Property Record
3134 N 51ST BLVD
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Elsie Erdmann & Robert Jacobi House |
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| Other Name: | |
| Contributing: | |
| Reference Number: | 114249 |
| Location (Address): | 3134 N 51ST BLVD |
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| County: | Milwaukee |
| City: | Milwaukee |
| Township/Village: | |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
| Town: | 7 |
| Range: | 21 |
| Direction: | E |
| Section: | 11 |
| Quarter Section: | SE |
| Quarter/Quarter Section: | SW |
| Year Built: | 1936 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 19792001 |
| Historic Use: | house |
| Architectural Style: | Spanish/Mediterranean Styles |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Stone Veneer |
| Architect: | Walter G. Memmler (1) |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| National Register Listing Date: | |
| State Register Listing Date: |
| Additional Information: | ARCHITECTURAL SIGNIFICANCE : An exceptional Period House in Ald. District # 5: a stone veneer "Mediterranean Villa" with tile roof, grill-work, and loggias. Construction date, 1936. (1) Elsie Erdmann, Original Owner, 1936. (1) In terms of the city’s duplex architecture, there is really nothing else in Milwaukee quite like this outstanding, 2-story, Spanish Colonial Revival style structure. The building has a bold, distinctive character that is unlike any other in the district. The low-pitched roof, and a distinctive second story airing porch called a “balcon” in Spanish are features that recall the indigenous architecture of the American southwest and Mexico. The walls are made of buff-colored limestone blocks and the half-round, red and brown roof tiles--which are a rare color—have a particularly striking character. The original owner was the president of Badger Paint and Hardware that eventually grew into a huge 133 store national chain by the 1950s. Mr. Jacobi and his family lived in the lower unit while his daughter Ruth and her husband John Tills lived in the upper flat. (2) |
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| Bibliographic References: | 1. Building Permit. Plumbing Permit shows Robert Jacobi as co-owner. 2. Jakubovich, Paul. “North 51st Boulevard, Final Historic Designation Study Report”. Winter 2001. From Milwaukee Historic Preservation Commission [not adopted]. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |