William Waters Oshkosh architect

School Buildings of Appleton

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William Waters' buildings were familiar in many cities other than Oshkosh and Appleton was one place where his work was abundant. In addition to residential, religious and commercial structures Mr. Waters planned several schools in the city. The Commemorative Biographical Record of the Fox River Valley, published in 1898 credits architect Waters with four schools in Appleton. There is no dough the First and Third Ward Schools came from Mr. Waters' drawing board for he's been listed as architect by authorities at the Appleton Public Library. His obituary lists the Second and Third Ward Schools as being of his design and there's the rub. Which Second Ward School was designed by Waters? There were two so called second ward schools. One was an Italianate Style building, replete with cupola the other Ryan High School which was located in the second ward and was sometimes referred to as the Second Ward School.

Consider the two schools known to have been the work of William Waters; the First Ward was built in 1881 with additions in 1885 and '89. The school was of a light colored brick with darker contrasting bands and lintel accents. It had a bell tower at one corner of the structure and arched entrance and is rendered here with the 1885 addition. The building has long since been demolished.

The Third Ward School was built in 1884 and had a Mansard like roof with large windowed dormers providing another floor for class rooms. There was central bell tower with four clock faces atop it and an arched entry below. The brick work was of a light hue with contrasting bands around the structure. The building was used as a grade school as well as a high school and was later known as Jefferson School. This building too was razed.

What of the Second Ward School? An Appleton Public Library image of the Italianate Style school in noted as having been constructed in 1856. If that is true the building could not have been designed by Mr.Waters because he was 13 years old and living in Franklin, New York. Also it is stylistically unlike other Italianate school building of his design; therefore it is doubtful that it's of Waters' hand. It is likely the second ward school listed in Mr. Waters' obituary is Ryan High School. The building was located in the second ward and was variably referred to as the Second Ward School or Ryan High School. The building was also in keeping with a style used by the architect in the late 1870's or early 1880's.

One may conclude for a certainty that William Waters planned the First and Third Ward School along with Ryan High School. But what was the forth school mentioned in the 1898 biographical record? It's not the Sixth Ward School, credit for that goes to architect Philip Dean; the Fifth Ward and Lincoln Schools were not stylistically like other Waters' jobs. The Forth Ward might have been a Waters' job but there's no hard evidence to prove that. Perhaps it was St. Mary's or St. Joseph's schools. Mr. Waters was the architect of St. Joseph Church and may have been asked to plan the school too. For now it will remain a mystery.

Neenah Residences, Part Three

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The cities of Neenah and Menasha are very different from one another, there always been the perception of Neenah as the affluent city and Menasha as a mill town. Doty Island is shared by both cities with the boarder being Nicolet Blvd. A few blocks south is East Forest Avenue and the neighborhood known as "The Menasha Colony". Here many of the well to do Menasha mill owners built grand homes, close to the mills of Menasha and to wealthy of Neenah. The best of both worlds perhaps.

In 1873 Miles H. Wheeler built an Italianate Style dwelling on the south east corner of East Forest Avenue and Webster Street. Mr. Wheeler was a lumberman; perhaps that meant a dealer or wholesaler. The occupation did well for him as he was able to retain the services of William Waters to plan his house. It was a simple design with no tower, belvidere or large porch. The lay out was similar to that of the William Doe Residence in Oshkosh. The structure was razed many years ago.

At the other end of the block, to the east was the home of Ellis Jennings. Mr Jennings was at first associated with the Paul Paper Company, which proved to be a short lived proposition for he soon partnered with M. H. Wheeler in the lumber trade. In 1893 architect Waters planed a fine Queen Anne Style house which still graces East Forest Avenue. The building has been well maintained and has had no major alterations.
In 1885 Mr. Waters designed a large brick Queen Anne Style home for a builder/contractor named David Barns. In 1910 Frank B. Whiting purchased the place and had a sizable addition built on the back side of the structure. The house remained unaltered until the 1960's when it was "up dated". A new front porch, incongruous with with the Queen Anne Style replaced the original along with other changes. Recently the building was restored to its 1885 appearance.
Frank Whiting's father George also lived on East Forest Avenue. The elder Mr. Whiting came to Neenah in 1875 and joined with William Gilbert, forming the Whiting & Gilbert Paper Company. By 1886 Whiting bought his associate's interest and later incorporated as George A. Whiting Paper Co. Mr. Whiting had been living on East Forest Avenue for many years, when in 1897 he commissioned William Waters to design large home. The old house was razed and beautiful mansion built in its place. Architect Waters was fond of using limestone in many of his buildings but with the Whiting house the foundation and first story were of brownstone from quarries near Bayfield. George's grandson inherited the house but felt burdened by maintenance and demolished the structure in 1957.

Henry Spencer Smith was the second of two sons of Elisha Smith founder of Menasha Wooden Ware Company, later known as The Menasha Corporation. Henry served as an officer and executive of the company and in 1892 commissioned William Waters to design a fashionable new dwelling to be located on East Forest Avenue. The architect mixed Queen Anne and Shingle Style to produce a pleasing edifice. At some time the building was greatly enlarged with the addition of a third floor to the tower and expansion on the north and east sides of the house.
Another Menasha mill owner to build on East Forest Avenue was Albert C. Gilbert, son of William M. Gilbert. In 1903 Mr. Gilbert asked William Waters to draft plans for a new house. Mr. Waters conceived a magnificent mansion with a large front porch and corner tower. It is difficult to pin point a style for this house. As with many homes, after twenty years or so someone gets the urge to remodel. Perhaps in the mid 1920's the front porch was removed as well as the dormers at the front and center of the roof.

Not a wealthy mill owner, Perry Lindsley was a commercial traveler or salesman if you will. In 1893 Mr. Lindsley hired Waters to plan his dwelling. What came from the drawing board was a modestly sized Shingle Style, looking like an enchanted cottage. The roof had two dormers; a large on to the left and smaller one the right. Entry to the front porch was gain through an arched opening situated next to a larger aperture to the right. The house has endured the years with a few alterations but look much as it did when built.

George Banta Sr. also had a house from the Waters' firm. This Menasha industrialist built not in Neenah but on Nuymut Street in Menasha. His 1883 brick Queen Anne Style was adorned with a capacious front porch and side porches on both the first and second floor. Over the years the house had fallen in disrepair but has recently regained its splendor with a total renovation.

Neenah Residences. Part Two

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William Water continued to receive commissions from Neenahites for residences and East Wisconsin Avenue remained a popular street on which to build. Mr. Waters had made many connections and a solid reputation for himself, bringing him even more work. Charles Babcock the son of an earlier client H. V. Babcock asked the architect in 1900 to design him a dwelling. Charles was an executive with the Plover Pulp & Paper Company and Wisconsin River Paper. The house was in the English Cottage Style and was similar to the R. P. Finny residence in Oshkosh. It still stands but no longer on East Wisconsin Avenue, having been move to a lot near the corner of Congress and Stone Streets. Some alterations have been made, such as the enclosing of the front porch and the addition of an oriel window in the kitchen.

Another Waters designed residence on East Wisconsin Avenue was that of William Z. Stuart an executive with Kimberley Clack. The Stuart house was built in 1890 as a Wedding gift from John A. Kimberley to his daughter Helen. The house was stylistically like that of Charles Babcock but on a grander scale. Like the Babcock house it too was moved from Wisconsin Avenue to a lot on Elm Street where it remains to this day. After its relocation an expanded front porch as added, other than that the house looks as it did when constructed.

Godfrey Ulrich also hired Mr. Waters as his architect. Mr. Ulrich was a partner in the Ulrich & Cunningham Meat Market, later to become Godfrey Ulrich Meats. The business thrived and he was able to build a handsome dwelling on the "Avenue". The house has endured the years and remains much as it was in 1900 when built.

Yet another client of architect Waters was Fred Elwers. Mr. Elwers had partnered with Mrs. F. J. Kimberley in the Kimberley & Elwers Drug Store. The store carried a full line of wall paper, window shades and paint as well as pure drugs. Late the business became Fred Elwers Drugs & Paint. The enterprise must have been successful as Mr. Elwers built a large attractive home on East Wisconsin. The house is still there but changed from what it was. Perhaps sometime in the 1960's in an attempt to update the structure, six inch wide siding replaced the original three inch wide covering and much of the Victorian detail went with it.
The Bergstrom brothers; George and Dedrick were young aggressive and savvy businessmen when in 1878 they joined with H. V. Babcock to purchase the Smith, Van Ostrand & Leavens Foundry, becoming Bergstrom Brothers & Company, makers of plows and stoves. George bought out his partners in 1904 and continued to operate the stove works. Dedrick and his son John acquired the Winnebago Paper Company which became Bergstrom Paper.
The brothers turned to architect Waters for their housing needs. Dedrick built a fine Queen Anne Style house in 1893 on the corner Sherry and Church Streets on the west side of Neenah, aka Sherry Town. The next year George constructed a large dwelling on East Wisconsin Avenue or Park Row as it was sometimes called. The house was a mix of Shingle Style and Queen Anne.
As for Dedrick's house; it continued as a family dwelling as his daughter lived there for many years but it was demolished to accommodate the building of the new Post Office. The house that George built fared much better; although altered many years ago, a recent renovation has restored its glory.

Neenah Residences. Part One

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The city of Neenah was fertile ground for the talents of William Waters. He designed all manor of buildings in that city; commercial, school and residential. His residential work was extensive and can be divided into homes on Doty Islands' Forest Avenue and those on East Wisconsin Avenue and the west side of town.

One of Mr. Waters earliest efforts was on East Wisconsin Ave with the twin dwellings of C. B. Clark and Frank Shattuck. These homes have been described in another post on the Italianate style. They were probably built about 1873 but by the 1890's were unfashionably out of date. Both house were replaced by mansions designed by the Milwaukee firm, Ferry & Clas. Mrs Clark didn't demolish the old house but had it moved down the street where it still stands, however remolded beyond recognition. The fate of the Shattuck place was most likely the wrecking ball.
Next to Frank Shattuck's, to the west was the residence of another partner in the Kimberly Clark Company, Mr. H. V. Babcock. Mr, Babcock came a little later to East Wisconsin Ave, erecting his Waters designed home in 1881. Although the residence is Queen Anne in style it was the subject of an earlier post on the Tudor style as alteration gave it a Tudor look. The house is rendered here with the original front porch and porte-cochere.
Babcock's neighbor to the west was Henry Sherry a successful lumber man and entrepreneur. Mr. Sherry built his house in 1882 in an eclectic Queen Anne style. The house is replete with a large front porch, porte cochere and an almost steeple like central tower. Sherry must have liked architect Waters' work as he was retained to design office and commercial structures.

