Near Milwaukee Street, 0.1 miles west of Congress Street.
Among those contributing to the nation’s westward expansion in the nineteenth century and to Wisconsin’s early development were members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons). In 1835, Moses Smith helped establish Burlington . . . — — Map (db m103980) HM
On Northwestern Avenue (County Route K) at County Route H, on the right when traveling west on Northwestern Avenue.
Skunk Grove was a stopping place for travelers in an uncharted wilderness on the mail route between Green Bay and Chicago. It was located about 200 yards southeast of this marker, where the trail crossed the stream now known as Hood’s Creek.
By . . . — — Map (db m34219) HM
On State Highway 31 at Five Mile Road on State Highway 31.
In 1850, Czech immigrants from Bohemia and Moravia, now regions in the Czech Republic, established a rural settlement between Five Mile and Seven Mile Roads in Caledonia Township. This early settlement known as “Ceska Betlemska” or . . . — — Map (db m34224) HM
On Main Street (State Highway 32) north of 6th Street (State Highway 32), on the left when traveling north.
In memory of Racine's
loyal and noble sons
who enlisted to defend
and perpetuate the union
of these United States in the
War of 1861-1865 — — Map (db m69196) WM
On N. Main Street at Goold Street, on the right when traveling north on N. Main Street.
Cream Brick Cottages Racine’s rapid and diversified industrial growth after the Civil War attracted a large working population to the city. Desiring their own homes, many workers built modest cottages of similar design in wood or brick. A high . . . — — Map (db m34263) HM
On Washington Avenue (State Highway 32) at 6th Street, on the right when traveling west on Washington Avenue.
The Building
The City of Racine purchased the site in 1869 for $1,000, but deferred the actual construction of a new building for over a decade. After several unsuccessful bids for an engine house, Alderman Lucius Blake convinced the . . . — — Map (db m69162) HM
On Michigan Boulevard at High Street, on the right when traveling north on Michigan Boulevard.
This memorial is dedicated in memory of Capt Gilbert Knapp who founded Racine, Wisconsin in the year 1834
This memorial is a bequest to the City of Racine by Herman C. Menge — — Map (db m69197) HM
On Main Street (State Highway 32) north of 6th Street (State Highway 32), on the left when traveling north.
[Front]
Jerome Increase Case
Inventor, developer and manufacturer of mechanized threshing machines and steam traction engines; business leader, mayor of Racine, state senator; president of Racine County Agricultural Society, founder of . . . — — Map (db m69185) HM
John M. Anderson, elephant trainer with the Great Wallace Circus Show, died in Racine on June 3, 1898 at the age of 54 when he was killed by his elephant. — — Map (db m109266) HM
On Main Street (State Highway 32) north of 6th Street (State Highway 32), on the left when traveling north.
Haymarket Square.
On March 10, 1854, the largest crowd that had ever assembled here met to protest the capture of Joshua Glover, a fugitive slave who had lived and worked in Racine for two years. A committee of 100 then took a boat to . . . — — Map (db m69183) HM
Mound Cemetery derives its name from the fourteen prehistoric Indian mounds found here.
On February 3, 1851 this land was purchased by Norman Clark and James Kinzie of the village of Racine, from Joseph Ouilmett the Indian of Wausau, . . . — — Map (db m68645) HM
On Washington Avenue (State Highway 32) at 6th Street, on the right when traveling west on Washington Avenue.
The Building
In 1929, the Racine Common Council began the process of creating a new City Hall. The council received two design proposals: one from local architect J. Mandor Matson and another from a Chicago firm. The mayor and aldermen . . . — — Map (db m69164) HM
On South Main Street at 7th Street, on the right when traveling north on South Main Street.
Erected in 1904 with a Carnegie grant and the efforts of dedicated local people, this Bedford stone structure was Racine’s first specifically designed library building. The architect was John Mauran of St. Louis and the builder A.H. Harcus of . . . — — Map (db m47727) HM
On Main Street (State Highway 32) north of 6th Street (State Highway 32), on the left when traveling north.
This block of land was known as Market Square when Racine was laid out as a village in 1837. This area was covered with shade trees, was the location of the town pump, and was used by the early settlers as a place to by and sell produce.
The . . . — — Map (db m69195) HM
In the mid-1800s, fugitive slaves traveled to Racine, hid in local sanctuaries, and embarked on the maritime connection of the Underground Railroad. Ships of abolition-friendly Great Lakes captains took them to Canadian ports and their freedom. The . . . — — Map (db m134929) HM
Near 12th Street, 0.1 miles north of Washington Avenue.
Three American Revolution patriots rest in this cemetery. A fourth soldier is also recognized here.
Elisha Raymond was born in 1761. In 1776, at age 15, he enlisted in the Rhode Island Militia and completed seven tours of duty. In 1835, he . . . — — Map (db m34298) HM
On South Main Street at Fourteenth Street, on the right when traveling north on South Main Street.
Southside Historic District Extending west from Lake Michigan to Park Avenue and south from Eighth Street to DeKoven Avenue, Racine’s Southside Historic District contains one of Wisconsin’s highest concentrations of grand historic houses. . . . — — Map (db m34265) HM
On South Main Street at 10th Street, on the right when traveling south on South Main Street.
