Photograph of Memorial Union — Photograph by w_lemay, CC BY-SA 2.0. Via Wikimedia Commons.

University of Wisconsin Memorial Union

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015.

From the record

“Memorial Union is an Italianate Renaissance Revival-style complex built in 1926-28 at the University of Wisconsin-Madison on the south shore of Lake Mendota as a social and recreational gathering place for all students, designed partly to break down socioeconomic barriers. Before Memorial Union, the UW had no union; at its opening in 1928, then-President Glenn Frank said, "The Union is a living room, which converts the university from a house of learning to a home of learning."”
Wikipedia article Memorial Union (University of Wisconsin-Madison), CC BY-SA 4.0.

One of 238 National Register listings published here for Dane County · listed in 2015 · category: Building.

Sources: the Wikipedia article · the National Register database, National Park Service

The listing

What is counted as historic. The nomination lists 1 building as contributing to the listing.
Address. 800 Langdon St., Madison, 53706
When was it listed? May 2015
Category. building
City. Madison city
Architectural style. Renaissance Revival architecture, modern architecture
National Register reference number. 15000255 - assigned by the National Park Service when the property was listed.

What happened here

An account from the chapter on Madison city. The inset identifies its exact source book and publication year.

From A History of Madison, the Capital of Wisconsin : Including the Four Lake Country : to July, 1874, with an Appendix of Notes on Dane County and Its Towns, published 1874 - Madison City

Chapter

Village and Town Elections 1846-49 - Water Power - Celebra¬ tion, July 4, 1846 - Public Cemetery - Dr. C. B. Chapman's and J. T. Clark's Reminiscences - Hope Lodge I. O. O. F. - Knapp's Account of Capitol Grounds - L. J. Farwell's Arrival - First Bell in Madison - Organization of Baptist Church 1847 - Trial of Gross for Murder - Growth of Village, 1848 - State Historical Society, 1849 - State University.

Read the rest of this passage

The ground it stands on

304,850 words

The chapter on Madison City in A History of Madison, the Capital of Wisconsin : Including the Four Lake Country : to July, 1874, with an Appendix of Notes on Dane County and Its Towns, published 1874 names Madison. This is what it says, exactly as the scans read.

The author of this volume has long been impressed with the fact, that much information relative to the early and later history of Madison and adjacent country, had not been written; and that some one should under¬ take the task of compiling the necessary materials for such a work, availing himself of the opportunity now afforded to consult those of our citizens who established themselves here as pioneers and early set¬ tlers, before circumstances should render it impossible to do so. Many of these have passed away ; others have removed to new localities, and the few that now remain, will, in the ordinary course of events, be with us but a short period.

Passage source: A History of Madison, the Capital of Wisconsin : Including the Four Lake Country : to July, 1874, with an Appendix of Notes on Dane County and Its Towns, published 1874.

It is true, that a portion of our history has been written. To Maj. H A. Tenney we are indebted for many interesting facts collected in past time, which were published in a small pamphlet in 1851, and subse¬ quently re-printed. In 1857, Hon. L. C. Draper prepared a similar work, much enlarged ; but these pamphlets, while they accomplished the object of their publication, in drawing public attention to the beauty and desirability of Madison as a place of settlement, did not go into the minutiae of our early history, and necessarily were written up only to the date of publication, and are now out of print. The changes and improvements that have since taken place, have been so marked as to entitle Madison to a history more complete and brought down to the present time, and the present work is designed to supply such a deficiency.

Passage source: A History of Madison, the Capital of Wisconsin : Including the Four Lake Country : to July, 1874, with an Appendix of Notes on Dane County and Its Towns, published 1874.

Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.

Read the whole chapter on Madison City - 304,850 words on its settlement, mills, schools and churches.

Fires near this property

34 since 2007

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 34 fires within 5 miles of University of Wisconsin Memorial Union between 2007 and 2020, burning about 44 acres in total. 1 started naturally. 2 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause	Fires
Missing data/not specified/undetermined	24
Debris and open burning	4
Arson/incendiarism	2
Smoking	2
Natural	1
Recreation and ceremony	1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

Date	Cause	Size	Reported by	Name on the report
9 August 2019	Debris and open burning	under an acre	Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources	242
3 August 2018	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources	1818632
24 August 2020	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources	2019797
14 August 2020	Smoking	under an acre	Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources	2018928
26 July 2020	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	1.0 acres	Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources	2017339
24 June 2018	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources	1815050
15 June 2020	Smoking	1.0 acres	Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources	305
14 June 2020	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources	304