Just past the Sherry residence was the 1885 mansion of John Stevens. Mr Stevens was a flour miller and inventor and his invention of a roller-crusher profoundly changed the milling process. He patented the device and became a wealthy man, then built an appropriate dwelling. The immense house was a Queen Anne masterpiece with porches, balconies, porte cochere, bowling ally and one the the larges picture widows of its day. Alas the Stevens house no longer stands.
The work kept coming for William Waters with a commission in 1887 from J. R. Davis for a new residence. The Davis brothers ran the Winnebago Paper Company. J. R. Davis passed away and its difficult to say if he ever lived in the Waters designed residence his widow lived there for many years. The home is pictured here as it was designed by Mr. Waters with a diminutive front porch. Some time around 1900 a sizable porch was added to the front and east side of the structure.
The next house on the block was yet another Waters' job. Built in 1892 for paper company owner C. W. Howard the house was large and imposing with interesting gables, a balcony and full front porch. The house is reminiscent of the Ben Hooper and A.B. Ideson residences in Oshkosh. But for a few minor alterations the building looks much as it did when constructed
There are several more houses of Mr. Waters design along East Wisconsin Avenue as well as those on Forest Avenue but those are for another post.

Oshkosh Residences Part 6

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As noted in the first post in this series, most of William Waters' residential work in Oshkosh was on the north side of the Fox River. South of the river he designed a few churches and several schools, both public and private but only two dwellings can be traced to Mr. Waters. That is not to say there weren't others but just two can be verified. Both were built in 1910 and couldn't be more dissimilar.

The first house to examine was the Harry Meyer residence on Michigan Street. Mr. Meyer was the son of Charles R. Meyer and secretary of the C. R. Meyer Construction Company. The company built many of the larger buildings planed by architect Waters; the Athern Hotel, Algoma Street Methodist Church and Washington and Read Schools are but a few. Harry Meyers' house was a brick bungalow design with Arts & Crafts style influences. Many different styles had currency at that time and it would seem that Mr. Waters was willing to try his hand at any of them. The house has been well maintained and remains unaltered since construction.
The other dwelling up for consideration is the Robert Lutz residence on Knapp Street. Robert was the son of Albert Lutz, quarry operator. The quarry was established in 1867 as Lutz & Kronenberg. Albert passed away but his widow Grace kept it going. In 1889 Robert was listed as a teamster working at the quarry. By 1898 he was manager of Lutz Bros. Stone Quarry and by 1910, commissioned a new residence. A magnificent structure, it was built by the C. R. Meyer Construction Company with stone from the Lutz quarry. It is not easy to label the house with a style; the porch and tower look to be Queen Anne, the porte-cochere and other features are Romanesque. What ever one might choose to call it, it's a unique and grand house.

It is a certainty that there are far more house designed by William Waters in Oshkosh than those described in these past six posts. Perhaps future entries can be devoted to possible Waters' designs.

Oshkosh Residences Part 5

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As one travailed along Algoma Street past the Normal School neighborhood one would reach "The west end" as that part of town was known to some. This section of the city was home to the aristocracy of Oshkosh, mainly the Sawyer and the Paines. In time others were building opulent homes on Algoma and West Algoma Streets.

Mr. Waters planned many fine homes as well as a church and a school in this area of town. The first dwelling in this vicinity for which the architect provided drawings was in 1873; the residence of H. C. Larrabee. My research has yet to reveal any image of this house, so it's hard to say if it was Italianate style or perhaps a more modest structure of wooden frame construction. Mr. Larrabee was the saw mill superintendent at the Paine Lumber Company and at one time served on the city council. He built his house just across the street from Edger Sawyer. The neighborhood start to change greatly at the turn of the twentieth century and the structure was demolished and another house replaced it in 1910.

Further down the down the street toward town, just across from Read School was the home constructed in 1883 for Mr. and Mrs. Ben Hooper. Ben was the son of Moses Hooper and his wife, Jesse Jack Hooper was a prominent suffragette, advocate and even ran for the U. S. Senate in 1922. The house was a Queen Anne cottage style and once boosted a large front porch which was altered and converted to indoor living space. The renovation didn't maintain the rhythm as set up by the original arched openings, giving the house an unsettled look. Other than the changes the house has been well kept up.

Even closer to town was another Waters' job with a Hooper connection; in 1910 Moses Hooper commissioned a house for himself, his daughter and her husband Otto Lang. Perhaps the aging attorney felt the house he had built in 1882 was too much for him and wanted to live with his daughter and son in law. The house was of the latest style and was built of rough hewn lime stone blocks, a building material favored by Moses Hooper.

In the last decade of the nineteenth century municipal judge Arthur Goss had William Waters design a dwelling for him to be built on New York Avenue. Judge Goss was born and raised in Oshkosh and attended the Normal School in town, then went on the University of Wisconsin and graduated with a law degree in 1884. He returned to Oshkosh and worked in the office of Moses Hooper until his election as the first municipal judge in 1895. Completed in 1898 the home was a foursquare design with embellishments of bay and triplet windows. This building has been well maintained and looks much as it did when built

Around the corner and up the street from the Goss residence is one of the finest homes on Algoma Street, the house built for A. B. Ideson. Mayor Ideson got his start as a manager with the Paine Lumber Company, showing such skill that he became a shareholder and secretary of the company and in the process acquired a great deal of wealth. His management acumen paid off as well as he was elected mayor of Oshkosh. In 1898 Mr. Ideson hired Mr. Waters to plan a suitable residence to be built on Algoma Street, the architect did not disappoint. The design was grand in scope and interesting in the use of shape and building materials to create

a variation in surface textures. The house has not been neglected and looks to be in excellent condition.

Just across the street from the Ideson place was the home of Phil Sawyer. This building has already been discussed in an earlier post about the Tudor Style. Mr Sawyer, known to family as Phil was the son of Edgar Sawyer and grandson of Senator Philitus Sawyer. Phil had a good head for business and ran many of the family's ventures. His house was built in 1904 and still stands next to the Oshkosh Public Museum.
What is now the public museum was built in 1908 as the residence of Edgar Sawyer and was the crowing achievement for architect Waters. The building was said to be in the "Old English Style" with its towering chimneys. bay windowed gable ends and imposing porte-cochere. The grounds also included a captious carriage house of a design harmonious the the residence. Mr. Sawyer donated the building to the city in 1922 and stipulated that it should be used as a museum. There have been alterations and sympathetic addition to the structure but the original building has not been obscured.
In 1911 Louis Schreiber called upon William Waters to draft plans for a new residence. Waters had a history with the Schreiber family having had planned Louis father's 1884 home on Washington Street. Mr. Schreiber was president of the First National Bank; his father Charles had been head cashier of the same bank. Mr. Schreiber chose a lot on Algoma Street just past the Congress Street intersection, on which to build . He also chose the Colonial Revival Style which was very poplar at the time. The well maintained brick house still graces Algoma Street and appears as did when built.

Oshkosh Residences Part 4

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The area of what is now the university campus was once an up scale and quit neighborhood. Tree lined street such as Algoma, Elm and Park Streets featured many fine residences. William Waters himself chose to live in this part of town. However as the UW-O campus expanded the neighborhood changed drastically. Many houses were razed or moved to make way for university building. Some of the remaining dwellings became student housing.

At the eastern edge of this neighborhood, on the corner of what is now Wisconsin and Amherst stand twin houses built in 1902 by Joseph Raycraft. It is unclear if Mr. Raycraft retained
ownership or sold them outright. It is clear that the first occupant of the house to the left was Mrs. Emily Turner, a librarian and Mr. H. E. Mann a commercial traveler lived in the one to the right. Originally Amherst was named Park Street and was one of the most respected residential streets. Amongst its' denizens was Frank Follett the brother in law of William Waters. Waters designed a charming Queen Anne cottage for Frank in 1884, which is still there and in good condition. Just next door, and built in the same year was the residence of Jesse Y. Hull the proprietor of the Boston 99 Cent Store. The once graceful Queen Anne Style house is now student occupied and not in pristine condition.

Down the street and around the corner, on Elm Street was the home of William Waters. The

house was a Queen Anne Style and built in 1884 as well. Alterations to the front porch as pictured in the accompanying drawing were probably made about 1900. The house was razed to accommodate the construction of a dormitory.
Just up Elm Street was the J. C. Thompson residence. Attorney Thompson was Mr. Waters' lawyer and drew up and witnessed Waters' last will and testament. Thompson commissioned the house in 1902 but the house was of a style and floor plan Waters first used in the 1880's. For many years the building had been a fraternity house or student housing and some changes had occurred, most notable was the removal of the dormer above the front porch. A block or so further up Elm Street was the dwelling of James Peter Jensen. Mr Jensen was the draftsman in Waters' office and his name appeared on many of the building renderings. The house was built at the same time as the Waters' place, 1884, and was a charming gem like cottage, which now serves as student accommodations, loosing much of its luster.

Along Algoma Street, architect Waters planned many fine homes some of which were demolished and some of which survive to this day. A Waters' job that met with the wrecking ball was the residence of John Crawford. Mr Crawford ran the Crawford wood and coal yard on Pearl Street, a business which afforded him the ability to build a stylish Queen Anne home. The L. S. Tuttle house was another building which didn't endure the expansion of the university. Mr. Tuttle and his brother were partners in the insurance business with offices on Main Street. Waters designed a fine Queen Anne Style dwelling. However there don't seem to be any entire images of the place, just a partial glimpse in a photo of the house next door.
One of the houses which survived was the one commissioned by Tom Wall and is now the Multicultural Center. Tom and his brother were partners in the wholesale lumber firm of Wall & Spalding. His brother J. H. also hired Mr Waters to plan his house, which was discussed in an earlier post. Tom's 1899 dwelling is truly magnificent, unlike any other Waters designed residence. Although repurposed the building looks much as it did when built, save for the removal of the balustrades atop the house and porch and an addition at one end of the front porch which has the appearance of having been planned by Mr. Waters.

Some distance up Algoma Street, just past Dempsey Hall is another survivor, the residence built for Moses Hooper. The Oviatt House as it is now known was also built in 1882 of rough hewn lime stone blocks with a prominent tower featured on the UW-O logo. The house is an early Queen Anne Style but rendered in stone rather then lumber as was usual. Mr. Hooper, an attorney commissioned other building by architect Waters as well. The Algoma Block near Main Street housed his office and he would later hire Waters to design a home for his daughter and son-in -law. All the building are built of lime stone blocks, and seem to have withstood the test for time.

Oshkosh Residences Part 3

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To the west of Main Street was another popular neighborhood not only for housing but for religious structures. The city's High School, regarded by many as the finest in the state occupied a lot on Algoma Street. Algoma and Church Streets as well as Jackson Street were line with capacious dwellings and elegant churches. Six and a half to the churches in this part of town were the work of William Waters as well as many of the houses. The area was home to merchants, manufactures and other highly respect sorts.

