108 W Main St

It’s always fun to window shop along Main Street. And a large part of the appeal is that the shops are in beautiful historic buildings. One building that is especially eye-catching is located at 108 W. Main.

If you look all the way to the top, you’ll see a row of decorative brackets just beneath the eaves. That feature is called a bracketed cornice. Now look at the hooded ornamental moldings around the top of each window. And how about that beautiful iron balcony! It’s one of just a few left on Main Street. Next, feast your eyes on those amazing cast iron columns between the windows and doors on the first floor. And don’t miss the applied moldings on the doors as well as all the large glass windows that let in plenty of natural light.

Congratulations! You’ve just identified the distinctive features of an Italianate commercial building. In Madison, many Italianate homes and businesses were built from the 1850s through the 1870s.