National Register of Historic Places

Richards Hill Residential Historic District

Watertown, Jefferson County, Wisconsin
Listed
June 13, 2013
Type
District
Period
Listed
Ref No.
13000403

About this property

The Richards Hill Residential Historic District is a national historic district in Watertown, Wisconsin. The district includes 62 buildings, nearly all of which are houses, of which 51 are considered contributing buildings to the district's historic character. The land which makes up the neighborhood was originally the estate of John Richards, who built the Octagon House on his property in the 1850s. Richards gradually subdivided his land over the late nineteenth century, and by the early twentieth century he had completely split the property into residential lots. The land was near Northwestern College, and many professors at the college bought lots in the neighborhood for their homes. The houses in the district represent the popular architectural styles of the early twentieth century, including Queen Anne, Bungalow, and period revival styles such as Tudor and Dutch Colonial. Architect George Fred Keck, who later became well known for his Modernist work, designed the Tudor Revival Hans David & Helen Gaebler House in 1926. The district was added to the State Register of Historic Places in 2012 and to the National Register of Historic Places the following year. Two properties in the district, the Octagon House and the First Kindergarten, are listed individually on the National Register; the latter was moved onto the Octagon House property in 1957 by the Watertown Historical Society.

Location

Watertown, Jefferson County, Wisconsin
43.18820, -88.70884

Categories

ARCHITECTURE
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Everything a full report reveals about Richards Hill Residential Historic District

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Overview
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The Land
The historic sites and place names around the location, and how this land was settled and used.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back millions of years.
LiDAR Terrain
Laser-scanned terrain that reveals earthworks and old features hidden in the landscape.
Conflict & War
The battles, raids and skirmishes fought near here, across every era of American conflict.
The Civil War
The Civil War on this ground, 1861 to 1865: who held it, and the battles, camps and regiments nearby.
The Soldiers
The men who marched from here in the Civil War, named and traced where the record allows.
Native Heritage
The Native nations who held this land, mapped across time from before European contact to today.
Settlement
Who claimed and held this ground, from Indigenous homelands through the colonial powers to the United States.
The Community
How the town grew, who came, and what kind of place it became, traced through the census record.
Rivers & Rail
The rivers, canals and railroads that connected this place between 1830 and 1911.
Notable People
The people born, buried or genuinely tied to this exact place, with their stories.
Historical Maps
Historic maps of the location layered over how it looks today.
Finds & Access
Museum objects tied to the area, and the laws on searching, collecting and access here.
Literature
The old books, county histories and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Points of Interest
The most significant historic sites and landmarks near the location, and why they matter.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from first peoples to the present day.
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Nearby Historic Sites

Octagon House
Early Republic
0.2 mi
First Kindergarten
Early Republic
0.3 mi
Brandt House
Industrial
0.7 mi
Fuermann, August, Jr., and Eliza, House
Industrial
0.7 mi
St. Paul's Episcopal Church
Modern
0.8 mi

Questions about this property

When was Richards Hill Residential Historic District listed on the National Register?

Richards Hill Residential Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 13, 2013.

What type of historic resource is Richards Hill Residential Historic District?

Richards Hill Residential Historic District is classified as a district in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Richards Hill Residential Historic District?

The period of significance for Richards Hill Residential Historic District is recorded as the listed era.

Can I research the history near Richards Hill Residential Historic District?

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