June 2025.
Continuing eastward from my previous post on West James Street in downtown Columbus, Wisconsin, where it meets Ludington Street, we can explore some more salient historic buildings on the street.
Bassett & Davies Block
This 1873 building is significant because it was associated with two early Columbus settlers, who operated the second general store in the town and eventually constructed this building, featuring interesting pointy eaves and a finely decorated cornice. The storefronts were altered in the 1980s and the windows have also been replaced by smaller ones, but the rest of the building is intact. Subtle piers divide the building into bays, which are reinforced by the bracketed cornice lining up with these divisions.
A prominent double-arched window in the middle centers the James Street facade and draws attention to the gable above. Curiously, the original entrance was not centered, but it was diagonal as it is now.
West facade:
107 East James Street
The NRHP listing conflates this building with its neighbor, but upon further inspection it is a distinctive design. It has an oddly dense cornice compared to its surroundings, but the hood-molded windows and Italianate design are very typical for downtown Columbus.
Farnham Block
The NRHP entry is unclear about this building, so I’m going to assume that it is all one design despite the appearance of the easternmost unit. It originally housed the store of Friedrich Farnham, who was a prominent figure in the local produce business.
This unit above was articulated similarly to the others, so I assumed it was a product of the elevation of James Street changing. What confused me is how the NRHP listing considers this next section at 111 W James to be part of the same building. The bricks, hood molds, and cornice are all different.
The recessed arched windows are very odd and ahead of their time.
Turner & Blumenthal
Though the standing building dates to 1894, William Turner started his marble cutting business on the site in 1867. He was joined by partner Herman Blumenthal in 1878, and their business eventually held multiple cutting sheds and a display yard. The two did stonework for several buildings in Columbus, such as the Brown Block. Turner’s son followed his father’s footsteps, and the company lasted until the 1950s. However, the 1894 building also was used to print the Columbus Republican beginning in 1918.
150-158 E James
These three identical, heavily altered brick buildings may be the Firemen’s Tavern, Columbus’s oldest commercial buildings which were built in 1852. The earliest occupants were a cooper (barrel maker) and tailor, and the interiors were later combined into one boarding house. The Kurth Brewing Company bought the building and rented it to barkeepers to sell Kurth beer until 1946, the name Firemen’s coming from the fire chief owning a restaurant inside. It was open at the time the NRHP listing was written but has been closed since.
Kurth Tavern
This Commercial style building is known as the Kurth Tavern (corroborated by the K on the datestone) and was completed in 1898. The arched portal with decorated springers is notable, as is the pedimented cornice.
The next post returns to the intersection of Ludington Street and James Street and north from there.
Sources:
https://npgallery.nps.gov/GetAsset/a61f3033-cff7-4e0e-b68c-712ef52d0c2b/
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