Wisconsin Historical Society: Placed the Tenney Building on the State Register of Historic Places

Contact: Kara O’Keeffe, Wisconsin Historical Society
kara.okeeffe@wisconsinhistory.org

Madison, Wisconsin – The Wisconsin Historical Society placed the Tenney Building (Madison, Dane County) on the State Register of Historic Places on August 18, 2017.

The Art Deco style Tenney Building was begun in 1929 and completed in 1930 at a cost of $1,200,000. It has been an important city of Madison landmark since the day it was first occupied and is Madison’s finest privately owned Art Deco style high-rise office building. The Tenney Building was designed by Law, Law, and Potter, which in 1930 was Madison’s largest architectural firm, and is an excellent example of the Art Deco style. The exterior design has a pronounced vertical emphasis and features such typical Art Deco motifs as bands of geometric ornament of both cut stone and terra cotta, and highly decorative bronze lighting fixtures and grill work. In addition, the building’s lavishly decorated elevator lobby, which features boldly colored marble walls, a marble floor, polished bronze elevator doors, bronze lighting fixtures, and other polished bronze elements, is one of Madison’s finest Art Deco style interiors.

The State Register is Wisconsin’s official list of state properties determined to be significant to Wisconsin’s heritage. The State Historic Preservation Office at the Wisconsin Historical Society administers both the State Register and National Register in Wisconsin.

To learn more about the State and National Register programs in Wisconsin, visit www.wisconsinhistory.org.

About Wisconsin Historical Society: The Wisconsin Historical Society, founded in 1846, ranks as one of the largest, most active and most diversified state historical societies in the nation. As both a state agency and a private membership organization, its mission is to help people connect to the past by collecting, preserving and sharing stories. The Wisconsin Historical Society serves millions of people every year through a wide range of sites, programs and services. For more information, visit wisconsinhistory.org.

###