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Erastus Dean Farmstead

Farms on the National Register of Historic Places in WisconsinNational Register of Historic Places in Rock County, WisconsinWisconsin Registered Historic Place stubs
Erastus Dean Farmstead 1
Erastus Dean Farmstead 1

The Erastus Dean Farmstead in Bradford, Wisconsin is probably the oldest complex of farm buildings in Rock County, with the house built in 1840 and the barn in 1844. The farm was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978 and on the State Register of Historic Places in 1989.Erastus Dean came to Emerald Grove from Vermont in the winter of 1837-1838 after an early career which included mission work among the Cherokees in Tennessee. He was the first settler in Bradford township. About 1840 he began to build the house that still stands. He built a store in Emerald Grove and eventually bought 1,000 acres from the government at $1.25 per acre.Erastus built the first 24x24 foot section of the house from oak logs he cut nearby and squared to six by eight inch timbers, according to his grandson William Allen Dean. He clad the house in siding sawed in Milwaukee, which was the nearest sawmill at that time, and built the 14x24-foot limestone addition soon after. The resulting structure is 1.5 stories, with a saltbox profile, unadorned. Three families lived in the house the first winter, school was taught in one room, and the house hosted the first church services in the area. The grandson heard that an Indian trail ran through the yard and passing Indians sometimes slept on the floor in the house.About 1844 the main barn was added, 60x64 feet, framed with hand-squared timbers, with space for horses and cattle below and a hay mow above. East of the main barn is a tobacco barn, 63x42 feet, built in the 1800s. East of that is a horse or sheep barn and other structures.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Erastus Dean Farmstead (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Erastus Dean Farmstead
US 14;WI 11, Town of Bradford

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N 42.655555555556 ° E -88.880555555556 °
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US 14;WI 11
53505 Town of Bradford
Wisconsin, United States
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Erastus Dean Farmstead 1
Erastus Dean Farmstead 1
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La Prairie Grange Hall No. 79
La Prairie Grange Hall No. 79

La Prairie Grange Hall No. 79, also known as the La Prairie Town Hall, is a historic two-story wooden Grange hall built in 1874 in La Prairie, Rock County, Wisconsin. One of the oldest remaining Grange halls in the U.S., it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.The National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry was formed in 1867, a fraternal organization of farmers organized initially to protect them against railroad monopolies. Like Freemasons, the Grange had secret rituals. Unlike the masons, the Grange admitted women the same as men. Over the years their efforts shifted to eliminating middlemen, and advocating free rural mail delivery, and rural electrification.The Grange in La Prairie was organized in 1873 as chapter no. 79. The chapter built their meeting hall the following year. The town of La Prairie provided the land and $700 and the Grange provided the building, with the agreement that the town would "have and own a room... on the first floor and to front on the road." The Grange could use that room as a dining hall when not in use by the town, along with the rest of the building.The building is a simple two-story wooden structure clad in white clapboard and green trim, with a rather low-pitched gable roof. The windows are tall four over four, evenly spaced. Inside, the first story consists of a large meeting room and dining hall in front and kitchen in back. Upstairs, reached by a staircase in the back is the larger hall, used for Grange meetings, dances, and 4-H plays. The walls are covered with the original vertical tongue and groove paneling, crossed by a chair rail. The building cost $1,938.50. Ever since, the local Grange has been a social center in La Prairie, hosting card parties, dancing, church services, educational events, and meetings. In 1960, the town relinquished its ownership interest in the property, but continues to share its use with the Grange, which uses it as its meeting place.Today the La Prairie Grange Hall is the oldest left standing in Wisconsin and one of the oldest in the whole U.S.