National Register of Historic Places

Tank Cottage

Green Bay, Brown County, Wisconsin
Listed
April 27, 1970
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
70000028

About this property

Tank Cottage is located within Heritage Hill State Historical Park in Green Bay, Wisconsin. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1970 and may be the oldest building in Wisconsin. French-Canadian fur trader Joseph Roi built the cottage on the Fox River sometime between 1776 and 1803. He used the pièce-sur-pièce à coulisse technique common in French-Canadian buildings of the time. In 1805, Roi sold the cottage to Jacques Porlier, an ally of the British. During the War of 1812, the building served as a local headquarters for the British. After the war, Porlier swore allegiance to the United States and in 1820 became chief justice of the Brown County court of the Michigan Territory. In 1850, Norwegian Moravian missionary Nils Otto Tank purchased the cottage and large tract of land along the Fox River. His wife, Caroline van der Meulin, covered the pièce-sur-pièce à coulisse work with clapboard and lived there until her death in 1891. In 1908, the cottage was in danger of demolition as the city became more industrial, so it was moved from its original location on 8th Street along the river to Tank Park. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1970, and in 1976 moved to its current location in Heritage Hill State Historical Park to serve as a museum.

Location

2640 South Webster Avenue
Green Bay, Brown County, Wisconsin
44.51082, -88.03483

Categories

MILITARYPOLITICS/GOVERNMENTARCHITECTURERELIGION
National Register nomination ›
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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Overview
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The Land
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Geology
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Conflict & War
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The Civil War
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The Soldiers
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Native Heritage
The Native nations who held this land, mapped across time from before European contact to today.
Settlement
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The Community
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Rivers & Rail
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Notable People
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Literature
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Nearby Historic Sites

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0.7 mi
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0.8 mi
Oakland-Dousman Historic District
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0.8 mi
Broadway-Walnut Historic District
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0.9 mi
Fort Howard Hospital
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1 mi

Questions about this property

When was Tank Cottage listed on the National Register?

Tank Cottage was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on April 27, 1970.

What type of historic resource is Tank Cottage?

Tank Cottage is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Tank Cottage?

The period of significance for Tank Cottage is recorded as the industrial era.

Can I research the history near Tank Cottage?

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