A CN local crosses Washington St. as it prepares to service Chemtrade (formerly General Chemical Corp.) via former C&NW rails on Doty Island at Menasha, WI, on 24 Jun. '20. The awesome, old building partially visible to the left is currently home to Expert Driveline Truck & Auto Repair, 216 Washington St. Built in '35 for Verbrick's Service Co., Norbert F. Verbrick, proprietor; it operated as such until '84. Designed by Henry Auler in the Tudor Revival style, it and the adjacent building at 214 Washington St. (originally offices of Northwest Electrolyte and Engraving, also designed by Auler in the Tudor Revival style) were erected on what had long been a stave yard for the Menasha Wooden Ware Co. Wayne's Towing and Service occupied this building for quite a while between the original and current occupants. Glass Nickel Pizza, 217 Washington St., purveyors of some mighty tasty pizza, can be seen to the right. I'm not sure of the previous occupants of the building. There used to be a Clark station at that address. It is difficult to imagine that then Washington Ave. was once also Hwy. 41, until that highway was relocated to what was then the rural outskirts of the Fox Cities in the 1940s. |