On the corner of Algoma and Light Streets was the residence of J. H. Wall. Built in 1905 using plans drawn by Waters, the home is an early Tudor style and is discussed in a previous posting. J. H. and his brother Tom were in the lumber business in the firm of Wall- Spalding, lumber wholesalers with offices located in the Webster Block. The home is still there but has been re-purposed with a large addition. The original structure remains intact and the addition is harmonious with it.

Also on Algoma Street just to the west of Jackson Street once stood the residence of S. M. Hay, hardware merchant and bank president. William Waters was asked by Mr. Hay to design a brick Italianate mansion. It was built in 1873 and is described in another post as well. The neighborhood experienced many change as the twentieth century progressed, there was the expansion of the High School and the relocation of the Court House. Filling station and super markets replaced many of the fine old homes. The Hay residence survived until the late 1940s when it was razed in favor of a parking lot.

Church Street was also a prestigious thoroughfare on which to build. Not totally cluttered with houses of worship as it's name would imply there was plenty of real estate of the dwellings of the well to do. In 1904 Carl Wickert, a confectioner with a shop on Main Street commissioned Mr. Waters to design a house of the latest style. It was a foursquare or what might have been called at the time "The Chicago Style". The house is much as it was when it was built, two stories the first of lime stone block and large front porch the second story clad in stucco, topped by a dormer and hipped roof.

Down the block and around the corner on Jackson Street was the home E. S. Wilson. Newly built in 1907, it too was of the most current style and a suitable residence for the proprietor of The Wilson Music Company. As with the Wickert house it was a large foursquare with the first floor of lime stone block and the second floor of stucco. The building also is adorned with a full front porch, an impressive dormer and bell cast hipped roof.

Mr. Charles Montgomery chose to build a new house in 1890. The home was on Jackson Street just north of New York Avenue and William Waters was the architect. Mr. Montgomery was for a time the superintendent of the Oshkosh Street Railway but is later listed as a merchant, of what is not reviled. What ever he did for a living it afforded him the ability to build a grand Queen Anne Style dwelling with a broad porch and second floor balcony. The house remains much as it was when built and has been well maintained.

Not far from the intersection of Jackson and Irving Streets was the home of Fred Burgess. Mr. Burgess had been deputy sheriff and jailer for the county. He had moved round that neighborhood every few years, for about a decade. In 1886 he became sheriff and lived for a time in the county court house. Shortly after that Mr. Waters was commissioned to plan a fine Queen Anne Style dwelling. The house still stands but the years have not been kind and the place looks shabby.

Oshkosh Residences Part 2

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The near east side neighborhood from

about Merritt and Mt Vernon Streets

and east to Broad St., down to Otter St. was once a prestigious part of town, many

business owners, lawyers and doctor

chose this location to build for its'

proximity to Main St. and government

buildings. Many of the prominent people

also chose William Waters as their architect. One of the first to do so was William Doe, a wealthy lumber dealer. The Wm. Doe home was the first residential job for the young architect, coming to him in 1869, just a about a year after his arrival in Oshkosh. The Doe residence is interesting in that its' not quite Mansard nor Italianate in style. The home seems to be something

in between. It does display a floor plan

that Mr. Waters utilized in many later designs. By 1880 William Doe had moved on and the house became the residence Mr. W. H. McKoy another lumber dealer. The McKoy's lived in the house for years. Even after Mr. McKoy's death his widow, Sarah remained in the house. Not until 1908 did she move to the dwelling built for Mr. Finney on Washington Street.

Just a block or two north on Mt. Vernon Street was the house built for Frank Domke in 1904. Mr. Domke was the proprietor of the Senate sample rooms at number 12 Washington Street. The establishment obviously made a tidy profit for it's owner as he was able to build a fine home. Oscar Ernst also had a house built at about the same time. The Ernst residence was on Merritt Street next to the Turner Hall. Oscar ran a meat market on Main Street in a building also designed by Mr. Waters after the great fire of 1875. Both dwelling are still standing with little or no alteration from the original design. Mr. Waters designed many homes along Washington Street, not far the corner of Mt Vernon and Washington was the residence of Dr. Teal DDS. Dr. Teal had been living on Grove Street until 1904 when a fine home designed Mr. Waters was built at number

71 Washington Street next to the W. J. Kelley house.

After a few years the neighborhood started to change, many dwellings were replaced by large structures such as the Masonic Temple, the Wisconsin National Life Insurance and the Post Office. For years however the little gray house remained tucked between the Masonic and life insurance buildings. Finally after many years the house was demolished and replaced with a driveway. The Kelley residence was replaced by the life insurance building. Mr. Kelley was a resident of the city since 1852 and a jeweler with a store on Main Street. I've rendered it here as it was originally but a larger porch across the front was add some time later. On the other side of the street and to the east was the home of Dr. Corbett. Built in 1892, it is a fine example of Queen Anne style architecture. A fitting residence for one of the city's most prominent

physicians. Dr. Corbett was one of the founders of Lakeside Hospital, later Mercy Hospital. As a side note; The original Lakeside

Hospital was housed in the Waters' designed Richard Guenther residence on the corner of Washington and Hazel Streets. Mr. Waters also drew the plans for the new Lakeside Hospital built in 1913. To the west of the Corbett home and just across Court Street, was the home of Joe Mueller. It too was constructed in 1892. Joe was the proprietor of a meat market. At first he partnered with one of the Heisinger brothers and later with Adam Zentner. The house was a grand structure in the Queen Anne style but was razed for the construction of a new Post Office.

In 1880 J. M. Bray (AKA Matt Bray) built a fine

home with plans drawn by William Waters. He had lived at Revere House and later on the north side of Washington Street not far from Mt. Vernon. The new dwelling was on the south side of Washington St. between Court and Broad Streets at perhaps mid-block. To early for Queen Anne and a little late for Italianate it is difficult to assign a style to the Bray residence. Mr. Bray had moved to Wisconsin

with his parents form Maine in 1857. He partnered with Leander Choate in 1860 forming the lumber and land company of Bray and Choate. The two were also partners in the C. A. Johnson & Company a dealer in a full line of shoes and boots for men women and children.

The next block to the south is Waugoo Street.

Not far the intersection with Court Street was the home of O. F. Crary. Mr. Crary came to town in 1848 and by 1884 was a successful grocer. Mr Crary went with the most up-to-date style,

Queen Anne. The house is still there and has been well maintained over the years. Just across the street but fronting on Court Street was the home of Charles Barber. Mr. Barber was an attorney in the firm of Finch and Barber. William Waters designed the Barber residence in 1882 and the structure is more subdued then later works. The building has had very few alteration, the most major one being the expansion of the front porch so as to wrap around the south corner.

The change was made very early and may have

been planed by Mr. Waters. On the other side of the street once stood the Harry Minors residence. Mr.

Minors was the cashier of the Schmit Brothers Trunk Company. The house was built in 1908 and was a fine example of of the colonel revival style which had become popular at the start of the twentieth century. The building went from a residence to retail space sometime in the 1970's when it became the Court Gift Shop. By the 1980's the place was razed to make way for a parking lot. The last house to consider in this neighborhood was that of Mr. F. B. King. King was a successful business man with interests in a verity of enterprises. He and his brother operated the F. B. King & Bro. sample rooms at # 5 Algoma St. Later he became the president of the Western Manufacturing Company, makers of ladies muslin under garments. In 1892 King commissioned William Waters to design a fine home on the corner of Waugoo and Broad Streets. The house was another Queen Anne with a balcony and bay windows. There were some modification done early on to this house as well. The first being

the addition of a bay to second story at the rear of the structure. Some minor changes were also made to the balcony just above the front porch. The alterations are sympathetic the the original design and may well have been the work of architect Waters. The house has been kept up and is one the grandest on Waugoo Street.

Oshkosh Residences

2011-09-14T20:15:00.000-07:00

The Oshkosh structure of William Waters were and are to be found in every part of the city. However, nearly all of his residential works were built north of the Fox River. These dwellings span the breath of his career and reflect great stylistic changes from Italianate and Queen Anne to Colonial. To the east of Main Street homes are to be found along Ceape Street, Court,Waugoo, Washington, Merritt and Mt. Vernon. To the other side of Main Street, Algoma, Jackson Amherst and Elmwood were popular neighborhoods for Mr. Waters efforts.

Perhaps the best way to examine these structures would be by neighborhood. On the eastern end of Washington Ave, many houses of Waters' design were clustered near that streets' intersection with Hazel Street. Richard Guenther,

R. P. Finney, Geo. Hilton,

Charles Schreiber and C. A.

Weisebrod, all built just a few doors

from one another. Both Mr.

Schreiber and Mr, Finney were

bankers, George Hilton and

C. A. Weisebrod were lawyers.

Richard Guenther was a druggist

cum congressman. Closer to town were the

dwellings of E. C. Kellogg a gentlemen framer, living in town and G. H. Wyman a traveling salesman for the Schmit Brothers Trunk Company. Not far away down on Ceape Street was residence of Frank Metz a partner in Metz & Schloerb wholesale leather located on Main Street.

No lengthily verbal descriptions will accompany this entry, the renderings will be all the description needed. The homes located on the east side are for the most part Queen Anne in style with the later Foursquare style represented in the Kellogg and Metz dwellings. I've tried to do rendering of as many of these

buildings as possible but I've

found no images of the

Weisebrod or Schreiber homes.

There are but sketchy

descriptions in the newspapers.

In a press articles published in

1872 it is said the proposed C. A. Weisebrod

dwelling will be located on the south

side of Washington Street. No dimensions are called out but that the house will be brick with stone trim with basement and two storied high. The building will have a hipped roof an observatory atop the roof. The coast of the structure was to be $7,000. One may conclude, given the date of construction and this description that the house would be Italianate style with a windowed cupola to cap it off.

The Charles Schreiber residence has even less newspaper space devoted to it. Brief mention is made of it in an 1884 recap of new construction.

Bell & Cole were the builders, the style

was Queen Anne. The building was to

be 36' x 60' with a large number of

windows some fitted with stained

glass. It was to have a basement and

two stories, coasting $7,000.

I suspect there are a great many more houses designed by Mr. Waters occupying the east side and other parts of Oshkosh and I've a good idea which one they are. In a future posting I intent to talk about the many residences I believe to be the work of Waters.

Until then I'll continue with the extermination of dwellings by neighborhood.

Flats of Oshkosh Real or Imagined

2011-07-30T13:36:00.000-07:00

In the late ninetieth century the city of Oshkosh was taking on a metropolitan feel. One manifestation of this was the planning and building of flats or multiple family dwellings.William Waters was commissioned for several jobs of this nature. Newspaper accounts abound with many proposed buildings, some of which were constructed and some were not. There was a proposal made in 1885 by Richard Guenther to put up a building of Waters' design on Jefferson Street, consisting of two tenements. An article printed in the Northwestern Weekly on October 22nd describes it as a handsome double house of the Queen Anne style, fronting to the east with entrances on the north and south sides of the building. The front window of each flat was to be of three panels with an upper section of art glass. Although the house was two stories the dormers above the second floor were to make it appear as a third story. The description is vague and gives no indication of size or what material was used in construction. It is difficult to know if the dwelling was ever built; there are follow up articles nor any images. It is possible that it was razed to make way for the Elk's club or other new construction.

