Photograph of Mabel Tainter Center for the Arts — Photograph by Bobak Ha'Eri, CC BY 3.0. Via Wikimedia Commons.

Mabel Tainter Memorial Building

Built in 1889 (Romanesque Revival architecture). Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.

From the record

“The Mabel Tainter Center for the Arts, originally named the Mabel Tainter Memorial Building and also known as the Mabel Tainter Theater, is a historic landmark in Menomonie, Wisconsin, and is registered on the U.S.”
Wikipedia article Mabel Tainter Memorial Building, CC BY-SA 4.0.

One of 7 National Register listings published here for Dunn County · listed in 1974 · category: Building · built in 1889, Romanesque Revival architecture, by Harvey Ellis.

Sources: the Wikipedia article · the case file at the National Archives · the National Register database, National Park Service

The listing

What is counted as historic. The nomination lists 1 building as contributing to the listing.
Listed as. Tainter, Mabel, Memorial Building - the National Register files a house under its owner's surname.
Address. 205 Main St., Menomonie, 54751
When was it listed? July 1974
Category. building
City. Menomonie city
When was it built? 1889
Architectural style. Romanesque Revival architecture
Architect. Harvey Ellis
National Register reference number. 74000083 - the number the National Park Service assigned this property when it was listed, and the key its nomination file is catalogued under at the National Archives.

Fires near this property

12 since 2007

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 12 fires within 5 miles of Mabel Tainter Memorial Building between 2007 and 2020, burning about 10 acres in total. None started naturally. 4 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	7
Arson/incendiarism	4
Smoking	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
16 August 2020	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources	1745
1 August 2007	Arson/incendiarism	under an acre	Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources	not named
3 June 2020	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	1.0 acres	Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources	1112
7 May 2020	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	1.0 acres	Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources	909
5 May 2018	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources	931
13 May 2019	Arson/incendiarism	under an acre	Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources	1151
12 May 2020	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources	946
11 May 2020	Missing data/not specified/undetermined	under an acre	Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources	939

Every fire recorded in Dunn County

Mines and quarries near this property

10 of 16 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 16 workings within 5 miles of Mabel Tainter Memorial Building: 8 past producers, 4 producers, 3 occurrences, 1 unknown. 4 still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Stone, Crushed/Broken, Stone, Sand and Gravel, Industrial/Frac Sand. 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
Menomonie Mine	Sand and Gravel, Industrial/Frac Sand	Producer
Own Crews	Stone	Unknown
Irvington Dolomite Deposit	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Occurrence
Little Elk Creek Shale Quarry	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Past Producer
Township of Red Cedar Quarry	Stone, Crushed/Broken	Past Producer
Cedar Falls Gravel Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Past Producer
Dunn Cnty Hwy Dept. Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Producer
Lake Menomin Gravel Deposit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Occurrence
Lake Menomin Gravel Pit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Past Producer
Menomonie Gravel Deposit	Sand and Gravel, Construction	Occurrence

Every working recorded in Dunn County

Storms near this property

60 of 72 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Menomonie, the town this property stands in, in 72 storm reports between 1994 and 2025: 35 thunderstorm wind, 27 hail, 4 lightning, 2 funnel cloud. The reports record 1 death and 11 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
August 2021	Lightning	Menomonie	1 killed, 1 hurt	Lightning struck two construction workers. One died and the other was transported to a local hospital with serious injuries.
May 1998	Tornado (F2)	Menomonie	8 hurt, $400,000	Two people severely injured during house collapse. Two homes destroyed. Several barns and sheds were also demolished. 6 people suffered minor injuries. One mobile home destroyed.
May 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	2 hurt, $300,000	Trailer home destroyed. Damage estimate for entire county.
June 2002	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	$250,000	Numerous trees down, some on homes, outbuildings and sheds.
May 2001	Hail	Menomonie	$100,000	Numerous cars damaged.
June 2001	Lightning	Menomonie	$83,000	Lightning struck a barn and set it on fire.
August 2009	Lightning	Menomonie	$65,000	Lightning struck a pine tree which fell on a home in Memomonie, Wisconsin and caused a house fire.
April 2002	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	$50,000	Narrow swath of wind damage. Roof off barn. Old, abandoned wooden one-room schoolhouse collapsed. Several outbuildings down. Downburst wind per NWS damage survey.
May 1994	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	$50,000	no account filed
July 2005	Lightning	Menomonie	$30,000	The chimney of a vacant home on county highway Y was struck by lightning. The resulting fire caused $30,000 damage to the structure.
June 2021	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	$25,000	Scattered trees and power lines were blown down near and south of Menomonie. One of the trees damaged an apartment building near a high school.
June 1997	Tornado (F1)	Menomonie	$22,000	Shed destroyed. Corn stalks driven into the seams of house siding.
July 2025	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	Report of power lines and trees down in Menomonie.
July 2025	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	Multiple power lines and trees downed near Menomonie. Some minor roof damage was reported as well.
July 2023	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	The storm caused numerous large tree branches down around the town of Menomonie. Some branches were estimated to be at least 8 inches in diameter. In addition, the Menomonie ASOS measured a 53 mph wind gust.
July 2020	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	A downburst likely occurred in the city of Menomonie as a few power lines were blown down, and a large tree was snapped off 10 feet above the ground on the north side of Menomonie.
August 2018	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	A large tree was blown down in Menomonie.
April 2017	Hail	Menomonie	-	Mainly pea sized with a few as large as pennies.
June 2016	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	Multiple trees and power lines were blown down throughout the city of Menomonie and the adjacent town of Cedar Falls. Approximately 6000 customers were affected by power outages due to downed power lines.
June 2013	Flash Flood	Menomonie	-	Due to excessive rainfall, 10th Avenue (which runs through the University of Wisconsin - Stout) was closed due to flooding.
June 2012	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	An eight inch diameter tree was snapped in half.
July 2011	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	A large tree was blown over.
July 2011	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	An eight inch diameter tree was toppled across 770th Avenue, between Highway 40 and 808th Street.
July 2010	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	A wind gust of 51 knots was reported by the Menomonie Airport AWOS.
July 2008	Thunderstorm Wind	North Menomonie	-	One tree reported felled.
July 2008	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	Six to 8 inch tree limbs toppled.
August 2007	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	Two twelve inch pine trees downed.
August 2007	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	Large four inch branches down at intersection of 29th and 21st St. Power lines and street lights were also downed in Menomonie.
August 2007	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	One home received partial structural damage. Light poles and power lines were also reported down.
July 2007	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	Numerous trees down from Menomonie to Tainter Lake.
July 2006	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	Eight inch tree down at high school.
July 2006	Hail	Menomonie	-	Hail occurred from one mile west of Menomonie to north side of Menomonie.
October 2006	Hail	Menomonie	-	Several reports of hail came from Menomonie, especially the south side of town. The hail lasted 10 minutes in some areas.
June 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	Numerous trees were downed on the south side of town. A wind gust of 67 MPH was measured at the Menomonie airport.
July 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	Trees and power lines were downed.
July 2005	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	Several trees, including one Oak up to 16 inches in diameter, were downed.
May 2004	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	Trees were downed in Menomonie and Otter Creek Township. The time was estimated.
June 2004	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	A tree was downed in the northeast portion of Menomonie and in rural northern Dunn County.
August 2004	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	Trees and power lines were downed. A garage was damaged by a fallen tree on Tainter Street. A dock and boat were also damaged.
June 2002	Flash Flood	Menomonie	-	Nearly four inches of rain fell in less than two hours. Street flooding was the result, including water to three feet on Stokie Parkway.
September 2002	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	Few trees down.
May 2001	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	Several 18 inch diameter trees down.
May 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	Home destroyed. Estimated windspeeds.
June 1998	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	Trees blown down. Estimated windspeed.
August 1995	Thunderstorm Wind	Menomonie	-	Trees and power lines down.
August 2023	Hail	Menomonie	-	no account filed
September 2022	Hail	Menomonie	-	no account filed
June 2016	Hail	Menomonie	-	no account filed
July 2015	Hail	Menomonie	-	no account filed
August 2014	Hail	Menomonie	-	no account filed
May 2013	Hail	Menomonie	-	no account filed
August 2013	Hail	Menomonie	-	no account filed
May 2012	Hail	Menomonie	-	no account filed
May 2011	Hail	Menomonie	-	no account filed
May 2011	Hail	Menomonie	-	no account filed
July 2010	Funnel Cloud	Menomonie	-	no account filed
July 2008	Hail	Menomonie	-	no account filed
July 2007	Hail	Menomonie	-	no account filed
July 2006	Hail	Menomonie	-	no account filed
July 2006	Hail	Menomonie	-	no account filed

Every storm recorded in Dunn 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

5 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
Menomonie Omaha Depot	0.2 miles	2018
Louis Smith Tainter House	0.2 miles	1974
Menomonie Downtown Historic District	0.3 miles	1986
Evergreen Cemetery	1.3 miles	2006
Downsville Lodge No. 1961 I.O.O.F.	7.0 miles	2017

Sources for this property

National Archives record	The nomination case file for reference 74000083 in Record Group 79.
Wikipedia article	Community-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA.
Dunn County	All 7 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.