Main Street Historic District (Lake Geneva, Wisconsin) facts for kids

Main Street Historic District
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district
Location in Wisconsin Show map of Wisconsin Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Location	Roughly Main St., from Center St. to Broad St., Lake Geneva, Wisconsin
Area	2.5 acres (1.0 ha)
Architect	VonHolst, H.V.; and others
Architectural style	Italianate, Classical Revival, et al.
NRHP reference No.	01001453 (original) 02000188 (increase)
Quick facts for kids Significant dates
Added to NRHP	January 11, 2002
Boundary increase	March 5, 2002

The Main Street Historic District in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin is a special area with many old buildings. It covers about 2.5 acres and was added to the National Register of Historic Places on January 11, 2002. This list includes places important to American history. In 2002, twenty buildings in this district were recognized for their historical importance.

Exploring Main Street's Past

This historic district includes most of the buildings on the 700 block of Main Street. It was carefully planned to include only buildings that are truly historic. Let's explore some of these interesting old buildings, listed by when they were built.

Historic Buildings and Their Stories

The Hanna Block: A Furniture Story

The Hanna Block at 711 Main Street was built in 1871. It's a two-story building in the Italianate style. This means it has features like tall, narrow windows and decorative details. The Hanna family first had a cabinet shop here. Over time, it grew into a furniture store.

The Walker Block: A Busy Hub

The Walker Block, located at 701-709 Main Street, is a three-story brick building from 1872. It was a very busy place! Austin Walker had a general store here. There was also a dry goods store and a jewelry shop. The third floor had a large meeting room called Walker's Hall.

The Metropolitan Block: A Grand Design

Built in 1874, the Metropolitan Block at 770 Main Street is a three-story building. It was designed by a famous architect, William Le Baron Jenney. This building also shows the Italianate style, but with a fancy touch. It used different colored bricks. In the past, it held a drug store, a barber shop, and even a newspaper office. It also had a lecture hall for 150 people. This building was one of the most important in Lake Geneva for many years.

The Wachter and Ford Block: Emporium and Bank

The Wachter and Ford Block, also known as the Emporium Block, is at 736-738 Main Street. This two-story brick building was built in 1881-82. It has a Victorian Italianate style. Many of its original features, like the iron columns at the front, are still there. Wachter and Ford ran a large dry goods business here. Later, it became home to the Farmer's National Bank and a meat market.

The Bank of Geneva: A Changing Look

The Bank of Geneva building at 704 Main Street is also called the Seymour Block. The front part, built in 1883, is in the Italianate style. It has two storefronts made of cream-colored brick with a fancy top edge. The Bank of Geneva was first in the east part. Later, a jewelry store moved in. Around 1900, John Seymour bought the building. He added a back section around 1907 in the Classical Revival style. This style often uses elements from ancient Greek and Roman buildings.

The Hammersley Block: A Long-Running Drug Store

The Hammersley Block at 741 Main Street was built in 1885. It's a two-story store with a red brick front. The original front was changed in 1929 to a more modern style with copper and glass. W.H. Hammersley ran his drug store here until 1905. Different generations of the Hammersley family continued to run the drug store in this building until the 1980s!

The Frank Moore Block: A Hardware Store

The Frank Moore Block at 731 Main Street was built in 1903. It's a two-story building with some Classical Revival details. The front is made of Bedford limestone. The windows on the second floor have round arches above them. Frank Moore built this place for his hardware store.

The Stannard-Chelini Block: Two Stores in One

The Stannard-Chelini Block at 725-729 Main Street is a double store. It was built for two different owners in 1908 and 1909. The walls are made of concrete blocks. George Stannard had a barber shop in the west store. Barney Chelini ran a candy and ice cream shop in the east store. Later, a grocery store and then a Ben Franklin store were located here. The front of the store was likely updated by one of these later owners.

The Wisconsin Power and Light Company Building: Modern Utility

The Wisconsin Power and Light Company Building is an office building in the Colonial Revival style. The bottom part is red brick, and the top two stories are covered in stucco. The entrance has a large round arch with decorative wrought iron. This building had offices, a showroom for appliances, and even a room for cooking lessons and meetings. It was designed by H.V. VonHolst and built in 1929-30.