Every fire recorded in Dane County

Mines and quarries near this property

7 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 7 workings within 5 miles of University of Wisconsin Memorial Union: 3 unknowns, 3 producers, 1 past producer. 3 still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Stone, Stone, Crushed/Broken. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Site	Commodity	Status
Williams Quarry	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Past Producer
Fess Quarry	Stone	Unknown
John Hensen Quarry	Stone	Unknown
Blooming Grove Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Producer
Engelhart Sand & Gravel Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Unknown
Norway Grove Gravel Plant	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Producer
Yanggen Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Producer

Every working recorded in Dane County

Storms near this property

60 of 110 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Madison, the town this property stands in, in 110 storm reports between 1994 and 2026: 40 hail, 33 thunderstorm wind, 16 lightning, 8 flood. The reports record 7 injuries. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

When	Event	Place named	Harm	What the report says
July 1997	Lightning	Madison	6 hurt	An off-shoot branch of lightning struck 6 people, knocking them off their feet and causing headaches & numb fingers.
July 1999	Lightning	Madison	1 hurt	no account filed
July 2006	Flash Flood	Madison	$10,000,000	A 1-in-a-100-year flash flood occurred from the west side of Madison to around the Capitol Square after 3 to 5 inches of rain fell within a 90 minute timeframe. There were no reports of injuries or deaths. The heavy rain resulted from slow-moving and back-building thunderstorms that essentially remained nearly stationary over the city of Madison. The hilly terrain and a typical urban setting of a lot of concrete and asphalt enable the runoff water to quickly overwhelm the storm sewers and concentrate water in low-lying areas of the city. Water depths reach to the top of small vehicles - 4 to 5 feet deep in spots. Many roads became impassable due to the flood waters, and many residential homes and businesses on or near the UW-Madison campus had flooded basement and first-floor flooding. Some basement apartment units had water depths of 6 to 8 feet. Nearly all campus buildings had flooding of varying degrees of intensity, and the Camp Randall football field sustained damage. Some campus buildings had flat roofs that quickly flooded as storm drains became plugged - which allowed water to run thru the walls and ceilings of buildings. The buildings that sustained the most damage were the Memorial Union, Computer Sciences, and Veterinary Medicine. Numerous vehicles on or near the campus were damaged or totaled by the flood waters, and some were reported to be floating away. Unofficial rain gages measured 4.5 to 5 inches from just west of West High School up to the Capitol Square. WSR-88D Doppler rainfall estimates were in the 3 to 5 inch rain, therefore it appears the unofficial rain gages were very accurate. Rainfall amounts quickly fell off to 1 to 1.5 inches near the south Beltline (STH14/18/151). It is nearly impossible to assess the monetary value of the flash flood damage, therefore, the amount posted in the header strip of this event is only a ballpark estimate.
April 2006	Hail	Madison	$5,550,000	Hail size ranged from 1.25 to 3.00 inches in diameter.
April 2006	Hail	Madison	$5,550,000	Reported near the UW Campus.
April 2006	Hail	Madison	$5,550,000	no account filed
April 2006	Hail	Madison	$5,550,000	no account filed
April 2006	Hail	Madison	$5,550,000	no account filed
April 2006	Hail	Madison	$5,550,000	no account filed
June 1996	Flash Flood	Madison	$4,000,000	no account filed
June 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$200,000	no account filed
May 2000	Hail	Madison	$200,000	no account filed
July 2006	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$150,000	Bricks were taken off a building in downtown Madison due to severe, hurricane-force wind gusts to an estimated 65 knots (75 mph). Dozens of power-lines were damaged. At least 3 vehicles were either damaged or destroyed by fallen trees. Many roads were blocked by the tree debris. A large tree was toppled onto a home on the near east side of Madison, resulting in minor roof damage.
May 2004	Lightning	Madison	$150,000	no account filed
May 1999	Lightning	Madison	$150,000	no account filed
May 1999	Lightning	Madison	$110,000	no account filed
June 2005	Lightning	Madison	$60,000	Lightning struck 3 condo units, causing 60,000 dollars in damage.
April 1994	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$50,000	no account filed
August 2004	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$30,000	no account filed
August 2002	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$30,000	no account filed
August 2001	Lightning	Madison	$25,000	Lightning struck the middle turret on the south side of the historic 1894 Red Gym on the UW-Madison campus (Dane Co). The outerbrick in a 4' by6' area was blown out, much of the inner brick crumbled, and a hole was knocked out in a ventilation duct, for a total of $25,000 in damage.
August 2001	Lightning	Madison	$20,000	The Trinity Church in Madison sustained damage when it's steeple collapsed due to a lightning fire.
June 1997	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$20,000	no account filed
July 1997	Lightning	Madison	$15,000	A lightning bolt struck a home and started an attic fire.
July 2004	Hail	Madison	$15,000	no account filed
July 1999	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$15,000	no account filed
July 1999	Flash Flood	Madison	$15,000	no account filed
June 2004	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$10,000	no account filed
July 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$10,000	no account filed
July 1997	Lightning	Madison	$6,000	A Madison Gas & Electric substation sustained a direct lightning hit leaving 2800 patrons without power for 3 hours.
June 2022	Thunderstorm Wind	North Madison	$5,000	Roof damage to an apartment complex.
July 2006	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$5,000	Trees and power-lines down near the south Beltline.
April 2002	Lightning	Madison	$5,000	no account filed
April 2002	Lightning	Madison	$5,000	no account filed
June 2000	Lightning	Madison	$5,000	no account filed
July 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$3,000	no account filed
June 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$3,000	no account filed
May 2000	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$2,000	no account filed
May 1999	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$2,000	no account filed
June 1997	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$2,000	no account filed
May 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$1,500	no account filed
June 1999	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$1,000	no account filed
February 1999	Flood	Madison	$1,000	no account filed
June 1998	Lightning	Madison	$700	no account filed
July 1997	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$500	no account filed
June 1997	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$500	no account filed
June 1997	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	$500	no account filed
October 1996	Lightning	Madison	$500	no account filed
July 1997	Lightning	Madison	$200	Lightning struck and damaged a home 's chimney.
April 2026	Funnel Cloud	North Madison	-	Trained spotter reports a funnel cloud to the south of their location in Maple Bluff. Time confirmed via radar data.
April 2026	Hail	North Madison	-	Trained spotter reports 3.5 inch diameter hail east of Maple Bluff.
April 2026	Hail	North Madison	-	Public report of 1 inch diameter hail east of Maple Bluff.
April 2026	Hail	North Madison	-	Trained spotter reports 2.5 inch diameter hail east of Maple Bluff.
October 2023	Hail	North Madison	-	Dented cars on east side of Madison.
July 2020	Heavy Rain	North Madison	-	A flooded street from MATC to Covance after a quick couple inches of rain. Deeper water in low drainage areas adjacent to MATC parking lots.
July 2006	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	-	Several trees fell onto roads, blocking them.
July 2006	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	-	Trees were toppled.
August 2006	Heavy Rain	Madison	-	More heavy rain of 1 to 2 inches on already saturated ground caused some minor urban flooding from around the Madison area to Cottage Grove. One car was stalled after trying to drive through flood waters.
July 1995	Thunderstorm Wind	Madison	-	Scattered severe storms generated powerful winds which knocked down large trees in Cassville (Grant County), and significantly damaged a barn's roof west of Cuba City (Grant County). As another severe storm pushed through Madison (Dane County) it tore numerous large tree branches down throughout the city. Two homes sustained damage to their roofs due to fallen branches. A lightning strike started a fire which destroyed a farm shed, but no animals were hurt. Another lightning strike started a fire which partially destroyed an outbuilding north of Merton (Waukesha County).
November 2022	Hail	North Madison	-	no account filed

