Built 1902 Opened 1902 Added to NRHP 17 June 1982 | NRHP Reference # 82000660 Area 800 m² | |
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Architectural style Second Empire architecture Similar Henry Vilas Zoo, Camp Randall Stadium, Chazen Museum of Art, Gates of Heaven Synagogue, Lake Monona | ||
The John J. Suhr House is a historic house located on Langdon Street, Madison, Wisconsin, United States.
History
Built in 1886, the house was admitted to the National Register of Historic Places listings in Dane County, Wisconsin on June 17, 1982. The residence was built in the French Second Empire architectural style by the local prominent architect Captain John Nader, who also designed Holy Redeemer Catholic Church (1869), St. Patrick's Catholic Church (1888–89), the Suhr Bank Building (1887), and the city's first sewer system. The house features a mansard roof, stone window trim and fancy woodwork on the bays. Additional construction occurred in 1902.
The house's first owner, John J. Suhr, was certainly an example of the American dream. He was born in Bremen, Germany, in 1836 and immigrated to Madison in 1857. He worked as a bookkeeper in the State Bank until 1871, when he founded the German Bank. He changed the name of the bank to the German-American Bank in 1885. This change represented the community bonds that were forming across nationalistic lines. Shortly thereafter, he had the honor of entertaining President Grover Cleveland. John J. Suhr died in 1901. His family owned and resided in the Suhr House for two generations until the death of John J. Suhr's son, John J. Suhr, Jr., in 1957.
The house currently serves as student housing in what has become a boisterous off-campus neighborhood. The houses on Langdon Street have been converted from mostly single family homes to sorority and fraternity residences and student housing.