christianson farmstead is no longer extant. REFERENCES: Salkin, Philip H. 1988. An Archaeological Survey of Portions of the Volk Field ANGB, in Orange Township, Juneau County, Wisconsin. Draft Copy, Report Number 370. Prepared by Archaeological Consulting and Services, Madison, Wisconsin, for Wisconsin Air National Guard. Contract No. DAHA47-87-R-0002. Salkin, Philip H. 1990. A Program of Archaeological Testing at Five Sites at the Volk Field, WANG Facility at Camp Douglas, Wisconsin. Report Number 573. Prepared by Archaeological Consulting and Services, Verona, Wisconsin, for Wisconsin Air National Guard. March 1990. Contract No. DAHA47-87-C-0007 (as modified). Salkin, Philip H., and Richard A. Zeitlin 1988. A Literature and Records Search on the Cultural Resources of Volk Field, WANG in Orange Township, Juneau County, Wisconsin. Draft Copy, Report Number 370. Prepared by Archeological Consulting and Services, Madison, Wisconsin, for Wisconsin Air National Guard. Contract No. DAHA47-87-R-0002. |
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| Bibliographic References: | SALKIN REPORT, VOLK FIELD ANGB, 1989. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |