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Photograph of Washburn Public Library
Photograph by Billertl, CC BY-SA 3.0. Via Wikimedia Commons.

Washburn Public Library

Built in 1904 (Neoclassical architecture). Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

From the record

“The Washburn Public Library is a Carnegie library in Washburn, Wisconsin, United States. The library was built in 1904; it was the first permanent home for Washburn's library program, which began in 1891 and had previously operated out of City Hall.”

Wikipedia article Washburn Public Library, CC BY-SA 4.0.

One of 21 National Register listings published here for Bayfield County · listed in 1984 · category: Building · built in 1904, Neoclassical architecture, by Henry Wildhagen.

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.
  • Address. Washington Ave. and W. 3rd St., Washburn, 54891
  • When was it listed? March 1984
  • Category. building
  • City. Washburn city
  • When was it built? 1904
  • Architectural style. Neoclassical architecture
  • Architect. Henry Wildhagen
  • National Register reference number. 84003621 - 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

47 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 47 fires within 5 miles of Washburn Public Library between 1992 and 2019, burning about 46 acres in total. 2 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 burning14
Missing data/not specified/undetermined13
Equipment and vehicle use7
Power generation/transmission/distribution4
Smoking4
Natural2
Recreation and ceremony1
Misuse of fire by a minor1
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
29 September 2006Debris and open burningunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
10 September 2006Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
28 August 2000Naturalunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
2 August 2007Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
19 August 2012Debris and open burningunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural ResourcesTEZNER'S FIRE
3 July 2006Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural Resourcesnot named
24 July 2018Debris and open burningunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural ResourcesBIG ROCK FIRE
19 July 2006Arson/incendiarismunder an acreWisconsin Department of Natural Resourcesnot named

Every fire recorded in Bayfield County

Mines and quarries near this property

6 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 6 workings within 5 miles of Washburn Public Library: 5 past producers, 1 unknown. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Flagstone. 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
Bayview Sandstone QuarryFlagstonePast Producer
Bayfield County Gravel Pit #1Sand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Bayfield County Gravel Pit #2Sand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Crooked Lake PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionUnknown
Dan Maxcy Gravel DepositSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Town of Bayview Gravel PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer

Every working recorded in Bayfield County

Storms near this property

27 since 1995

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Washburn, the town this property stands in, in 27 storm reports between 1995 and 2026: 14 hail, 12 thunderstorm wind, 1 flash flood. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. 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
July 2016Flash FloodWashburn$1,000There was flash flooding in Washburn with backups from storm drains in town. There were several inches of water on roadways.
April 2026Thunderstorm WindWashburn-Nevers Road reported impassable with photos of trees completely blocking the road. Several trees were also damaged at corner of Nevers Road and Highway 13.
March 2025HailWashburn-Hail accumulated to a depth of 1 inch.
June 2025Thunderstorm WindWashburn-A tree fell on a powerline bringing the powerline down and across a road.
July 2023Thunderstorm WindWashburn-Several trees were down onto the roadway.
July 2023Thunderstorm WindWashburn-Trees were down along Lakeshore Drive.
May 2022Thunderstorm WindWashburn-A few trees were uprooted by the wind.
July 2019Thunderstorm WindWashburn-Multiple trees were reported down in Washburn with photos received as well.
July 2016Thunderstorm WindWashburn-There were 8 to 9 diameter trees down and the power was out. There were other trees damaged.
July 2016Thunderstorm WindWashburn-A large tree was blown down. Report forwarded by the media.
July 2007Thunderstorm WindWashburn-Large tree limbs downed.
June 2002Thunderstorm WindWashburn-Trees were blown down.
September 1995Thunderstorm WindWashburn-Many trees and large limbs were blown down. Hail of undetermined size damaged vehicles and knocked out windows.
March 2025HailWashburn-no account filed
March 2025HailWashburn-no account filed
March 2025HailWashburn-no account filed
March 2025HailWashburn-no account filed
March 2025HailWashburn-no account filed
March 2025HailWashburn-no account filed
July 2019HailWashburn-no account filed
August 2018HailWashburn-no account filed
June 2014HailWashburn-no account filed
June 2006HailWashburn-no account filed
October 2004HailWashburn-no account filed
July 2002HailWashburn-no account filed
June 1998Thunderstorm WindWashburn-no account filed
September 1996HailWashburn-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Bayfield 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

4 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
Bank of Washburn0.2 miles1980
Bayfield County Courthouse0.3 miles1975
East Third Street Residential Historic District0.3 miles2014
Bayfield Fish Hatchery8.0 miles1981

Sources for this property

National Archives recordThe nomination case file for reference 84003621 in Record Group 79.
Wikipedia articleCommunity-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA.
Bayfield CountyAll 21 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.