Commercial Spaces of the Past
Commercial Development in Washington Park
One of the greatest driving forces behind building a strong community is industry and commercial development, as they create social environments and help invite massive amounts of people into an area. Greater senses of community become present when people interact with one another on a daily basis -- shopping at the same grocery stores, visiting the same parks, getting haircuts from the same barber, and generally just getting to meet everyone who lives in the same area as they do.
Not only does business connect people, but it also encourages neighborhoods' growth by presenting the promise of what is developing around it. It shows that the community is still relevant and still has the potential to grow, feeding the idea that the neighborhood has a promising future. In analyzing the Sanborn Fire Insurance Company maps from 1910, it is evident that most of the businesses were located along Washington Park's more prominent roads. W. North Avenue and W. Lisbon Avenue serve as the neighborhood's main entry points for access and circulation. These areas seem to be the roots from which the neighborhood was created and shaped due to their accessibility and ability to draw in mass amounts of people. Main social hubs were formed at an early stage in the creation of Washington Park, and these businesses continued to dictate the areas of predominant growth, in that the successful areas of the neighborhood continued to leak out towards each end of the block. Over time, long stretches of commercial real estate generated mass traffic to these areas and created a strong interest in inhabiting the surrounding areas. Businesses along these main roads were originally interspersed among houses, but as time continued to construct these main streets, they have become some of Milwaukee's most essential streets. |
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Daily Life
Daily life for residents of Washington Park from 1900 to 1940 was pretty typical for the rest of the American population for the time period. Many people from the neighborhood worked and shopped in the area, with W. North Avenue and W. Lisbon Avenue being the main commercial districts. These were the busiest streets, so it was prime real estate for retailers and vendors. Some notable establishments in Washington Park at the time were the Pabst Pavilion Beer Hall, the August Haberer Saloon, and Kehr's Candies.
The Pabst Pavilion was located at the intersection of W. Pabst Avenue (W. Lloyd Street today), W. Lisbon Avenue, and N. Sherman Boulevard. It was built around 1907 and used as an outlet site for Pabst Brewery. The major breweries opened these beer halls throughout Milwaukee to promote and sell their products. The building is on the Milwaukee Historic Preservation list because of its connection to the Pabst Brewery and the richness of it architectural details. The Haberer Saloon was built on W. Vliet Street in 1908. It was a popular spot for people to enjoy food, drinks, and live music. The saloon was turned into a soda shop during Prohibition and a tavern once Prohibition ended. This building is also on the Milwaukee Historic Preservation list because of its architectural significance. Kehr's Candies, located on N. 36th Street and W. Lisbon Avenue, has been around since 1930. It was opened during the Great Depression by Pearl and B.D. Kehr. They started by making and selling caramel corn and potato chips, but after a while they began making candy to produce more income. It is still a successful business, with the factory store on W. Lisbon Avenue and a location at the Milwaukee Public Market. There were many other commercial sites within the Washington Park neighborhood, such as drug stores, banks, bakeries, taverns, shops, and stores. Wisconsin State Savings Bank on W. North Avenue and Midtown State Bank on W. Lisbon Avenue both had offices in Washington Park during this time period. The Chas. Boettcher Butcher Shop was located at 3802 W. Lisbon Avenue and was a popular place to buy meat. A major retailer nearby was Sears Roebuck & Company, located at the intersection of W. North Avenue and N. Fond du Lac Avenue. This store was a little was out of the neighborhood, but with the introduction of the streetcar, city buses, and the automobile, it was likely a shopping destination for many Washington Park families. |
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Industrialization of Milwaukee
Milwaukee's transformation from a commercial trade center to a manufacturing economy was created around the migration patterns derived from the plank roads. Around 1881, Milwaukee adopted the title of the "workingmen's city." Statistics confirmed the relative strength of Milwaukee's manufacturing sector in 1910 when, although ranked twelfth in population, it ranked third among American cities based on the proportion of its workforce in industry. Industry tended to locate along the city's rivers. The city's industrialization brought about a population growth as well as a development of a new working-class neighborhood located adjacent to the major industries.
At the turn of the century, the "workingmen's city" also enjoyed the distinction of being a "foreign-born" city. In 1910, Milwaukee and New York shared first place in terms of the percentage of population who were foreign-born. In particular, the large German and Polish communities marked Milwaukee as a city of European-born residents. The majority of small-scale industry was located along the railways and plank roads in the Washington Park area. Such businesses included lumberyards, furniture manufacturers, and leather companies. The historic Washington Park neighborhood's large-scale industries included not only the dominant beer company of Miller Brewing, but also such firms as the AO Factory, Esser Glass, and Harley-Davidson. These large manufacturers established their locations along main public transportation routes, which created large amounts of traffic that permeated through the ever-developing space. This also contributed a large migrant shift from the East Side neighborhoods to the suburbs in the west. |
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W. Lisbon Avenue from N. Sherman Boulevard to N. 41st Street
The history of retail corridors in the United States began out of convenience. Residential districts attracted businesses of necessity and leisure. The neighborhood tavern is the palimpsest of Milwaukee. According to the 1910 Sanborn map, the corner of N. 41st Street and W. Lisbon Avenue hosted a beer hall, which, despite several changes in ownership, has remained a drinking establishment.
The radius of convenience for the average American greatly increased after the introduction of the automobile. "Roadside merchants were responsible for the earliest retail strips. Later, local artisans and prosperous merchants used the ground floor of their businesses to display and sell goods." This development led to one-stop-shop retail districts. Increased vehicular and pedestrian traffic increased the attraction of business owners, and subsequently, residents. W. Lisbon Avenue between N. 41st Street and N. Sherman Boulevard still hosts retail in the same locations as in 1910. In addition to the previously mentioned beer hall, a hair salon now lives in the former neighborhood drug store, Park Pharmacy. These retail corridors became active and vibrant community centers for surrounding residents. "Even if the residents of a subdivision wanted retail stores on their street, there are not enough customers to support such stores. The residents have no alternative but to do their shopping at places easily accessible by car." Therefore, as the average radius of convenience increased, as well as the arrival of large-scale shopping centers and independent big-box retailers playing a role, the American retail corridor fell into decline. The vibrant adjacency that once existed surrounding Washington Park, including the former Pabst Pavilion Beer Hall (now the Washington Park Library), is no longer present. Up until the early 1990s, the Boulevard Inn Restaurant was a staple in the community with a long history. Hosting customers on wide, shady verandas on the north end of the park, the Pabst Pavilion was bought by August Kahlo shortly after Prohibition began. His soft drink parlors were shut down in 1927 after an infamous Milwaukee beer garden raid. In 1928, Kahlo reopened his doors after a failed Grand Jury trial, operating until the sale of his business to Albert Gaulke, the founder of the Boulevard Inn. The inn hosted Milwaukee's elite, from entrepreneurs to congressmen. Likewise, on the northeastern edge of the park, there existed Kunz Hall. The German beer hall remained open until 1950, when it was replaced by the Park Place Tavern. This lasted until 1969, with the opening of the Klondike Inn. These retail establishments remained as residential buildings and surrounded the park on all sides. |
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