Property Record
W SIDE OF CHURCH ST, S OF DELCO DR
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Bowman Milk Plant |
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| Reference Number: | 84720 |
| Location (Address): | W SIDE OF CHURCH ST, S OF DELCO DR |
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| County: | Rock |
| City: | Clinton |
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| Survey Date: | 19772018 |
| Historic Use: | dairy |
| Architectural Style: | Twentieth Century Commercial |
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| Wall Material: | Brick |
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| Demolished?: | No |
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| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| Additional Information: | 2018 - Constructed c.1915, this one-story industrial building has an L-shaped plan and a poured-concrete foundation. It has a flat roof with a simple parapet and the walls are clad in brick. Two raised entrance doors in downsized openings accessed via concrete stoops are located on the front (east) facade. A two-story ell is located at the rear of the building, and both the windows and doors on it have been enclosed with plywood. Windows are a mix of replacement casement, awning, and six-over-six and one-over-one, double-hung, vinyl sash. The majority of the windows are in downsized openings. Clinton supported multiple creameries at this location on Church Street near the Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul Railroad (formerly the Racine & Mississippi Railroad) line since the late nineteenth century. In 1912 the Bowman Dairy Co. of Chicago purchased the property and constructed a new creamery on the site. The business employed multiple Clinton residents, and the rail lines allowed for the milk to be easily transported to the main diaries in Chicago.[1] As changes in the milking industry streamlined the process of bringing milk to the market, dairy companies throughout Wisconsin began consolidating their plants. Bowman Dairy Co. in Clinton closed in October 1955, although the company continued to operate a plant in Janesville.[2] In 1961 the Clinton-based DeLong Company feed mill began leasing the former dairy plant for use as its wholesale feed distribution plant. The DeLong Company purchased the plant in 1972, and multiple grain bins and a grain elevator constructed for their use are at the rear of the historic plant’s property.[3] |
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| Bibliographic References: | [1]“Clinton.” Janesville Daily Gazette. July 20, 1912. [2]“Bowman Closing Clinton Plant; Protest Meeting of Producers Called Friday.” Janesville Daily Gazette. September 22, 1955. [3]“Company History.” The DeLong Co., Inc. Accessed February 13, 2019. http://www.delongcompany.com/fccp-aboutushist- 15854. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |