2709 Sommers Avenue
Madison, WI, USA

Simeon Mills House

The Simeon Mills House is located in Madison, Wisconsin.


History

Simeon Mills was a member of the Wisconsin State Senate and was a key figure in establishing what would become the University of Wisconsin–Madison. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987 and on the State Register of Historic Places in 1989.

National Register of Historic Places

Statement of Significance:

2709 Sommers Avenue, historically known as "Elmside" or "Mills Folly/ derives its significance from its association with Simeon Mills, one of Madison's earliest settlers and most prominent citizens in the 19th century. Mills' varied roles as local Justice, County Commissioner, State Senator, village trustee, real estate speculator, banker and railroad developer placed him in a position of sizable influence over the development and direction of the young community of Madison and the south-central region of the state. The Mills House is also an outstanding example of a Victorian Italianate residence constructed of local sandstone.

Association with Simeon Mills
Simeon Mills (1810-1895) was one of Madison's most outstanding citizens in the 19th century. Born in Norfolk, Connecticut and raised in Ashtabula, Ohio, Mills made his way to the Wisconsin territory in 1835 and spent time in the village of Mineral Point and was present at the establishment of the Wisconsin territorial government in Belmont. l Mills traveled to the site which was to be the new territorial capitol (Madison) and there he decided to settle. He built a log cabin and opened a small grocery store in 1837, thus making him one of the very first settlers in Madison and one of its very first commercial entrepreneurs.

Mills rapidly made a prominent reputation for himself in the fledgling village by becoming the first mail carrier between Madison and Milwaukee in 1837. He made the run twice weekly until 1842 and it is noted that he never failed in making the trip. 2 His civil activities included serving as the district's first Justice of the Peace in 1839, as one of Dane County's first three commissioners and as Dane County's first senator upon the achievement of Wisconsin statehood in 1848. As senator, Mills introduced the bill that enacted into law the founding and chartering of the University of Wisconsin, and he played an active part in its growth throughout the 19th century. In 1861 Governor Randall charged Mills with the recruitment of volunteers for the Union Army in Wisconsin which he did with great success and Randall also appointed him as State Paymaster General, a post he held from 1861-1865. Locally he served as village trustee and village treasurer in Madison through the 1850s and was on Madison's first Board of Education starting in 1856. He was also a member on the Board of Trustees for the State Hospital for the Insane (1860-1877) and one of the University's first regents. Mills was also active in the development of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin.

Simeon Mills is a name synonymous with Madison's developing business community. Realizing the future potential of the Madison area, Mills became involved in real estate speculation early on and was able to amass a modest fortune in his lifetime and direct much of the early development of the village. He was the first president of the Bank of Madison and the first president of the Madison Mutual Insurance Company. Mills also served on the board of the Madison Gas, Light & Coke Co. 3 In 1844 he was a partner in Madison's first newspaper, the ARGUS. Mills was greatly involved in the developing railroad industry in southeastern Wisconsin. He was not only president of the Madison and Portage Railroad (1862) but also director of the Beloit and Madison line. Both lines were essential to the early development of Madison as an important regional trade center and secured for the city a assured role as a business, industrial and financial center in the south-central region of the state.

Simeon Mills was one of Madison's most prominent, active, and trusted citizens in the 19th century. He was able to contribute to the growth of a village, in which he was one of its first citizens and important entrepreneurs, into one of Wisconsin's most important cities. His civic and business activities were a tremendous asset to the establishment of the city of Madison. Along with other early influential citizens, Mills must assuredly be recognized as having had great input in steering the early course of city development.

2709 Sommers Street is the last remaining residence of four that Simeon Mills owned in his lifetime. He originally planned to build his main residence on this then country estate which now lies in the urban area of east Madison. Built in 1863, the house that Mills referred to as "Elmside" became locally known as "Mills Folly" for being located so distant from the then center of the small community and in 1867, Mills began construction of another house at the corner of Monona Avenue and West Doty Street (Where the City-County Building is presently located). The Mills family resided in Elmside for five years before selling it. The Mills family also owned a city residence at the same time as Elmside at the corner of Main and Monona Avenue (now demolished).

Later owners and occupants of the house included J.W. Hudson who was a prominent industrialist and real estate promoter in Madison, and Sam Miller, a nationally known opera and theater promoter.