The Frontenac Flats were an undertaking of Dr. Steele and E. L. Wickwire with J. T. Raycraft as builder. The plans were drawn by William Waters in 1897 and much press was given to the building over the course of construction. The flats were to occupy a space 120' x 120' at the corner of High and Bond Sts. and was to be built of red pressed brick, two stories high with red terra cotta trim just below the cornice. Rumors of a third story were put to rest by Dr. Steele shortly after work commenced. As laid out by Architect Waters the building was to hold sixteen flats, twelve to front on High St. and four to front on Bond St. However the final number of flats was fourteen. The building was ready for occupancy about a year after started and still stand.

The Marden Flats were built by the Marden brothers, asphalt pavers and roofers. The flats weren't on as grand scale as the Frontenac, just upper and lower units on a long, narrow lot next to Trinity Episcopal Church. The house was built in 1898 tight next to the church. It sat on a tall foundation and had small front porch gained by a flight of eight steps. Above the porch was a set of double windows and to the right were bay windows which went from the basement to second floor. The structure was of wood and had a flat roof. The building was razed perhaps some time in the 1940's.

Two project of the early twentieth century never came to fruition. On February 2, 1902 the Northwestern printed a revised description of the flat to be be erected by W. W. Tolman at the intersection of Jackson St. and West Irving Avenue. Tolman purchased the former Bouck property, an empty lot measuring 63' x 120' and had Waters plan a three story building, 56' x 87' which would hold six flats. The building was originally to be two stories of brick but was changed to three and built of wood. There were to be bay windows in both the sitting and dinning rooms. It was to be Colonial in style with entrances at the center of the structure with front verandas, the first floor being of press brick and stone, the upper portion of wood. There is no evidence visa vie newspapers or photographs that the structure was ever built. The other project to come from Mr. Waters' drawing board but never built was proposed by Mr. H. W. Peek or Peck as the Northwestern of 5/5/1902 reported. Peek was a successful cigar merchant and had a home on the north east corner of Washington Avenue and Mt. Vernon St. The plan called for the moving of his house to an empty lot on Mt Vernon just north of Merritt Avenue and build an edifice of nine flats. The 100' x 45' three story structure was to sit on a lot 120' x 60' and was to be built in the latest style of red press brick with trim of Oshkosh blue limestone. There were to be two entrances on Mt Vernon and one on Washington with verandas on all three floors and was to be named the Windsor. Mr. Peeks' untimely death ended the project.

Turner Halls of Oshkosh

2011-06-21T18:21:00.000-07:00

Turner organizations could be found in many American cites with a large German population in such states as Texas, Missouri, Minnesota, Indiana Ohio Kentucky and Wisconsin. In Europe the turners were primarily a gymnastics organization but with a strong political philosophy.

After the suppression of the revolution of 1848 many Germans immigrated to the new world and some formed turner halls. Oshkosh was no exception. After the great fire of 1874 the city's turners asked William Waters to draw plans for a suitable building for their purpose and to be located on the northeast corner of Merritt Avenue and Jefferson Street.

For many years I had searched without success for an image of the hall built in 1874. Recently the Oshkosh Public Museum opened an online photo gallery, which has proved to be a great boon to my research efforts. I applaud archivist Scott Cross for his work. With the aid of the gallery I was able to find two images showing a portion of the building from which I was able to extrapolate the look of the entire structure. By the look of it the hall was a large wooden structure, very utilitarian in nature, not unlike a warehouse of some sort. The building served for nine years when the Turners undertook a remodeling project that was to transform the hall into an opera house. The old wooden building saw seven more years of service but was replaced in 1890 with an elegant brick building on the same site.
The new hall was also designed by Mr. Waters, of the latest Romanesque style and looked something like the Grand Opera House. The hall was used for a verity of functions; it could be an opera house, recital or exhibition hall as well as a gymnasium. It eventually became the Company B armory and was used to that purpose until it was razed in the mid 1960's to make way for an automotive repair shop.
Mr. Waters was also hired in 1886 as architect of the South side Turner Hall. The hall was located on the south east corner of South Main Street and Tenth Avenue and was immense, magnificent wooden structure, in the Queen Anne style, featuring a souring corner tower. In 1902 the building became the Badger Club and later it was converted to warehouse for storing paper. It was destroyed by fire in 1920.

Oshkosh Schools 1901 to 1916

2011-04-15T17:40:00.000-07:00

The destructive High School fire of 1901 brought about a competition for a replacement. Five architects vied for the job, William Waters and Ephraim E. Stevens chief among them. With a crowded field of contenders there was much to look at, consider and talk about. The debate went on for weeks and preliminary votes taken but no resolution. The discussion became rancorous at times with accusations that some members of the school board were voting for the man, not the plan. In the end the most serious consideration was given to the plans presented by Mr. Waters and Mr. Stevens. At the school board meeting that was to finely decide the issue, forty ballots were taken before the plans of Mr. Stevens were chosen.

The City Council then started to bicker over the choice and even more time was wasted. But after all was said and done E. E. Stevens' plans were built. It seemed that William Waters exclusivity as architect for the Oshkosh School Board was at an end.

E. E. Stevens' 1901 Oshkosh High School

In 1903 the city was contemplating a school for the thirteenth ward on the city's growing south west corner. A call was put out to local architect for plan for a new school to be built near South Park. Both Waters and Stevens submitted designs for the new building. Not much press was devoted to the school boards proceedings. A vote was taken and the job of designing South Park School was awarded the Mr. Stevens. The design looked as if it was to have another wing added, perhaps as the need arose. The result however was an unbalanced looking structure.

Stevens' 1903 South Park School

Eight years pasted before another public school job came up, the Orville Beach Manual Training School. The building was to located on property next to the High School donated by Mr. Beach. This time the competitors were William Waters, E. L. Lindsay and Henry Auler. A few years later Mr. Auler would work with Waters on the design of the new High School

addition.

Some of the Oshkosh schools were aging, the Frentz School built in 1873 was by 1914 deemed dangerous and obsolete. The idea was to place the school on Grove Street in the eleventh ward. Without a great deal of debate the job went to Mr. Waters. Longfellow was not unlike St. Peter's School planned the year before.

Also in 1914 the School Board decided to expand the High School. It was recommended the design go to William Waters, assisted by Henry Auler. A tour of high schools in St. Paul, Superior and other cites was arranged in order to see the latest in school design. The new addition was in the same style as the Beach Training School and the pair presented and impressive sight. The building serves today as Oshkosh City Hall.

P. S. The High School addition was the last building William Waters worked on. After his death his firm became Auler Jenson & Brown.

Oshkosh Schools of the late Nineteenth Century

2011-04-08T16:04:00.000-07:00

As the nineteenth century dwindled, William Waters still enjoyed a good relationship with the Oshkosh School Board. In 1898 the board called for four major projects; A new Punhoqua School, additions to the Second Ward and High Schools as well as a school for the 10th Ward. Without much ado, Waters was asked to draw plans for the Punhoqua School and the and the additions to the other schools.

The Punhoqua School was a small and graceful structure, located in the suburb of Algoma and described in an earlier post. The additions planed were for the back side of the Second Ward School and finely the total restructuring of the High School's front elevation. The High School project was very ambitious; remove the center tower and build an addition 112' x 58', three stories in height, modernizing the look of the building. An article in the Oshkosh Northwestern dated 6/23/1898 states that construction might start in the fall of that year with a similar addition to be erected the following year on the Church St. side of the building. However no press is given to the actual accomplishment of the renovation. A comparison of the two photo below shows the facade was never altered. Perhaps the project was delayed and rendered moot when the building burned in 1901.

The Tenth Ward or Merrill School had a very convolute design history. Plans drawn by Waters were adopted in 1898, and then rescinded by the board a few months later. Other architect were asked to submit plans but no other submissions were forthcoming and Waters' plans were readopted. An intervening election changed the make up the school board and once more other architects were encouraged to supply plans for the new school. Several architects entered plans, most notably Ephraim E. Stevens.

For more than a year the City Council and School Board haggled over the design. At one point the council authorized bids be let only to be over ridden by the school board. Finely in 1900 the a resolution was arrived at and E. E. Stevens' plans were adopted.

Continued.

The Club House of the Oshkosh Yacht Club

2011-02-13T12:30:00.000-08:00

With the renovation two years ago of the erstwhile "Legion on the Lake" into "The Waters", this post is long over due. I'll start by congratulating Bill Wyman and company for a superlative job of reuse and restoration. I think I understand Mr. Wyman's motivation for this undertaking. Like him, I too grew up in that neighborhood, near the foot of Washington Avenue. As a kid I recall the regattas, the crowds, the boats and the sails stretched out on the front lawn to dry before being folded and packed away. Behind it all stood the "Grande Dame", the club house. It was sad to see the decline of this fine and historic building. I'm thankful that Mr. Wyman sought to save this gem of Oshkosh history.

Now a little bit about that history; The Oshkosh Yacht Club was organized in 1869 as a means to codify and regulate what might be described as a difference of opinion between skippers. The club organized regattas and invited yachtsmen from other cites to participate. In 1897 the Inland Lakes Yachting Association was formed and it's first regatta was held in Oshkosh. At the time what passed for a club house was a large barge with a two story structure atop it, called the "sail-loft". It is pictured below, moored in the Fox River. The sail-loft didn't reflect the prestige the races were taking on. Yachts from other clubs were brought in by rail and the yachtsmen would lodge at the likes of the Athern Hotel. Regatta week was the social event of the summer season; clearly a grand club house was called for.

Getting things started proved to be a slow process. There was talk in 1896 of wealthy business men building a club like the Deutcher Club of Milwaukee; there was no mention of yachts however. There was mention made of a suitable plot of land on which to build such a club.

At the foot of Washington Street, William Waters owned a sizable lot with a fine view of the lake but well away from the center of the city. Waters had acquired the house in 1890 from Peter McCourt and had used the place as a summer home. For the next seven years there were no announcements concerning a club house. Then on April 4, 1903 the papers reported that two architects were drawing plan for a club house for the yacht club. Both William Waters and E. E. Stevens were to submit plans for consideration. From then on there was a great deal of activity; talks with W. G. Maxey of the waterworks about property at the end of Merritt Avenue, the sale and removal of the house on the Waters lot and finally the news on the twenty fifth of April that the Oshkosh Yacht Club had secured the Waters property and that Mr Waters' design was chosen for the edifice. The old house was razed and work begun.

As the twentieth century started many architects embraced more classical forms, Waters did as well. Mr. Waters' design for the new club house is an exercise in classical architecture. The building has a transverse layout with the front elevation dominated by a two story portico and veranda which runs the width of the building and around the sides. Brackets under the eves support the roof and at the very center of the roof is a cupola like structure with a flag mast.

The new club house was finished in August of 1903 in time for the ILYA annual regatta and was said to be the finest club house in the Midwest. So impressive were the accommodations, the yachting association decided to hold the regatta in Oshkosh every year. The years were not kind the place however, pictured here is the club house at perhaps its lowest point. This photo, taken one hundred years after it was built, shows what the once proud building had become. Many windows had been covered with siding and the veranda enclosed with no thought given to style or detail. Then in 2008 the building was restored to it's former grandeur and the city once again has a stunning gem on the lake shore.

Oshkosh Post Office

2011-02-02T13:25:00.000-08:00

In recent years there has been a misunderstanding about the Oshkosh Post Offices and the roll William Water played in their design and construction. Mr. Waters had a hand in two Oshkosh Post Offices. After the great fire of 1875 the architect designed the building that would serve as the post office for the next fifteen years. It was located on Washington Street next to the First National Bank. The Waters firm had its' office on the second floor of this building. A new Federal Court House & Post Office was built next door in 1890.

There are those who believe William Waters to be architect of the structure constructed in 189o. Michael J. Goc in his book "Oshkosh at 150" credits Waters with the design but this is not the case. Confusion may arise because of the similarities with the Oshkosh City Hall built in 1887.

Both buildings were built of red brick with lime stone trim and featured an imposing central tower on the south elevation as well as transverse section at the north end of the building. The two building were similarly located each on the northwest corner of an intersection. Consequently photos of both were taken from the same vantage point and may have been the genesis for mistaken identity. In an article published September 13,1887 in the Oshkosh Northwestern it is reported that Mr. Freret took over the planning fromMr. Bell and was showing the plans to Senator Sawyer.

There were two prominent architects named Freret, James and William A. Freret. They were cousins and natives of New Orleans. The latter was Supervising Architect of the Treasury from 1887 to 1889 and the Mr. Bell mentioned in the article was Mifflin E. Bell, William Freret's predecessor in that post. Mr. Freret designed several federal building in his tenure with the office. The Oshkosh building may have been a collaboration of a kind, the designs came due during a time of transition. The idea that William Waters was the architect may come from an article from May of 1888 which names the Oshkosh architect as Superintendent. In the July 12, 1888 edition of the Oshkosh Northwestern it is again reported that Mr. Freret is the architect of the new Federal Building.

2011-01-17T19:27:00.000-08:00

In September of 1894 the Oshkosh School Board received a report on the condition of the city's schools. Of particular concern was Smith School on Oregon St. The building had been in service since the mid to late 1860's and the years had taken there toll. The school was an embarrassment to the city and the recommendation was "Build a new school." The board announced the intention to build and five different plans were submitted from architects from Appleton, Merrill, Milwaukee and Joliet, Illinois. William Waters submitted plans as well and in the end was awarded the job.

By July of 1895 contracts were let. The job of building the structure was given to Domke & Meyer. The building's style is unlike anything Mr. Waters had previously designed, a departure from the belfries and ornamentation of the past. There is a central pavilion with two arches forming the entrance, just inside of which a flight of steps rises to the front doors. Above the entrance are three sets of arched windows. The main building is arranged symmetrically behind the central pavilion with sets of arched double windows on the first story and arched single windows on the second story. The building is caped with a hipped roof supported by brackets. Still in service after more than one hundred years the school has had an addition. The same plans were used to build the 1897 High School in Wittenberg, Wisconsin. That building has since been demolished.

2011-01-17T19:25:00.000-08:00

In 1886 the citizens of the first ward clamored for a new school house of their own. With the replacement of the old Third Ward School the first wards was the oldest in the city. The school board was unable to oblige as the out lay of money needed for the new south side school had emptied the coffers. Finally in 1887 the school board went forward on a new First Ward School. Again William Waters won the contract to draw up the plans. E. E. Stevens was awarded the contract to build the school.

Architect Waters conceived a beautiful Romanesque style building of red brick and lime stone trim with a tall central tower. A newspaper article printed in 1888 proclaimed the school "The finest of them all." The article further mentions the other grand new buildings of Oshkosh; City Hall, Trinity Episcopal Church and the soon to be constructed Post office and Federal Courthouse. The structure was ornate with many large windows for well lighted class rooms. The building was enclosed in 1888, the doors and windows were boarded over and the school was allowed to settle. The next year the finish work was done and the school was ready for classes in the fall of 1889.

Continued.

2011-01-17T19:24:00.000-08:00

Across the river, the third ward school building with its' 1869 addition was then the oldest in the city. In 1885 the school board approved a new school, selecting William Waters as architect and N. J. Ruby to be the contractor. More land was acquired and construction began. Mr. Waters designed another Queen Anne style building. A cream color brick with contrasting dark brick bands was employed. At the center of the front elevation was pavilion with a large arched entrance above which was a set of four widows. In the gable were three gothic arches and in the very peek a decorative circle. From the gable roof rose an understated bell tower. The other elevations echoed the pavilion of the front and the fenestration was regular overall. The roof climbed steeply but not a peek and it seemed to be flat at the top.

The slope of the roof was interrupted by dormers on either side of the gable. The school was symmetrical in design and can be seen as a larger prototype of the smaller schools the architect would plan in the future. (Please see the earlier post on Small Schools.) The school was renamed Jefferson School and enlarged in 1906 with plans drawn by Waters. After a long service a new structure was built in the 1980's.

Continued.

Oshkosh Schools from 1883 to 1895

2011-01-17T19:22:00.000-08:00

Nine years after the Frentz School opened there was talk of over crowding and the need for another school in the second ward. Architect Waters was to plan the school and E. E. Stevens was to build it. Waters planed a grand edifice not unlike the Frentz School, but bigger and better. The Queen Anne style building was built of cream colored brick and featured contrasting bands of dark brick as an accent. In some areas below the windows several courses of brick were laid diagonally for even more visual interest. The most striking element was the imposing bell tower behind which were arranged the class rooms. The building had the look of a mix of the Frentz School and Read School.

The school was finished in 1883 but not everyone praised it. One newspaper article criticized the ostentation of the tower as wasteful; the money spent could furnished school room with maps and books. As time went on the Frentz School was closed and addition and improvements were made in 1898 and 1910 as planned by Mr. Waters. Known as Washington School in later years the school served until it was replaced in the 1960's

Continued.

2011-01-13T17:04:00.000-08:00

The city's fifth ward had steadily grown in population and by 1878 the school house at the corner on Elm and Vine Sts. could no longer accommodate the large number of scholars. Property on Algoma Blvd. was purchased and plans by Mr. Waters were adopted by the school board in June of 1879. The contract for construction was awarded to E. E. Stevens. By the spring of 1880 Read School was ready for occupancy.

One newspaper account said "It has somewhat of a unique appearance, and in style and arrangement is quite unlike the other school buildings in the city." Waters employed a transverse lay out which gives the building an imposing presents from the street. The school is of cream brick with a central bell tower rising high above the steeply pitched roof. The tower roof has been restored to the original tall peek, after decades with a low pitch replacement. As for what style to call it, perhaps Queen Anne fits the best. The buildings' fenestration is regular with windows of a large size. Over the years architect Waters drew plans for additions in 1895 and 1905. The building is still in use today, some one hundred thirty years later.

P. S. The name of E. E. Stevens will come up again in subsequent posts. Not only was Stevens a contractor but for a time the mayor of Oshkosh. Additionally he was a talented architect and often competed with Waters for jobs, that will be the subject for a post of its' own.

2011-01-09T19:26:00.000-08:00

By 1873 the duel school buildings of the second ward at the corner of Otter and Mill Sts, which had served since1869 had to be replaced. Plans were announced in July of that years and the building was completed in October with plans drawn by William Waters. The building was erected on lots between Winnebago and School Sts. not far from Bowen St. A two story brick building measuring 36' X 70' in the Queen Anne style was erected and named for Theodore Frentz the school board member representing the second ward.

The style was a departure from the architects earlier school structures and presented a pleasant and ornate building with contrasting bands of red brick which also topped the windows. There were two front doors located on small wings on either side of the school, each covered by a gabled canopy. At the very center of the first floor front was canopy covered window which had the appearance of an other door. Above it all rose a charming two tiered bell tower.

That same year, 1873 Waters was asked to plan an addition to the First Ward School, an older frame structure on the corner on Wisconsin and Algoma. The next summer the great fire of 1874 destroyed the schools of the forth ward. Both the buildings designed by Waters; the 1868 Jefferson St. and the 1869 building on the corner of Jefferson and Irving were gone. William Waters however did not design a replacement, that honor went to Carl Kock of Milwaukee. The school was constructed on the corner of Mt. Vernon and Irving Streets. and was named for Dr. Dale, head of the school board. Mr. Waters would later draw plans for two addition to Dale School.

Continued.

Oshkosh Schools from 1869 to 1879

2011-01-09T07:14:00.000-08:00

In a previous post Waters' early works for the Oshkosh school board were examined. In this post the subject will be school from 1871 to 1879. The school building needed for Oshkosh remained static from 1869 to 1871. By then however the city's west side sixth ward had grown and was in need of a school of its own. A lot on the corner of Sixth St. and Idaho St. was purchased for the proposed new edifice. The press showed little interest but for an article in the Oshkosh Time in September of 1871, listing new building from Waters' office.

The school was a two story brick structure 40' X 64' in the Italianate style and laid out in a lengthwise form. There was a central pavilion with a door at center, flanked by windows. Above, on the second floor was a row of three windows. On the roof rose a louvered bell tower with a low pitched roof and small spire. Behind this section was the wider main body of the building with doors on the front elevation. As the west side population grew Waters drew plans for two

additions, in 1891 and 1909. The school would later become known as Franklin School. It was replaced in the 1960's.

Continued.

William Waters and the early Oshkosh Schools

2010-12-05T12:35:00.000-08:00

On January first 1867 William Waters found himself newly arrived, newly wed and newly established as an architect in Oshkosh Wisconsin, just nineteen days before he had married Catherine Follett after traveling from New York State. The young professional set about the practice of architecture. Two jobs were to come his way that first year: the Harding Opera House and St. Peter's Church. Both projects were plagued by funding woes and lingered for years before completion. But young William had a great deal going for him; he was twenty four years old, handsome, well schooled and experienced with a strong work ethic. His wife's father had been the third mayor of the city and although deceased, the former mayors' family was still politically influential. It was not long before Waters developed a relationship with the city and its' school board, a relationship that would serve him well to end of his days.

At that time there were seven public schools in the city. The notated map above shows location and gives a brief explanation of the structures under consideration. In May of 1868 the city was in need of a new school house in the 4th ward to replace a building on corner of Jefferson and Merritt Streets. Mr. Waters was given the job of designing the new building to be located on lots between Jefferson and Mt. Vernon Sts. just north of Merritt. By early September it was nearly complete. The two story frame structure fronted on Jefferson St. and was transverse in form with three front entrances and a tower at the center. There were two main rooms on each floor measuring 32' x 33' x 15' high. The school board further decided to relieve overcrowding down in the second ward. To that end, it was proposed to move the vacant school house on the corner of Merritt and Jefferson about a half mile to the corner of Otter and Mill Sts. where it would be joined with a building already on the site. Mr. Waters was given the job of overseeing the move and refurbishing of the two schools.

Come 1869 the school board was dealing with a number of over crowed schools. That May another school was being considered for the forth ward with drawings supplied by Waters. The site was the corner of Jefferson and Irving Sts. The newspapers of the time are silent as to appearance of the building and its size. Also a mystery was if it was intended to augment or replace the building from the previous year. Another problem was the fifth ward, which covered a great deal of real estate and was served by two schools, both in need of improvement. The first of these was at the south east corner of Elm and Vine Sts. and the other in the remote suburb of Algoma. The board opted for additions to both locations and Waters drew plans as well as served as superintendent of construction. Here again there are no descriptions in the press. On the south side of the river the 3rd Ward School was said to be a well lighted, ventilated and warmed building but badly crowed. The school boards committee recommended an addition rather than a new building. Lots adjoining the school were purchased and Mr. Waters drew plans for a sympathetic addition. Construction was started in June and was completed by September, the addition and wing more than doubled the size of the school. Above is an image of the completed Third Ward School as well as a wood cut of the First Ward School from the collection of the Oshkosh Public Museum. Of interest is the similar architectural style of both schools. Perhaps the original architect of the Third Ward Schools and the First Ward School were one and the same.

A Tale of Two Banks

2010-11-17T18:33:00.001-08:00

Oshkosh came into the twentieth century as an economic power house and the city was showing it. The wealthy in town were replacing unfashionable older homes and the newly rich were building large stylish dwellings along Washington Avenue, Algoma Blvd. and Jackson St. The well to do yachtsmen built a new club house that was the envy of all other clubs. Businesses were in a mood to update as well. In 1903 the Oshkosh Logging Tool Company built a substantial factory on the south side of the Fox River. That same year the German American Bank was considering a new building and the State Bank of Oshkosh was incorporated.

Bank buildings had long been a specialty of William Waters, over the years he'd designed seventeen structures devoted to that purpose. It was not surprising the German American Bank turned to Mr. Water for its new building. The bank was in need of more space and decided to build on the west side of Main St. between Peal and High Sts. The construction contract was awarded to C. R. Meyer Company. Mr. Waters presented an elegant classical style building replete this Corinthian columns flanking the front doors. Waters had done a number of structures in that style since 1900; the Oshkosh Public Library, the Oshkosh Yacht Club and the Ladies Benevolent Society Home all were classically inspired. The bank opened in 1904 as the New German American Bank and occupied the space until the late 1960's when a new building was put up and the old was demolished. An early photo of the bank show "New German American Bank" inscribed in the frieze just below the cornice. A later image reveals a change; the inscription reads "New American Bank". The anti-German sentiment engendered by the war forced the change.

The State Bank of Oshkosh was newly incorporated in 1903, working out of offices on Oregon St. between 8th and 9th Streets. By 1910 the bank could afford to erect a new building. Plans were drawn by Waters and construction was started by C. R. Meyer as contractor. The edifice was to be be rough-hewn limestone, a building material Waters had used successfully in so many impressive structures such as Trinity Episcopal Church, Moses Hooper residence and the Algoma Street Methodist Church. These two bank buildings were unalike in style and surface texture but identical in fenestration. All of the New German American Bank's building was given over to bank business. It was the intention of the State Bank to rent the second floor as a way to generate income. After sometime a tenant was found. At the Library Board meeting of October 1, 1912 it was decided to open a south side branch library on the second floor the State Bank of Oshkosh. After the bank failed the library stayed and occupied the entire building.

Appleton residences Part Two

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In "Appleton residences part one" three houses from the 1880's were reviewed. This post will deal with three more dwellings from later dates. As the decade of the 80's came into full flower Mr. Waters altered his approach to the Queen Anne style. These later works show a more ornate and delicate nature. The same elements; porches, bay windows and chimneys are prominent but feel different as does the mass of the structure. There is a greater variety of surface texture and ornamentation. Varied fenestration adds visual appeal.

The dwellings under consideration were all of wooden frame construction, two date from 1885 and one from 1890, all have been razed. They are the Peabody home, A. W. Patton residence and the Stimson house. Mr. Peabody was a successful merchant, operator of the Pettibone and Peabody dry goods store. In 1885 he had a charming Queen Anne style house built near the Lawrence campus. A porch rapped around two sides and access was gained by steps on either side. The first story was clad with clapboards and the second with shingles. There is a bay which rises from the second floor to the attic and there is an elegant oval window above the porch. An ornate cartouche occupies the space between two gable windows and the gables are supported gracefully curved brackets. At sometime Lawrence acquired the place and used it for a while and later demolished it to accommodate a new building.

A. W. Patton was the president of the Patton Paper Co. and resident of Neenah prior to having a home built in 1885 on Appleton's Park St. The structure was covered with clapboard siding and had porches at both ends and a small entry porch with a bay above at the center of the front elevation. To the left, a second story bay window extended to the attic floor. The gable at that end of the house was bolstered by four small brackets and the gable was filled with two windows and decorative wood work. At the far right was a pavilion with a projecting second floor bay, the gable of which was braced by curved brackets and adorned with a long, narrow, hooded window.

Mr. and Mrs. Stimson had a large home built on North St in 1890. J. E. H. Stimson was a successful photographer and needed a big place to raise their seven children, The dwelling had an intimate feel to it. The form was much like that of the English cottage Waters designed for R. P. Finney of Oshkosh, mentioned in an earlier post. The building had clapboard siding on the first story and shingles on the upper floors To the right on the front was a pavilion, the second story projecting over a bay on the first floor. The gable featured a hooded triplet window.
A transverse pavilion formed the main body of the structure the roof line of which swept down past the second floor to cover the front entry porch. Just above the porch was a balcony with an arched opening to the side as well as the front. Just beyond the balcony opening was the bay which accommodated the stairway. At the rear of the house was side porch and entrance.

Appleton residences Part One

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Appleton played an important part in the development of northeastern Wisconsin. As early as 1847 it was established as a seat of learning with the charter of Lawrence University and the seat of county government in 1851. In the early 1870's the city was already a hub of commerce and manufacturing. William Waters found the aggressive community a good place to do business.

An earlier post mentions Waters' Italianate residential work but there was much more to architectural activities in that fair city. He designed not only dwellings but banks, stories, hotels, churches and schools, Mr. Waters was responsible for the design of some thirty two buildings in Appleton. That is the number that can be verified. There are probably more undocumented commercial and residential works yet to be discovered.

Waters initial efforts besides the

Goff and Whorton residences were for

the most part commercial structures

including one for Mr. Whorton and his business partner. As the 1880's bloomed William Waters was doing more residential work. Eleven homes can be attributed to Mr. Waters. This post will feature three dwellings from the years 1881 and 1882. They are the homes of H. J. Rogers, J. R. Wood and H. D. Smith. All are the Queen Anne style and are of a large and

robust nature. Architectural

features to note are large porches,

bay windows and prominent chimneys.

Consider first the Rogers home, situated on a bluff above the For River and fronting on Prospect Avenue, the house was built of brick with porches on three sides. It could have been regarded as the finest dwelling built in 1881. Rogers a mill operator also owned the Appleton
Gas Light utility and was convinced in 1882 to have his mill and new house wired for electricity, thus becoming the first house in America to be lighted with electric lights.

H. D. Smith a banker and investor

built his house on East John Street

next to J. R. Wood. Mr Wood was an

Appleton pioneer and banker with

large holdings in the Upper Peninsula.

His home was designed to accommodate a large family. It was a spacious wooden frame structure with a porch and a baloney above.

There was a small

porch at the side of the

house. Next door, the Smith place was also of wooden frame construction and boasted a large front porch and bay window. Three large chimneys

tower over the roof line which is crowned with decorative iron work.

Some years after Mr. Smiths' death his widow donated the house to Lawrence University.

Intricate brick work

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The commercial buildings designed by William

Waters in the late 1860's and early 1870's featured

some fairly intricate brick work. Many of these devises seem to serve as hallmarks to him as architect and date of design. That is not to say other architects didn't employ the same elements

but they are often seen in Mr Waters' buildings.

As noted in other posts Waters used a design template for some commercial buildings that consisted of two stores with a stairway to the second floor between them. The front elevation

of this design would have walls each side of the building and two more walls on either side of the central stairway. The end of these walls, although not a broad expanse, provided ample room for

ornamentation. In some cases the bricks would be stepped out to form a small plain. Within that plain some bricks were recessed to form a cross as seen in example one.

Most of the fancy brick work was confined to the wall surfaces on the second or third floors. Often Waters would add recessed panels to fill the space between the window openings, shown in example two. Example three shows another aspect worthy of note, the inverted corners of the window openings. These were the same height as the recessed wall panels. The effect was to give the wall a rhythmic segmented look. In some instances the architect chose to add brick bands of contrasting color as well as courses and caps of limestone. Other limestone trim might include keystones above the window or a plinth block at the base of a decorative lintel.

Other architects would sometime add a cornice of wood to a brick structure. Mr Waters used brick to create the cornice. By stepping the bricks away from the wall he was able to fashion niches and recessed panels as in example five. Mr Waters was fond of incorporating a central pediment, see example six. these too were achieved by building out from the wall and recessing certain areas.

The fire of 1874

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The fire in August of 1874 consumed the building along both sides of Main St. from Algoma St. north to Irving St. and east to Broad St. Many of the structures designed by William Waters and erected after that blaze remain to this day.

An imposing edifice is the Wagner Opera House at the corner of Main and Merritt Sts. Wagner had maintained an establishment on that corner since the late 1860's. To the left is an image of the hall as it appeared in 1872. The fire destroyed the original structure and Wagner rebuilt using plans drawn by Waters. Not long after construction was finished Mr. Wagner decided to get out of the opera house business and sold the place the the First Methodist Episcopal Church.

The Methodists

must have liked the

hall for they remained there until the 1960's. After the Methodists moved the building had many different uses. There have been some alteration over the years; enlarged window on the south elevation, the tower and front pediment were removed and the building was re-roofed some time early in the twentieth century but still remains much as it was when constructed. One curious aspect is its color. Many years ago the brick on first and second stories and cleaned but the third floor was left a dark brown giving an odd appearance.