Every storm recorded in Dane County

Map coverage status

No historic map-sheet match is published for this property yet. That does not mean no map exists. This record needs a coordinate-quality review before it can be joined to a sheet boundary. Browse the county's mapped places while that work is pending.

Listed places nearby

6 within 8 miles

Other National Register properties close enough to walk or drive between, ordered by distance from this one. Both positions come from the same geocoding pass that matched these properties to their map sheets.

Property	Distance	Listed
Lamb Building	under 500 feet	1984
University Presbyterian Church and Student Center	under 500 feet	2002
State Historical Society of Wisconsin	under 500 feet	1972
University of Wisconsin Science Hall	0.1 miles	1993
Bascom Hill Historic District	0.1 miles	1974
Lathrop Hall	0.2 miles	1985

Sources for this property

National Archives record	The nomination case file for reference 15000255 in Record Group 79.
Wikipedia article	Community-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA.
Dane County	All 238 listed properties in this county.

Provenance

Listing record. National Park Service National Register of Historic Places, listed-properties dataset, current to 2026-05-22.
Map join. Address geocoded through the United States Census geocoder, then tested against the published boundary of every sheet in the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection.
How this page is made. Listing fields come from federal records; map-sheet coverage is a labelled coordinate-to-boundary calculation, not a source-field claim.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.