Photo: Detroit Publishing Company · Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons
City hall · Milwaukee, United States
Milwaukee City Hall
- Dated
- Dated 1893–95
- Declared purpose
- Seat of city government
- Today
- Survives
- Architect of record
- Henry C. Koch, architect: about 52 when credited (1893, born 1841). Build time on record: about 2 years (1893–95).All architects of record →
Hidden history
Found, Not Built
A Flemish Renaissance tower on a wedge-shaped lot. Its official completion year sits right next to the White City.
Two years for a 350-foot tower
It was the tallest habitable building in the US for a short time. Researchers set the masonry and terra cotta against the two-year build.
Shaped to its lot
Its triangle footprint fits the street grid exactly. The question: which came first, the building or the streets?
Questions worth asking
- Why so ornate a tower for a mid-sized city in 1895?
Possible original uses
- Civic hall
- Signal or bell tower
What the photos show
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Surrounding Buildings
Old buildings nearby in Milwaukee. Compare the stone, the domes and the dates.
Lost Buildings
Neighbours that were torn down or burned. Tap one for its photos.
Further viewing
Episodes from My Lunch Break (Michael Kruse), the main lens for this app. They open on YouTube.