(side A)
The Blake House
Italian Villa in style, this cream brick house was built in 1868 for George and Roxilana Bull. Lucius and Caroline Blake purchased the house in 1873 and it remained in the family until 1926.
Most . . . — — Map (db m47801) HM
On Pershing Park Drive at 6th Street, on the right when traveling north on Pershing Park Drive.
Racine's Harbor has gone through many transformations since the city's first settlers arrived. In 1836 the Root River entered the lake near the center of today's Gaslight Pointe. While the river channel was as much as 15 feet deep, the entrance . . . — — Map (db m69181) HM
In 1873 the Rev. Dr. J.W. Carhart of Racine designed and operated the first light self-propelled highway vehicle in the United States, and probably the first in the world. He named it the Spark. It was driven by a two cylinder steam engine, steered . . . — — Map (db m34220) HM
On Washington Avenue (State Highway 32) at 6th Street, on the right when traveling west on Washington Avenue.
The City of Racine dedicates this flagpole to the veterans of our community who have served with honor in the Armed Forces of the United States of America — — Map (db m69160) WM
On South Sylvania Avenue, 0.2 miles south of Braun Road, on the right when traveling south.
(obverse)
Patriot Helmont Kellogg was born on March 17, 1762 in New Hartford, Connecticut.
Helmont served four different hitches in the Connecticut Militia during the Revolution; as a drummer in 1777 in Colonel Adam's Regiment; for . . . — — Map (db m54068) HM
Near South Main Street (U.S. 45) 0.5 miles south of Durand Avenue (Wisconsin Highway 11).
Resting in this cemetery is a Militia veteran who fought in the American Revolutionary War of 1776-1783. In the last years of his life, he moved to Wisconsin and helped found what is now known as the Union Grove Congregational Church. He served as . . . — — Map (db m54069) HM
On Heg Park Road at Norway Hill Road, on the right when traveling north on Heg Park Road.
Under the leadership of John Luraas, forty pioneers came to Muskego Lake from Norway in 1839, to found one of the most important settlements in Norwegian-American history. After temporary set-backs, the settlement flourished here through the . . . — — Map (db m34221) HM
The deck capstan (or windlass) was used on 19th Century schooners to raise the anchor or sails, and to load & unload cargo. By the 1880's, some schooners were equipped with a steam-powered donkey engine to speed the work. — — Map (db m225179) HM
1880: Two wooden buildings
1900: Replaced with brick structure
Signal Equipment:
Browne 1st Class Auto Compressed Air
Siren driven by Hornsby-Akroyd engine
Two Copper Trumpets (still in place
above doors)
Crosby Automatic Time . . . — — Map (db m69211) HM
Flammable liquids were stored here, away from the Keeper's House which had wood burning stoves. Lamp oil was carried from here to the tower top in five gallon cans. Note the vents on the front and rear walls to carry away flammable fumes. Oil . . . — — Map (db m69198) HM
East of the oil house are the remains of a T-shaped pier which jutted into the lake. The "Hyacinth", a Coast Guard tender, would dock there periodically to bring supplies, kerosene, the "library book box" and a welcome visit from . . . — — Map (db m225142) HM
This rail was used to carry the surf boat from in front of the oil house to the end of the pier where the surf boat was lowered into the lake by jib hoist. — — Map (db m69200) HM
Orlando Metcalfe Poe (1832-1895) was the architect of the Wind Point
Lighthouse. In 1865, Poe was named chief engineer of the U.S. Lighthouse Board. He designed and oversaw the construction of nine lighthouses on Lake Huron, Lake Michigan and Lake . . . — — Map (db m225186) HM
The Wind Point Light Station has had fog signals from the very first days. The horns used a steam engine to force compressed air through the horn to make the sound. In 1880, two separate wooden structures housed the two fog horns.
In 1900, . . . — — Map (db m225237) HM
In 1893 a fuel house was erected to house the kerosene fuel for the light. The U.S.
Lighthouse Service had mandated separate storage of the highly flammable fuel. In 1910, the current concrete fuel house replaced the original. There are two . . . — — Map (db m225180) HM
The lighthouse was originally fitted with a one-ton, five-foot tall Fresnel lens manufactured in France. This 12-sided lens surrounded a kerosene lamp with multiple wicks. Three hundred hand ground optical glass prisms and 12 bullseyes concentrated . . . — — Map (db m225253) HM
In 1878, the U.S. Congress appropriated $40,000 to build the Wind Point Light Station for operation by the U.S. Lighthouse Service. At the time, Racine was the fifth busiest port in the Great Lakes region. Ships were the primary means of . . . — — Map (db m226014) HM
To assist navigation around the point into Racine harbor, the Wind Point Lighthouse began functioning in 1880 with a kerosene lamp, focused and magnified by a third order Fresnel lens. Its light could be seen for 19 miles.
At 108 feet, it is . . . — — Map (db m225139) HM
On Old Yorkville Road at 63rd Road, on the right when traveling west on Old Yorkville Road.
This one-room Italianate-style schoolhouse has been the center of this Yorkville community since the building’s construction in 1885. Built at a time when one-room schoolhouses dominated rural education in Wisconsin, the building also served as a . . . — — Map (db m185569) HM
