ADOLPH WAGNER HOUSE
4705 Tonyawatha Trail
Built in 1900, the Wagner house has been occupied by only two families, and its basic structure has remained unaltered. Albertina Hausman Wagner held title to the land when the house was built, but she deeded it to her husband in 1916. Albertina was the daughter of Joseph Hausman, who operated a Madison brewery.
The high ceilings of earlyday homes are evident in the house, whose kitchen chimney reminds one of the wood-burning stove once used for cooking and heating. Solid maple floors and a sandstone foundation add to its beauty. An open porch once extended across the entire back, but was removed.
The property has had several owners. The original deed for 188 acres from the United States Government went to Francis R. Tillous in 1837. Part of his holdings were sold ten years later to George P. Delaplaine. In 1856 part of Tillous' original acreage was sold to the Watertown and Madison Railway Company, probably for investment purposes. The land was sold and in 1860 foreclosed in Dane County Court with James C. Hopkins receiving the property through a tax deed. Hopkins sold the land to Nathaniel Dean. When Dean's estate was liquidated in 1883, Mrs. Dean sold the property to three people, Wayne Ramsey, Breese Stevens, and Lucius Fairchild.
