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Photograph of Miller House
Photograph by TheCatalyst31, CC0 1.0. Via Wikimedia Commons.

Miller House

Built in 1845 (Greek Revival architecture). Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.

From the record

“The Miller House is a brick house built in Greek Revival style about 1845 in Cooksville, Wisconsin. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 and on the State Register of Historic Places in 1989.”

Wikipedia article Miller House (Cooksville, Wisconsin), CC BY-SA 4.0.

One of 141 National Register listings published here for Rock County · listed in 1980 · category: Building · built in 1845, Greek Revival architecture.

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

The listing

  • What is counted as historic. The nomination lists 1 building as contributing to the listing.
  • Address. SR 1, Evansville, 53536
  • When was it listed? September 1980
  • Category. building
  • Also known as. Cooksville MRA
  • Town. Porter town
  • When was it built? 1845
  • Architectural style. Greek Revival architecture
  • National Register reference number. 80000399 - 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.

The ground it stands on

2,525 words

This property stands in Porter Town. The History of Rock County, Wisconsin; Its Early Settlement, Growth, Development, Resources, Etc., published 1879 gives that township a chapter of its own.

The chapter covers the township.

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 Porter Town - 2,525 words on its settlement, mills, schools and churches.

Fires near this property

11 since 2006

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 11 fires within 5 miles of Miller House between 2006 and 2020, burning about 73 acres in total. None started naturally. 1 was 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
Debris and open burning5
Missing data/not specified/undetermined3
Equipment and vehicle use1
Recreation and ceremony1
Arson/incendiarism1

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

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
5 May 2013Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural ResourcesTRAILER DRAGGING
1 May 2020Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural Resources54
9 April 2019Debris and open burningunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural Resources2019076
8 April 2019Arson/incendiarismunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural ResourcesBADFISH
5 April 2006Debris and open burning41 acresLeopold Wetland Management DistrictLUND CONVERSION
29 April 2018Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural Resources136
14 April 2006Debris and open burning12 acresSt. Croix Wetland Management DistrictSUMMERSET
29 March 2016Debris and open burning10 acresLeopold Wetland Management DistrictGRASS LAKE WF

Every fire recorded in Rock County

Mines and quarries near this property

8 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 8 workings within 5 miles of Miller House: 6 past producers, 2 producers. 2 still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, 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.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Halverson QuarryStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer
Reindahl QuarriesStone, Crushed/BrokenProducer
Rock County Highway DepartmentStone, Crushed/BrokenPast Producer
Brunsell PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Brunsell PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Knutson PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Stearns PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Union PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer

Every working recorded in Rock County

Storms near this property

60 of 64 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Evansville, the town this property stands in, in 64 storm reports between 1993 and 2025: 39 thunderstorm wind, 13 hail, 3 funnel cloud, 3 heavy rain. The reports record 4 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.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
August 2000Thunderstorm WindEvansville2 hurt, $5,000,000no account filed
June 1999Thunderstorm WindEvansville2 hurt, $3,000no account filed
August 2007Flash FloodEvansville$500,000Several rounds of thunderstorms with heavy rains on top of a saturated ground resulted in scattered flash flooding from the Evansville area to the Janesville vicinity. Water damage to basement contents and/or basement walls, as well as fast-flowing water depths of 6 inches to 1 foot on roads, were reported in the Civil Towns of Avon, Fulton, Magnolia, Union, and Plymouth. Some soil erosion, gravel washouts, and crop damage were noted. Badfish Crreek and Allen Creek just east and northeast of Evansville exceeded flood stages by 3 to 5 feet and overflowed adjacent roads.||August, 2007, rainfall totals include: 17.39 at Afton, 13.15 in Beloit, 16.24 in Clinton, 15.22 in Milton, and over 17 in Janesville.
August 1993Thunderstorm WindEvansville$500,000no account filed
April 2001Thunderstorm WindEvansville$300,000no account filed
August 2007Heavy RainEvansville$150,000Urban and small stream flooding occurred across the northern third of Rock County after 3 to 4 inches of rain fell overnight. Water depths on roads reached a foot, especially in the Evansville and Edgerton areas, however no roads were closed. Reports indicated that the flood waters were not fast flowing, nor did they pose a danger to the public. Some crop damage was noted. Overnight rainfall of 6.4 inches were measured by a spotter in Edgerton. Local residents near Badfish Creek, west of Cooksville, noted that this creek flooded and merged with Frog Pond Creek and the water was 3.5 feet deep between the creeks.
June 2008Thunderstorm WindEvansville$75,000Powerful thunderstorm winds knocked down large trees and power-lines.
June 2011Thunderstorm WindEvansville$50,000This was a heat burst - generated by a decaying convective rain shower band which resulted in evaporation of most of the rain that caused gusty southwest winds and rising temperatures of 10 to 20 degrees F. Two trailers in Edgerton were blown over and damaged: one was construction trailer and the other a semi-truck trailer. Also - a racetrack concession stand was demolished by the winds. Additionally, a few large trees were blown down and broken tree limbs knocked some power lines down. The damage swath was about 5 miles wide.
May 2006Thunderstorm WindEvansville$25,000Pole barn, furniture, and tree damage.
July 2015Thunderstorm WindEvansville$20,000Twenty reports of branches and trees down across the county.
July 2011LightningEvansville$20,000Lightning struck a farm outside of Evansville in Rock County. Windows were shattered in the garage as well as double-pane windows on the front of the house. The foundation of the garage cracked. A car stored in the garage was declared a total loss, while a motorcycle incurred minor damage. Glass from kitchen cupboards and from pictures knocked off the wall covered kitchen counters and the floor. Circuit breakers in the home were blown out, and the telephone pedestal box outside the home was blown to the other side of the road.
June 2009Thunderstorm WindEvansville$15,000Seveal large trees were toppled and a couple power-lines down sustained damage due to tree debris. A tree fell on a car.
July 2024Thunderstorm WindEvansville$10,000Scattered trees down across the county including trees down on Weary Rd. southeast of Evansville. Some wooden boards were blown off a horse fence near Weary Rd. A measured 63 mph wind gust on the west side of Evansville and an estimated wind gust of 70 mph on Weary Rd.
March 2023Thunderstorm WindEvansville$10,000Downburst winds just north of Evansville and affecting a portion of a golf course. Numerous trees down leaning in a west to north direction.
June 2015Thunderstorm WindEvansville$10,000Numerous trees down in northern Rock County.
July 2008Thunderstorm WindEvansville$10,000Powerful thunderstorm wind gusts toppled several large trees and broke branches that brought down some power-lines.
August 2007Heavy RainEvansville$10,000Training thunderstorms moved east-southeast across portions of Rock County and dumped heavy rains overnight into the pre-dawn hours of August 5th. Although there wasn't a flash flood event, some basement flooding was noted due to drain-backups and sump pump failures. Consequently some basement contents sustained water damage. Additionally, many small creeks or streams in Rock County reached bankfull or flood stage; although no problems or road closures were noted. Specific rainfall totals include 5.45 at a spotter's location 4.9 miles southeast of Janesville, 4.5 in Evansville, 4.22 at a co-op site in Afton, 3.72 at a co-op site in Clinton, and 3.45 in Milton. Refer to the Flash Flood event for Iowa County on August 5, 2007, for related details.
October 1996Thunderstorm WindEvansville$10,000no account filed
July 2016Thunderstorm WindEvansville$8,000Numerous trees down in Evansville.
May 2013Thunderstorm WindEvansville$5,000Law enforcement officials reported a few trees, tree branches and power lines downed by thunderstorm wind gusts estimated at 60 mph (52 knots).
May 2012Thunderstorm WindEvansville$5,000A trained spotter reported trees were downed by severe thunderstorm winds in the town of Evansville.
August 2000Tornado (F0)Evansville$5,000Narrative is incorporated in discussion of August 5th storms below.
June 1995Thunderstorm WindEvansville$5,000no account filed
July 2023Thunderstorm WindEvansville$4,000Trees down in the Evansville area.
September 2012Thunderstorm WindEvansville$4,000A trained spotter reported trees were blown down by damaging thunderstorm wind gusts estimated to be 56 knots (64 mph) along a path from Evansville to 5 miles east-northeast of Milton.
June 2000Thunderstorm WindEvansville$3,000no account filed
July 1998Thunderstorm WindEvansville$3,000no account filed
June 1998Thunderstorm WindEvansville$3,000no account filed
July 2025Thunderstorm WindEvansville$2,000Trees down across a roadway.
July 2003Thunderstorm WindEvansville$2,000no account filed
July 2024FloodEvansville$1,000Water had flowed over portions of highway 59 and highway 104 in far western Rock County. Water also had flowed over the intersection of County Road A and Old 92.
June 2014Thunderstorm WindEvansville$1,000A moving car was blown off the road when straight line winds struck.
August 1997Thunderstorm WindEvansville$1,000no account filed
April 2025HailEvansville-Picture provided.
April 2025HailEvansville-Numerous hail damage to vehicles, siding, and roofs in Evansville. Gusty winds accompanied the very large hail.
July 2024Tornado (EF0)Evansville-Damage reports from two local storm chasers showed a tornadic path southwest of Evansville. Video from a resident on the SW side of Evansville showed the tornado moving through mainly farmland, which was confirmed via satellite and ground surveys. Main damage was to a wheat field and a tree line.
July 2012Thunderstorm WindEvansville-Law enforcement officials reported trees and power lines were blown down by severe thunderstorm wind gusts estimated at 61 knots (70 mph).
June 2011Thunderstorm WindEvansville-Officials reported up to 40 large trees uprooted, and numerous branches broken by powerful thunderstorm winds.
June 2011Thunderstorm WindEvansville-Powerful thunderstorm winds pushed over dozens of large trees, and broken tree branches snapped several power lines in a 7-mile wide swath from Evansville to Milton. In the Township of Milton, on STH 59, the skeleton of a old barn was blown down.
August 2009Thunderstorm WindEvansville-Damaging thunderstorm winds gusts blew trees down over roads in the city of Evansville.
June 2008Thunderstorm WindEvansville-Powerful thunderstorm winds gusts knocked down several large trees.
August 2007Heavy RainEvansville-Heavy thunderstorm rains resulted in minor small stream and urban street flooding across Rock County for the 2nd straight night. A minor mudslide, about 20 x 30 feet in areal coverage, occurred on the southeast side of Janesville, and temporarily threatened an apartment building. Several streets in Janesville were closed for a few hours until the water drained away. Specific 24-hour rainfall totals ending about 0600CST August 6th include 4.25 at a spotter's location 4.9 miles southeast of Janesville, 3.88 in Janesville, 3.5 just east of Brodhead, and 3.25 at co-op site in Evansville.
April 2025HailEvansville-no account filed
April 2025HailEvansville-no account filed
July 2025Thunderstorm WindEvansville-no account filed
May 2018HailEvansville-no account filed
May 2012HailEvansville-no account filed
July 2012HailEvansville-no account filed
June 2008Funnel CloudEvansville-no account filed
March 2007HailEvansville-no account filed
August 2006HailEvansville-no account filed
June 2005Thunderstorm WindEvansville-no account filed
May 2005Funnel CloudEvansville-no account filed
May 2004Funnel CloudEvansville-no account filed
June 2003Thunderstorm WindEvansville-no account filed
June 2003Thunderstorm WindEvansville-no account filed
April 2002HailEvansville-no account filed
May 2001Thunderstorm WindEvansville-no account filed
September 2001Thunderstorm WindEvansville-no account filed
June 1999HailEvansville-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Rock 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.

Photograph PropertyDistance Listed
Cooksville Historic District (Boundary Increase)0.5 miles1980
Cooksville Cheese Factory0.5 miles1980
Cooksville Historic District0.5 miles1973
John T. Dow House0.6 miles1980
Cooksville Mill and Mill Pond Site0.7 miles1980
Cooper-Gillies House0.8 miles1980

Sources for this property

National Archives recordThe nomination case file for reference 80000399 in Record Group 79.
Wikipedia articleCommunity-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA.
Rock CountyAll 141 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.