The Harding Opera house also went up in flames. It was a Waters designed and was erected in fits and starts. Located just north the the First National Bank, construction began in 1867 but was halted dew to lack of funds. Work resumed in 1870 and was completed by 1872. There were two stores flanking a central entrance to the auditorium on the second floor like that seen in Wagner's hall. There are no images of this structure that I know of. After the fire the Fraker Opera house was built on the same lot but was not of Waters' design.

Is is ironical that another building affected by the

conflagration was the Phoenix fire house. Built in 1871, it shared the same basic design as that of the Brooklyn fire house just across the river on Sixth St. The Phoenix however lay in the path of the blaze and was left a burnt out shell. Rising from the ashes like its name sake the fire house was rebuilt and served for many years. Eventually

the building ceased to server the fire department and was sold. By the 1940's the structure had been converted to retail space, sans the tower and observatory. In the photo montage above, with images from the collection of the Oshkosh Public Museum, is pictured the house shortly after construction with a brave fire fighter standing at the peak of the gable. Just below is seen the aftermath of the fire and to the right of that the rebuilt Phoenix with an observatory added atop the tower. There is also a picture of the wallpaper store it became. The building withstood the test of fire but not the test of time. It fell to the wrecker's ball in the 1970's to make way for a parking lot.

After the fire

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By the early 1870's Oshkosh was well on it's way to becoming an important city of manufacturing and commerce. It did suffer a few set backs, however. With a reliance on wood as a construction material and the fire fighting technology of the time the city was prone to destruction by fire. Five times; 1859, 1866, twice in 1874 and finally in 1875 major portion of the business district were consumed by flames and subsequently rebuilt. I will devote the next few entries to Waters' post conflagration works.

The fires of 1859 and 1866 destroyed

much of what was the business district

to varying degrees. The first fire in May of 1874 had no effect on the businesses along Main St. In August another conflagration consumed a large area from Main and Algoma / Washington Sts. north to Irving and as far east as Broad St. There is a dearth of information about reconstruction after these four fires. The blaze of 1875 and its aftermath was the subject of much newspaper print. Starting a few blocks west of Main St. near the river the flames, pushed by strong winds moved to the east and north destroying much of what lay in its path from Ceape St. to Washington St. and to the east well past the Court House.

Reconstruction started soon after, as the newspaper account will attest. Mr. Waters office was drawing "Plan by the yard" as draftsman J.P. Jensen put it. Waters had under his preview some 35 commercial structures that year. Perhaps one of the most interesting undertakings was the east side of Main St. from Ceape to Otter St. Misters Griffin, Ernst and Hubbard owned adjoining lots and were convinced to build identical buildings. In this row of stores the architect uses a form described in an earlier post, two stores with a stairways leading to the second floor between them. The row consists of four such buildings with single slightly larger store between the last two at the right, as seen in the first image. In the next block up Waters designed buildings for H. Bammessell and R. McKenzie, as well as others. The buildings were not adjacent as implied by the second image. All but one of the building on the east side the next block north were of Waters' design.

A structure of particular beauty was the Union Bank located on the northwest corner of Main and High Sts. It featured a cut corner entrance with an arched opening and recessed doors. Above the doors was arched window flanked by columns supporting a cornice upon which rested an arched pediment. Beyond the pediment was something like a plinth inscribed with the word bank. On the Main St. elevation pilasters either side of a large arched window supported small ledge. There were pilasters as well on the second floor bolstering a cornice. A set of double window filled the center of the wall. The fenestration along the the south elevation was regular with rows of four windows from foundation to the second floor. Pilasters at the west end the the building define another commercial space with a window and entrance gained by a small flight of steps. There were two window on the second floor.

Waters and the Italianate style

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In the late 1860's and early 1870's the Italianate style was very popular with the wealthy home builder. William Waters designed many fine dwellings in this style both of brick and wood. In such cities as Oshkosh he designed the S. M. Hay residence, Appleton the homes of E. C. Goff and J. H. Whorton and in Neenah the same design served both C. B. Clark and Frank Shattuck.

Mr. Hay's brick house was situated near the corner of Algoma Blvd. and Jackson St. A three and a half story tower with observation window at the top was flanked to the right by a pavilion with a low pitch roof supported by decorative brackets. A transverse pavilion flanks the other side. The fenestration was regular with double windows from the foundation to the second floor at the front of the house. The tower held the front entrance which is gained by a flight of seven steps. Above the doors was balcony in front of a set of double windows which were shaded by a decorative canopy. Beyond the canopy was a set of triplet windows just below a projecting railing surrounding the observatory at the top. The tower was capped by a low pitch roof bolstered by twenty brackets and crowned with a small spire. Along the first floor of transverse pavilion was a porch which was accessed from the tower. There were two single window on the porch which were echoed on the floor above. Around the corner on the first floor was a six window bay with a set of double windows above it.

E. C. Goff's house on Prospect Avenue in Appleton was nearly a mirror image of the Hay residence with exception of the bay which was on the front of the house. The building underwent extensive remodeling early in the twentieth century and would not be recognized now as the same structure. Just down the street from the Goff place is the residence of J. H. Whorton. It has remained unchanged since the alteration of the front porch. There is a three story tower to the right, the front of which has a single arch topped window on the first and second floors just below a frieze. Above the frieze, the third floor has two arch topped window on each side. Yet another frieze is above the window with four sets of paired brackets on each side bracing a low pitch roof. Here as with the other designs a spindly spire finishes it off.

At the center of the building is the front door that was originally cover by a small porch and above that a window. Sometime in the 1890's perhaps the front porch was expanded and cover the entire front of the house. To the left is a pavilion with sets of arch top double window on the first and second floors. A small balcony once graced the front of the widows of the first floor but was removed to make way for the porch. At the top of the gable wall is a round window ringed by four keystones like the points of a compass rose. There is a frieze with paired brackets supporting cornice returns and a low pitch roof. Smaller bracket ascend to the peek of the roof on the under side of the eaves on both sides.

An image of the C. B. Clark and Frank Shattuck residences can be seen in an earlier post "Two for the price of one"

What about Fond Du Lac?

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In my early research on William Waters, I carefully noted every city in which Mr. Waters worked.

It was apparent that Oshkosh, Appleton and Neenah and Menasha were fertile ground for the architect's talents. It seemed however that

the city of Fond Du Lac was fallow as there was never any mention made of his work in that city. As research opportunities broadened, an article from 1902 came to my attention. The notice was regarding the departure of William Waters Jr.

from the firm in order to take a position with the army in the Philippines. A short list of cities where the firm had worked included; Green Bay, New Lisbon and Fond Du Lac. The hunt was on, I scoured every online photo archive I could think of looking for any residential, commercial, religious or governmental building that had the look of a "Waters' Job".

Eventually my research lead me to the State of Wisconsin Collection and the Fond Du Lac archives. There in "A Souvenir of Fond Du Lac County Wisconsin", published by C. O. Stiles some time around 1904, I saw a picture of the P. B. Haber residence. Something about the house in the picture was reminiscent of a Waters design. I thought of the George Bergstrom home in Neenah. It shares some of the same characteristics with the Haber home. The gambrel roof that extends to the first floor is found on both structures. The upper porch railings are similar. The

treatment of the gable end while not found on the Bergstrom house is seen in other Waters designs from about that time.

I also considered the time line. No image of the

Haber place appears in an 1898 photo review

of Fond Du Lac, just the 1904 souvenir. Then there is the matter of the written record. An extensive article on Waters published in 1893 lists nearly all the important structures by him to that date. Fond Du Lac and Haber's residence are absent. The city only comes up in the 1902 article. This all leads me to believe the Haber house was built about 1900.

I asked a friend living in Fond Du Lac to see if the Haber place was still there and if so send me pictures. Indeed the house is still there, sans a portion of the front porch and resided top to bottom with beige siding. It is once again a private dwelling after many years as the property of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. Now I must find proof that Waters drew the plans for this once graceful building.

Commercial building mystery

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It is often easy to recognize certain commercial structures as being the work of William Waters if one know what to look for. Many banks or retail buildings planned for a conner location feature a forty five degree angle cut corner providing another surface for doors, windows and ornamentation. This can be

seen in all the images in this post.

The first image is that of the Commercial Bank of Oshkosh,

from digital collection of the Oshkosh Public Library.

It was built in 1883 and still stands on the southwest corner of

High and Main Sts. although the front of the building has been

altered. The second bank pictured is the Commercial Nation Bank of Appleton, from the collection of the Appleton Public Library. Constructed in 1885, it was destroyed by fire

in the 1920's. Next is the Peterman Block in Merrill

which original housed a bank and several retail concerns. Today it's an Ace Hardware store. All three of these building came form

the drawing board of William Waters. The similarities are

obvious.

Characteristically the entrance is emphasized with a pediment above the door supported by columns. The second or third floors have large windows. A set of small triplet windows occupy the space just below another pediment at the top of the wall. These pediments generally bear an inscription regarding date of construction, name of builder or building purpose. The fenestration of the building is regular often with large double windows set within an arched niche. Decorative brick work such as contrasting courses or bricks set diagonally add visual interest to exterior wall.

The last two buildings pictured here may also be the work of

Mr. Waters. However my inquires about the architect have gone unanswered.

The first of the two is the Pratt block which still stands in downtown Ripon. The second was an office building commissioned by Henry Sherry of Neenah. The Sherry building stood on the corner of W. Wisconsin Av. and Church St. and was demolished many years ago. Waters had many commissions in Ripon including residences, a school, bank and opera house. He certainly may have found other work as well. As for Mr. Sherry's office building, Waters designed the Sherry residence, he may well have been asked to do the office too.

The similarities between the Pratt Block and the Sherry office are too great to be coincidental. The five building are so much alike one can easily conclude that Waters was architect for all.

William Waters and Tudor style Part II

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Architectural change is a gradual progression, by the coming

of the twentieth century myriad stylistic changes had become popular. The ornate features of Queen Anne were no longer in fashion. The less cluttered look of colonial revival, foursquare and prairie school were in vogue. Mr. Waters embraced the new trends, satisfying client's desires for au courant designs.

On April 22, 1905 the Northwestern Weekly announced that J. H. Wall, president of Wall-Spalding Lumber Co. was to build a sixteen room dwelling at a cost of $8,000 on the corner of Algoma Blvd. and Light St. from plans drawn by Waters. The paper makes no mention of the style to be used. The original structures ground floor has siding of clapboards and a large front porch with a brick arch feature adjacent to the front entrance. The second floor is clad with cedar shingles above which rise gables with a half timber look. The building is still there and was expanded about one hundred years after construction to better serve as a domestic abuse refuge.

