This property has a documented history as an industrial and manufacturing facility going back to 1890. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could help fund the multi-phase investigation and remediation work ahead under Wisconsin DNR oversight.
This property has a documented industrial history dating to at least 1890, with Fire Insurance Maps confirming railroad operations (1890–1918), lumber storage (1905–1918), an oil house with two 10,000-gallon underground storage tanks and a 10,000-gallon naphthalene UST (1911), auto storage (1918), and a freight house (1949). A Phase II Environmental Site Assessment confirmed widespread contamination across the property, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), lead, and volatile organic compounds such as trichloroethylene (TCE) and tetrachloroethylene (PCE), with soil concentrations of TCE exceeding the Wisconsin DNR groundwater protection Residual Contaminant Level by more than 100 times. The site is an active Wisconsin DNR Environmental Remediation Program case, with contamination described as associated with anthropogenic fill reflecting decades of historical industrial use, and Former Pike Creek — a state-owned surface water resource — is located on the property. That history could support an insurance coverage claim against the carriers who issued policies more than 40 years ago — coverage that could help fund the cleanup ahead.
Why Historical Insurance Policies May Be Accessible
Pre-1986 Commercial General Liability (CGL) policies were occurrence-based and did not contain an effective pollution exclusion in Wisconsin — and those policies may provide coverage that remains enforceable today. If contamination occurred while those policies were active, those historical insurance carriers may still have a legal obligation to fund the cleanup costs, even if the business closed or the property changed hands.
Oil storage, railroad, lumber, auto storage, and freight operations at this property spanned from at least 1890 through the mid-twentieth century, placing PAHs, chlorinated solvents such as TCE and PCE, and heavy metals into soil and fill across the property decades before 1986. The site investigation, remediation, and long-term groundwater monitoring still required under the Wisconsin DNR Environmental Remediation Program represent substantial future cost obligations that the carriers insuring those pre-1986 operations may be obligated to fund.
Restorical's role is to locate viable historical policies, determine whether a successful coverage claim is possible, and assist our clients and their legal counsel to obtain insurance coverage. Restorical then manages the claim, including accounting, to ensure the cleanup is funded in a timely manner.
What We Look For
- Historical insurance policies (pre-1986)
- Policy numbers, carrier names, and coverage periods
- Connection between contamination timing and policy period
- Evidence linking cleanup obligation to insured activity
What We Deliver
- Historical Coverage Chart
- Trigger Analysis & Property/Policy Nexus
- Coverage strategy with recommendations
- Insurance funding for your remediation
- Claims Management
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Contact UsThis analysis is preliminary and based on publicly available records. Restorical Research is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.