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Milwaukee, Milwaukee County, Wisconsin – The Wisconsin Historical Society announces the listing of the Schramka Funeral Home in the National Register of Historic Places on February 2, 2023.

The Schramka Funeral Home, built in 1929 and operated by three generations of the Schramka Family, was an important business in the lives of the working-class immigrant populations in Milwaukee’s Riverwest neighborhood. The building is an intact example of purpose-built funeral homes that emerged in the 1920s when dedicated facilities were supplanting family homes as the primary place for display and visitation of the deceased. The Schramka family lived on the second floor which allowed them to be on call at all hours without sacrificing family life. The funeral home provided vital services to the surrounding communities for 72 years.

The family hired Milwaukee architect Roland C. Kurtz to design a new building to house their business and primary residence in what was then a largely Polish-Catholic neighborhood. The exterior is designed in the Tudor Revival style. On the interior, historic woodwork, tile, millwork and decorative plaster accent the highly-intact floorplan, which includes the original main chapel with casket display alcove and organ room, front office, embalming room and enlarged family rooms dating to 1943.

This property is private. Please respect the rights and privacy of the owners.

Additional information for the Schramka Funeral Home is available at:

https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Property/HI243727

To learn more about the State and National Register programs in Wisconsin, visit: https://wisconsinhistory.org/hp/register/

About the Wisconsin Historical Society

The Wisconsin Historical Society, founded in 1846, ranks as one of the largest, most active and most diversified state historical societies in the nation. As both a state agency and a private membership organization, its mission is to help people connect to the past by collecting, preserving and sharing stories. The Wisconsin Historical Society serves millions of people every year through a wide range of sites, programs and services. For more information, visit wisconsinhistory.org.