319 MAIN ST

319 MAIN ST

Lafayette

Darlington

1896

1976

small retail building

Italianate

Brick

No

THIS STONE 2-STORY STRUCTURE WITH A FLAT SLOPING ROOF HAS A BRICK FACADE TOPPED WITH A BRACKETED METAL CORNICE DECORATED WITH PRESSED DESIGNS THAT HAS A PEDIMENTED DATE PANEL AND CRESTING EXTENDING ABOVE THE CORNICE. A THREE BAY ORIEL WINDOW COVERED WITH PRESSED METAL DESIGNS AND PROJECTING CORBELED WINDOW CORNICES ALONG WITH PILASTER TRIM ON THE ENDS OF THE BUILDING CHARACTERIZE THE UPPER FACADE. A CORNICE SEPARATES THE UPPER FROM THE LOWER FACADE THAT IS FURTHER DECORATED BY CAST IRON PILASTERS BORDERING THE RECESSED ENTRANCE, THE STORE FRONT WINDOWS AND THE 2ND FLOOR ACCESS DOOR. THIS STRUCTURE IS ARCHITECTURALLY IMPORTANT TO THE COMMUNITY BECAUSE IT IS ONE OF THE FEW EXAMPLES OF STONE CONSTRUCTION THAT HAS RETAINED THE ORIGINAL 19TH CENTURY FACADE REMAINING IN THE COMMERCIAL DISTRICT. MILLER AND REIMER DRY GOODS STORE IS HISTORICALLY SIGNIFICANT TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF DARLINGTON'S COMMERCIAL DISTRICT. THE DRY GOODS STORE REFLECTS AN AGE PRIOR TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF MASS-PRODUCED FACTORY-MADE CLOTHES. BUILT IN 1896, F. H. MILLER OPENED A GENERAL DRY GOODS STORE.(A,C) ANDREW FARDY WAS HIS ASSOCIATE FOR THE FIRST FEW YEARS.(D) JOHN F. REIMER BECAME A PARTNER IN THE FIRM BY 1911, KNOWN AS MILLER AND REIMER. IT WAS KNOWN AS ONE OF THE MAJOR FIRMS IN DARLINGTON.(C,E) IT IS REPEATED AMONG LOCALS THAT MILLER AND REIMER HAD ONE OF THE LARGEST LINES OF SILK WORTH $40,000.(C) LATER (1920) THE FIRM WAS KNOWN AS JOHN REIMER DRY GOODS STORE.(F) THE MILLER-REIMER DRY GOODS STORE WAS AN IMPORTANT BUSINESS TO THE COMMERCIAL DISTRICT OF DARLINGTON EVEN IF THE STORES ARE HALF TRUE. THE DRY GOODS BUSINESS REFLECTS AN AGE PRIOR TO THE MODERN PERIOD WHEN READY-MADE CLOTHES WERE MADE AVAILABLE.

BUILDING CORNICE SANBORN-PERRIS, DARLINGTON, MAP 1884, 1889, 1894, 1900, 1908, 1915, 1924 KENNETH SCHREITER, INTERVIEW, 1-10-83 "WISCONSIN STATE GAZETTEER," 1901-02, P. 279. IBID., 1911-12, P. 269 IBID., 1919-20, P. 268; 1924-25, P. 293.

Main Street Historic District

Oct 07, 1994

Jul 15, 1994

Yes