Photos by Retiring Guy
Wisconsin State Journal, 6/4/2025
Nicole Pollock reports:
he height of Madison's first "skyscraper" wouldn't raise many eyebrows if it were proposed today. But construction of the nine-story Churchill Building on Capitol Square in the 1910s prompted the first limits on building heights to preserve views of the state Capitol.
Also known as the Gay Building, for its developer, Leonard Gay, the high-rise opened in 1915, two years before the completion of the current Capitol, and its success as an office building signaled that Downtown Madison could support denser development. The building was later bought, renovated and renamed by the Hovde family, whose development company, Hovde Properties, still owns it today. Situated at 16 N. Carroll St., between Grace Episcopal Church and the future Wisconsin History Center, it was recently listed in the state and national registers of historic places and is being considered for designation as a National Historic Landmark.
- Madison's 1st skyscraper (134 feet)
- Tallest building outside of Milwaukee until completion of State Capitol (1917)
- Originally known as the Gay Building; name changed in 1974
Architectural style: Beaux Arts
Architect: James R. Law, Jr., who also designed the Madison Masonic Temple.
Controversy during the building's construction resulted in the implementation of a height limit for buildings constructed around the Capitol Square, which was overruled by the Wisconsin Supreme Court in 1923.
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