Property Record
1021 DOWNING DR
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Dr. Claude and Ila Schmidt House |
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| Reference Number: | 227562 |
| Location (Address): | 1021 DOWNING DR |
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| County: | Waukesha |
| City: | Waukesha |
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| Year Built: | 1966 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 2014 |
| Historic Use: | house |
| Architectural Style: | Usonian |
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| Wall Material: | Brick |
| Architect: | James William Pauers |
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| Demolished?: | No |
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| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| Additional Information: | Built into the hill, this 1960s Contemporary-style house is topped with a side-gabled roof and sheathed with brick and rough cedar. The (west) entrance elevation, which faces Downing Drive, is without much detail aside from the narrow clerestory windows that run immediately beneath the roofline. Both the south and east elevations feature additional horizontal bands of fenestration, as well as large expanses of red cedar. The home’s south elevation is perhaps its most dramatic, with windows that reach to meet the gabled roof line. A small, second-story balcony, as well as a larger, two-story balcony extend from the east (rear) elevation of the home. An attached garage completes the house on the north. Located in Seitz Estates No. 3 (subdivision), this house was built for Dr. Claude & Ila Schmidt and their four children at an estimated cost of $37,000. Designed by Milwaukee architect James William Pauers, construction of the home began in July of 1966 and the contractor was Weir Brothers of Mukwonago. The home was featured in the Modern Living section of The Milwaukee Sentinel in October 1969, which included interior photos and the home’s floor plan. Dr. Schmidt (b. 29 August 1924) was an obstetrician and gynecologist and was affiliated with Waukesha Memorial Hospital. He and Ila (nee Paulk Miller, b. 18 June 1925) wed on 10 June 1951 and moved to Wisconsin. In 1981, the Schmidts added a small entrance vestibule to the front of the house, which cost approximately $1,500. The Schmidts resided in the home until 1992, when they retired to Los Alamos, New Mexico. Jim Pauers was born in Milwaukee, WI on October 18, 1926. He received his Masters degree in Architecture in 1964 from The Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. He was head of the architectural department at Milwaukee Area Technical College for 25 years. |
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| Bibliographic References: | Original permit, 14 July 1966; cost $37,000; Marvin Weir/Weir Bros., of Mukwonago was the builder. Home featured in David E. Link, "Wedded to Wooded City Site." The Milwaukee Sentinel, 18 October 1969. Permit for vestibule with footing, 5 November 1981, est. cost, $1,500; “Doctor Honored for Service to Indians,” The Milwaukee Journal, 18 March 1982; “Ila Schmidt,” Obituary, Available online at www.gmtoday.com/obits/freeman/obits/2006/June27/07.htm, Accessed June 2014. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |