Last November I read that CUNA Mutual planned to demolish their distinctive circular building and erect a new structure in its place. When I moved here in 1982, the round building was already a landmark (in the unofficial sense) on Madison’s west side. My curiosity was piqued. I didn’t know much about this particular building or the history of CUNA Mutual in Madison.

Three properties in Madison were added to the National or State Register of Historic Places in 2019. Historic districts in two nearby communities were new to the lists as well. Learn more about these special places!

Emily Balsley is an illustrator who lives in Madison and enjoys a challenge. In 2017, she accepted a challenge to draw 100 houses in 100 days. See 65 of the illustrations at Madison’s Central Library through January 2020!

Catalogs arrive daily. Email inboxes are filled to the brim with sales galore. Magazines, newspapers and websites highlight holiday gift lists. When you’re thinking of gifts for friends and loved ones, don’t forget history and preservation!

Emily Wallrath Schmidt, of the Chicago Bungalow Association, presented on the challenges and opportunities one might have when repairing historic wood windows. She spoke at the Wisconsin Historical Society’s annual local historic and historic preservation conference in late October. The Chicago Bungalow Association has a long record of helping homeowners repair and restore windows on vintage homes.

Waukesha County wants out from any regulation by the City of Waukesha’s landmarks ordinance.  And State Representative Scott Allen now seeks to exempt all of Wisconsin’s counties from every city’s landmark ordinance.

George Delaplaine was not the first occupant of what we now call the Old Governor’s Mansion. That was Julius T. White, a prominent businessman. Nor was Delaplaine the most famous resident. That would either be Robert M. La Follette or Ole Bull. Nevertheless, George Delaplaine is a person of interest when talking about the history of the Old Governor’s Mansion.

As a water pumping station transformed into apartments, Madison’s Nichols Station is a fine example of adaptive reuse—giving new life to a building that has outlived its original purpose.