HomeMy WebLinkAbout612-elmwood-ave-3
Local Landmark Application
Michael Lyster Property
612 Elmwood Avenue
Oshkosh, WI 54901
Formerly 12 Elm Street
S 50 FT OF LOT 6 L L WRIGHTS SUBD OF S1/2 OF LOT 84
Research by Austin M. Frederick
1/9/18
2017 City Assessor Map
1903 Sanborn Map
The first time the address 612 Elmwood Avenue (formerly 12 Elm Street) is mentioned
in an Oshkosh city directory is in Bunn’s Oshkosh City Directory 1898-99 on page 211.
William C. Cowling is listed at the address, along with a domestic servant named
Barbara Jungwirth.
The collection of Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps of Oshkosh available on the Wisconsin
Historical Society website shows the location, addresses, dimensions, and materials of
structures. The only maps available of fire insurance maps of Oshkosh online are the
1890 and 1903 editions. This the home at 612 Elmwood does not appear on the 1890
map, but it is shown on the 1903 map. When comparing the two maps it is apparent that
the southern fifty feet of Lot 6 of L.L. Wrights Subdivision of South ½ of Lot 84--today
620 Elmwood Avenue (formerly 22 Elm Street)--was broken off to make this new lot
that the house currently stands on.
Scott Cross of the Oshkosh Public Museum checked the City of Oshkosh tax rolls from
the 1890s. He discovered that in 1895 Charles Curtis sold the southern portion of lot 6
to William Cowling. The taxes at 22 Elm (Curtis) and 12 Elm (Cowling) were amended
to reflect the division of the property and both properties were appraised at nearly the
same amount. Cowling married Charles Curtis’ daughter, Nettie, in December 1894.
The Cowlings are only listed at the residence in the 1898-’99 directory, but do not
appear to live there after that. From 1900 to 1912 they are listed at either 22 Elm Street
or 217 Cherry Street before they moved from Oshkosh to Milwaukee in 1913.
The Winnebago County Chain of Title Index for the property also shows that parcel
being transferred from Curtis to Cowling on September 5, 1895. Was transferred to an
M.E. Barnett in 1899 and back to Cowling in 1901, and then it was sold to S.W. Hollister
in 1902. These were names and dates found Winnebago County Chain of Title Index for
L. L. WRIGHTS SUBD OF S1/2 OF LOT 84. Additional information can be acquired by
looking at each document associated with this parcel at the Winnebago County Register
of Deeds office.
Cowling had interesting career in various fields. He was born and raised in Oshkosh.
One of his first jobs was the editor of the Oshkosh Daily Northwestern for a several
years and then resigned to serve as the first Clerk of Municipal Courts in Oshkosh in
1895. While serving as the Clerk of Courts, he pursued a law degree, and he was
admitted to the bar in 1897. He also served as city attorney under the mayorship of
John Banderob. In 1902 he ran and was elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly.
Cowling was a partner in the Oshkosh law firm Quatermass & Cowling, but he later quit
and moved to Milwaukee to run a freight auditing bureau.
In October 1913 he was arrested on embezzlement charges and disbarred in 1914.
Soon after, Cowling moved out to Detroit, Michigan, and worked at the Ford Motor
Company for over 20 years. He resigned from the Ford Motor Company and served as
the Vice President of Willy’s-Overland Motor Company and publisher of Automobile
Topics magazine. Cowling died on November 10, 1956
ODN Oct 1, 1913 pg 1 ODN Aug. 27, 1898 Pg 8
ODN Feb. 24, 1938 Pg 4 ODN Dec. 6, 1937 Pg 4
*** Additional Research That Could Be Done ***
●Further examination of Register of Deeds documents
●Check Tax Rolls for 1897-98
●Check Oshkosh Daily Northwestern 1897-1898 for info on home being built