APPLETON – A local developer has nominated The Post-Crescent building in Appleton to be considered for the National Register of Historic Places, the newspaper reported Friday.
The building at 306 W. Washington St. is a rare example of art deco architecture. According to the city’s director of community and economic development, it is one of just two art deco buildings in Appleton.
The historic designation is part of the sale by Gannett Co., the newspaper’s parent company, to the developer, which plans to convert it into apartments. The Post-Crescent plans to relocate its offices to another downtown Appleton location after 87 years in its current building.
Following the 1920 merger of the Appleton Post and Appleton Crescent, the building was constructed in 1932 to house the Appleton Post-Crescent newspaper offices and printing operations.
The Post-Crescent removed “Appleton” from its masthead in 1964 to reflect its expanded coverage area and circulation. In the 1950s, editor V.I. Minahan, a member of the Wisconsin Newspaper Hall of Fame, coined the term “Fox Cities” to refer to the newspaper’s expanding coverage area in the Fox River Valley.
