Please come join us on the Porch!
- Friends of RD Pike Building
- Jan 2
- 3 min read
Written by: Todd P. Berg
In late April of 2025, Governor Tony Evers, DNR Secretary Karen Hyun, and State Director of Fisheries Justine Hasz all visited the Les Voigt State Fish Hatchery. While on the grounds, they took an operational tour of the hatchery and held working meetings with hatchery staff. Once those meetings concluded they graciously met with the board of the Friends of the R.D. Pike Building inside the old Historic Building.
On May 7th, the Wisconsin State Building Commission (SBC) approved projects which will enhance the entire property starting in 2026. This all came about due to the State of Wisconsin having the desire to protect and enhance public infrastructure throughout the state. With that goal in mind, the SBC approved approximately $1.6 million dollars for direct work on the Les Voigt Hatchery and adjoining R.D. Pike Building.
A large part of this project involves renovation and restoration of the entire exterior of the historic R.D. Pike Building. Built in 1897, the buildings “bones” are good, but the 129-year-old icon does need a substantial amount of work. The R.D. Pike Building part of the project involves a new roof, work on the brownstone blocks, water abatement, fixing and restoring the vast number of windows in the building and more. The work is expected to begin during the Spring of 2026.
With this incredibly exciting news, the Friends Board of Directors was presented with an interesting conundrum. The original plan in 2024 was to immediately begin working on remediation efforts to the inside of the building. Historical contractors on-site in early 2026, indicated the proper order of operations should be to work with the contractors while they are here to recreate the grand front hatchery porch that originally adorned the building. In the 1950’s, the porch fell into disrepair and was subsequently removed.
The porch was the visual centerpiece of the building, a gathering spot, a greeting location, and a place to sit back and ponder. The Wisconsin State Crest sat at the top of the two brownstone columns at the front of the building. The State Crest is currently being reproduced by the architecture students at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. The crest will once again be affixed to the building when the porch is completed.
Bringing back the porch requires architectural considerations, construction and engineering expertise and materials consideration among other things. Stairs, ADA access, and railings need to be carefully considered. We are currently consulting with historical architects and engineers and have been given an approximate cost of $400,000 to recreate the original porch.
Your board went to work straight away on this in 2025 through public outreach, media exposure, fundraising and talking to all who would listen! We are enormously proud to announce that as of December 2025, we are now almost 50% of the way there! Our communities have responded with tremendous support for this project. We need your help with this effort. No donation is too small or inconsequential.
To make a secure, online donation via PayPal, click the Online Donation button below.
You may also send a check to:
The Friends of the R.D. Pike Building, Inc., PO Box 511, Washburn, WI 54891.
If you wish to discuss a structured donation, please reach out by email at friendsrdpike@gmail.com or telephone 715-820-2967. The Friends of the R.D. Pike Building, Inc., is a registered 501(c)3 non-profit organization and your donations are tax deductible.
The Porch reconstruction phase is just the beginning of a wonderful renovation plan for this Historic Building. Once the exterior work is finished in 2026, we will move on to interior remediation and begin renovations to bring the inside back to life so everyone can take a tour, learn the history and see for themselves how the original caretakers of this great facility lived, worked and played. We are extremely excited to see this exceptionally large project through to completion! Would you like to join us on the Porch?
Thank you for your ongoing support as we Re-Awaken History at the R.D. Pike Building!
Several images used in this post were provided by the Bayfield Heritage Association.
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