In September of 1906 the Northwester Weekly reports that Phil Sawyer has started construction of a fine home on Algoma Blvd. at a cost of $16,000. Mr. Sawyer was the son of Senator Philetus Sawyer and Edger Sawyer's brother. He served as secretary-treasure for the Oshkosh Gas Light Co. The report goes on to say the plans were done by William Waters in the old English style and will be the first of its kind in Winnebago County. "The walls of the first story are of large paving brick and the walls from there to the roof a combination of timbers and plaster, the timber dividing the plaster into panels for the windows." The dimensions of the house are 51 x 54 feet. On the front elevation, to the left is a pavilion, the second floor of which projects over a large bay window. At center is an arched entry with set triplet windows above.

The entrance is flanked on one side by long porch and to the right is a porte-cochere.

Included here is an elevation for a house much like that of Mr. Sawyer. It is from the archives of the Oshkosh Public museum and is by the hand of William Waters. Perhaps it is a preliminary

idea for the Sawyer residence.

William Waters and Tudor style Part I

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The Tudor Revival style in America had reached its zenith by the mid to late 1920's. It was the choice of the well to do and many fine examples can be seen throughout the country. The style is typified by a ground floor of either brick or stone block and the second floor of half timber construction. A fully developed style by the start of the great depression, its roots can be seen in buildings of the late nineteenth century.

In the 1880's the predominate style for most of the better class of residential architecture was Queen Anne.

It is within this form William Waters first features some Tudor design elements. In the H. J. Rogers house of Appleton a half timber like construction is seen on a portion of the second story. Later with the highly Queen Anne design of H. V. Babcock's residence in Neenah Waters again employs the half timber look on the upper part of the tower as well as the second floor of the front pavilion.

It was not uncommon to update ageing structures by altering or

adding porches. Sometime around 1900 the front porch and porte-cochere of the Babcock house were remodeled, giving it an even greater Tudor appearance. The changes may well have been the work of Mr. Waters. This top image is of the Babcock residence after alterations where made. The other two sketches are from the archives of the Oshkosh Public Museum and were likely done by Waters himself as preliminary ideas for clients.

Two for the price of one.

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In an article about William Waters published in the North- western Weekly on June 25th 1893, the list of works include residences for C.B. Clark and Frank Shattuck of Neenah. The two men were business partners as well as good friends and neighbors. Waters was the architect of many fine homes on East Wisconsin Avenue as well as Forest Avenue. I was eager to know what these houses looked like. A picture of the original Clark residence appears in Suzanne Hart O'Regan's book "Ghosts in Sunlight". The photo is of a large Italianate dwelling, which had been replaced in 1894 and moved to a new location just down the street. That answered my questions about the Clark house. But what did Frank Shattuck's house look like? I looked over the online collections of both Neenah's public library and the historical society. In two images of E. Wisconsin, there where the Shattuck house should be, stood what appears to be the Clark place. I was confused and shared my confusion with someone at the Neenah Historical Society. The news was that the two men had identical houses built side by side. There are however no pictures showing both buildings together.

Early Research

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Much of what I learned in my early research on William Waters was taken from three doc-uments; Mr. Waters' obituary, Beer's Commemorative Biographical Record and an article published in the Weekly Northwestern of 6/25/1891. This last document has a long list of Waters' accomplishments. One of the residences listed is that of C. C. Bowles in De Pere. My effort to find an image of the house was finally rewarded with a response from the good people at the De Pere Historical Society. It was not the C. C. Bowles residence however but that of E. E. Bolles, no doubt an error in the original transcription. Later with the publication of the book "A Complication of Articles Pertaining to the Works of William Waters", I found that such misprints were common place. Mr. Bolles owned and operated a wooden ware company. His residence was built in 1882 and was remodeled in the early twentieth century. This large home still stands at 721 North Broadway along the Fox River in De Pere.

Waters' Residential Work

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The greatest part of William Waters' practice was devoted to residential architecture. The plans for many fine homes in Oshkosh, Neenah and Appleton came off his drawing board. In this posting I will talk about one particular design template. It is a design Waters started using in the late 188o's and employed for the next fifteen years and is typified by the R.P. Finny residence. Examples of it may be seen throughout Oshkosh and other cities. On December 16 th of 1888 The Sunday Times published a recap of the past season's construction. The Finny home is described in great detail and is referred to as a "Queen Anne Cottage". The house measures 41' X 26' and is a gabled structure with a transverse gable at one side. The roof of the main section sloops past the second story to cover a small porch. This roof is adorned with a decorative dormer, other variations have no dormer. The fenestration of these designs is irregular and may include a bay window under a projecting second floor as in the Charles Babcock home. Exterior surfaces are cover with a combination of clapboards and shingles.

Oshkosh City Hall

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The decades following the civil war were marked by great economic growth. The nations westward expansion called for more manufactured goods. By the 1880's Oshkosh had become an important Wisconsin center of population,commerce and manufacturing. Only Milwaukee had more inhabitants. The city was well connected politically as well. U. S. Senator Philetus Sawyer and Congressman Richard Guenther both called Oshkosh home. In 1886 the city leaders decided it was high time Wisconsin's second city have a city hall which reflected its lofty position. "A substantial and ornamental" edifice was needed, the call went out for architects to submit appropriate plans. Architects from Milwaukee, St. Louis and two from Detroit competed for the job. In the end the council awarded the contract to William Waters.

As the plans were made public objections arose regarding the style of the new hall. A newspaper description from the time of construction cites critics as favoring the Romanesque style over the Queen Anne style. The plans detractors considered the Queen Anne style suitable for residential architecture but hardly appropriate for a structure intended to serve for many generations. The great civic buildings of the day were of the Romanesque style, Queen Anne was pass'e.

The hall was constructed in 1887 on the northwest corner of Otter and State Sts. Mr. Water provided plans for a most visual exciting building. City Hall displayed Romanesque styling with the arch windows and entry ways. The turret at the southeast corner of the building seems to be most Queen Anne feature of the design. Perhaps the structure would have looked more Romanesque had it been constructed solely of limestone. It was built of red brick with a high limestone foundation and arched entries on the south and east elevations. A slate roof capped it off. The asymmetry of the building made for a very playful fenestration with window having lintels of red sandstone. Other building trim was of the same red sandstone and the walls had bands of sandstone. One puzzling feature of the building was that the portion housing the council chamber was at a different angle to the rest of the structure. Some years later the entrance on State St. was altered, the arched entry removed and windows added on the second floor. The changes were sympathetic with the original architecture and may have been drawn by Waters.

The hall did serve for many generations. By the 1960's however it had become inadequate to the purposes of city business. The once proud building looked shabby and dilapidated. The tower roof was removed at the level of the bell deck. It fell to the wrecking ball to make way for a parking lot.

Three Sisters

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It is easy to say that most church steeples dating from the 1870's were much the same. Some had louvered vents others had clocks. Some had finials, crockets or crosses, all were tall and inspiring. Here, are depicted three church steeples of Mr. Waters early works. Oshkosh's St. Peter and First Congregational and St. Joesph in Appleton. All of them date from the mid 1870's. I was baptized in the old St. Peter's. Before it was demolish the steeple had been rebuilt to about half of what once was. I can recall the old First Congratulation church. It too had its' steeple altered before it was razed in the 1960's . St. Joe's in Appleton still stands. The church has had some additions over the years but the alterations have been sympathetic to the original structure.

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Commercial Structures

Commercial buildings were a large part of Waters' practice. Some of his earliest commissions were buildings devoted to business and he continued designing business blocks until the end of his career. Many of his early jobs in Appleton and the fires which destroyed Oshkosh's Main St. gave Mr. Waters ample opportunity to build his skill with regard to store front design. There was one design template in particular that served his clients well. This design consisted of one building with two stores with a stairway to the second floor between the stores. The store front layout depended on client need. Many had a central recessed entry flanked by large display windows. In some cases the entrance was to one side, as seen here in the Commercial Bank,
On the second floor twin or triplet windows provided light and ventilation to offices or flats. At the center of the structure, above the stairway was a single window. This design is well suited to long rows of buildings. A study of business houses from the 1870's will show a few examples of this design template. Mr Waters may not have been the genesis of this design but used extensively were it would work well.

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The West Side School in Winne-conne was also built in 1901. The central pavilion has an arched entry flanked by two small windows. Above the entrance are three large arched topped windows. A bellcast hipped roof with a two window dormer is crowned by a small belfry. The main body of the structure has symmetrical fenestration with the first floor windows topped by jack arch lintels. This school is no longer standing.

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This is the grade school in Edgar Wisconsin. Mr. Waters seemed to be working his way west. The year before, in 1900 he had designed a High School in New Lisbon. The Edgar school is built of brick and is topped with a bellcast hipped roof. Again, there is an arched entry and symmetry in the fenestration. There are distinctive jack arch lintels on the first floor window as well as those of the center pavilion.

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This is an image of the Dartford School. The school was built in 1897 in the village of Dartford, later to become Green Lake. It was a wooden structure with a bellcast hipped roof. There was an arched entry in the center pavilion which was topped by a small belfry. The siding was of clapboard and shingles and the fenestration was much the same as that of Menasha's Forth Ward School. There were dormers at either end, a feature seen only on this school building. The building is no longer standing.

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The Forth Ward School was built in 1891 and was the first of the small school buildings designed by Waters. It was constructed of a light colored brick and had contrasting courses of dark brick. The lintels, sills and pediment cap were cut of lime stone.

The building displays complete symmetry and is topped with Queen Anne style belfry. The structure is no longer standing.

Small Schools

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Around the turn of the century Mr. Waters designed a number of small school buildings all based on the same plan. The first of these was Menasha's Forth Ward School built in 1891. This was followed in 1897 by the Dartford School

(Green Lake) and the Punhoqua School in Oshkosh. Winneconne's West side School and the Edgar grade school were built in 1901. The buildings were of an efficient and straight forward design which proved affordable and appealing to the clients. I will publish images of the other schools later.

Waters' birthplace

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I've noticed that the current biographies of William Waters erroneously cite his birthplace as Franklin County New York. Mr. Waters was born in the village of Franklin in Delaware County New York. Delaware county is near Pennsylvania in southern part of the state and was in the late 1700's the destination for many migrants from New England. Waters' grandfather removed from Hebron Connecticut to Delaware county in 1798 and commenced to raise crops and children. Waters' father served as town clerk for a term or two and also became a well to do merchant with a local dry good store. William Waters Sr. and his wife Elizabeth had three children two sons and a daughter, William was the eldest.

Opening statement

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I have for many years been interested in the history of Oshkosh, Wisconsin and in particular the architect William Waters, of that city. It is my hope that this blog will serve as a clearinghouse for information about Mr. Waters as well as a sounding board for any opinions on subjects under consideration. I intend to add images of building and engage in discussion about same. Perhaps there will be persons as interested in this subject as I am.