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Property Location
Location (Address)
419 W VLIET ST
County
Milwaukee
City/Village
Milwaukee
Township
Unincorporated community
Town
Range
Direction
Section
Quarter Section
Quarter Quarter Section
Property Features
Year Built
1888
Additions
C. 1912
Survey Date
2004
Historic Use
Architectural Style
Structural System
Wall Material
Brick
Architect
Other Buildings On Site
Demolished
No
Demolished Date
Additional Comments
A 'site file' exists for this property. It contains additional information such as correspondence, newspaper clippings, or historical information. It is a public record and may be viewed in person at the Wisconsin Historical Society, State Historic Preservation Office.
ARCHITECTURAL SIGNIFICANCE:
Two and One Half Story Second Empire Brick Building.
Good example of an unusual form of cream brick warehouse. Possesses integrity of form and elaborate original stone hood over doorway.
Construction date, 1888. (A, B) 1912. (Alteration)
HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE:
Was the location of Wood's Steam Laundry.
Previously surveyed in 1982 with a map code of 58/18 on a Historic Brewer's Hill-1982 map.
The original owner of this building was a rag and paper merchant by the name of William P. Froehlich. In 1889, R.A. Mccullough and Frank C. Kane used the building for their wood steam laundry business located at 624 Grand Avenue. By 1900, the building still housed a laundry service, however, the name changed to Wood's Steam Laundry. In 1919, the Wobst Schoe Company took ownership and remained at the address until 1930.
Other sources indicate the building was constructed in 1888, however, tax rolls clearly indicate a property improvement from 1884 to 1885, which has been verified with city directories. The building was initially listed with 437 4th Street, and, by 1889 was listed as 411-415 West Vliet Street.
Previously thought to be the William P. Froehlich Paper Warehouse building.
ARCHITECTURAL SIGNIFICANCE:
Two and One Half Story Second Empire Brick Building.
Good example of an unusual form of cream brick warehouse. Possesses integrity of form and elaborate original stone hood over doorway.
Construction date, 1888. (A, B) 1912. (Alteration)
HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE:
Was the location of Wood's Steam Laundry.
Previously surveyed in 1982 with a map code of 58/18 on a Historic Brewer's Hill-1982 map.
The original owner of this building was a rag and paper merchant by the name of William P. Froehlich. In 1889, R.A. Mccullough and Frank C. Kane used the building for their wood steam laundry business located at 624 Grand Avenue. By 1900, the building still housed a laundry service, however, the name changed to Wood's Steam Laundry. In 1919, the Wobst Schoe Company took ownership and remained at the address until 1930.
Other sources indicate the building was constructed in 1888, however, tax rolls clearly indicate a property improvement from 1884 to 1885, which has been verified with city directories. The building was initially listed with 437 4th Street, and, by 1889 was listed as 411-415 West Vliet Street.
Previously thought to be the William P. Froehlich Paper Warehouse building.
Bibliographic References
1. Stone over door
2. Building Permit
1894 Sanborn Atlas.
Tax Rolls, City of Milwaukee
n.d. An Early History of Comfort Heating. Accessed October 18, 2020.
https://www.achrnews.com/article/87035-an-early-history-of-comfort-heating.
Cardinale, Corrine. 2018. "A Penny for Your Rags: Rag Pickers and the Paper Industry in the
Later 19th Century." Thesis, History Department, University at Buffalo, Buffalo.
Cheryl J. LaRoche, Gary S. McGowan. 2001. "Becoming New York: The Five Points
Neighborhood, Material Culture." Historical Archaeology 35 (No. 3): 65-75.
n.d. Encyclopedia of Milwaukee: Agriculture. University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee. Accessed
October 16, 2020. https://emke.uwm.edu/entry/agriculture/.
n.d. Encyclopedia of Milwaukee: Food. Accessed October 12, 2020.
https://emke.uwm.edu/entry/food/.
Gurda, John. 2015. Milwaukee: City of Neighborhoods. Historic Milwaukee, Inc.
—. 2018. The Making of Milwaukee. Fourth. Milwaukee, WI: Milwaukee County Historical
Society.
Harris, Cyril M., ed. 1977. Illustrated Dictionary of Historic Architecture. Dover.
Jennings, Herbert Gottfried and Jan. n.d. American Vernacular Buildings and Interiors, 1870 -
1960. New York and London: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Levin, Adam. 2020. Fading Ads of Milwaukee. The History Press.
John C. Poppeliers, and A. Allen Chambers. 2003. What Style Is It?: A Guide to American
Architecture. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
McAlester, Virginia Savage. 2014. A Field Guide to American Houses. New York: Alfred A.
Knopf.
Milwaukee Journal. 1921. "Advertisement." April 12.
Milwaukee Journal. 1921. "Advertisement." August 27.
Milwaukee Journal. 1895. "Advertisement." March 9.
Milwaukee Journal. 1885. "Advertisement." March 21.
Milwaukee Journal. 1885. "Advertisement." June 18.
Milwaukee Journal. 1891. "Advertisement." June 15.
Milwaukee Journal. 1949. "Advertisement." July 21.
Milwaukee Journal. 1900. "Advertisement." March 24.
Milwaukee Journal. 1911. "Advertisement." April 3.
Milwaukee Journal. 1911. "Advertisement." November 18.
Milwaukee Journal. 1951. "Notices." July 15.
Milwaukee Sentinel. 1916. ""New Incorporations"." March 17.
Milwaukee Sentinel. 1918. "Advertisement." March 30.
Milwaukee Sentinel. 1942. "Fire Does $12,000 Damage to Shop"." March 21.
Milwaukee Sentinel. 1880. "Property in Public Use: Some interesting facts about donations
in early days." September 17.
Mohun, Arwen P. 1999. Steam Laundries: Gender, Technology, and Work in the United
States and Great Britain. Baltimore and London: The John Hopkins University Press.
Mohun, Arwen. 1996. "Why Mrs. Harrison Never Learned to Iron: Gender, Skill, and
Mechanization in the American Steam Laundry." Gender & History 8 (No. 2): 231-
251.
n.d. North Side: Haymarket. Urban Anthropology. Accessed October 12, 2020.
http://www.neighborhoodsinmilwaukee.org/Hay%20Market.pdf.
1894. "Sanborn Fire Insurance Map."
1910. "Sanborn Fire Insurance Map."
Tanzilo, Bobby. 2019. "Urban Spelunking." On Milwaukee. Milwaukee, WI, May 14. Accessed
October 12, 2020. https://onmilwaukee.com/articles/urban-spelunking-froehlichpaper.
1870, 1900, 1910, 1920. "United States Federal Census." Milwaukee.
Walsh, Margaret. 1974. "Industrial Opportunity on the Urban Frontier: Rags to Riches." The
Wisconsin Magazine of History 57 (No. 3): 174-94.
Watson, Sophie. 2015. "Mundane objects in the city: Laundry practices and the making and
remaking of public/private sociality and space in London and New York." Urban
Studies 52 (5): 876-890.
1875-1912. Wright's City of Milwaukee Directories.
Wynne, Deborah. 2015. "Reading Victorian Rags: Recycling, Redemption, and Dicken's
Ragged Children." Journal of Victorial Culture 20: 34-49.
National And State Register Of Historic Places Listings
National/State Register Listing Name
McCullough and Dixon Steam Laundry and Soap Company
National Register Listing Date
Sep 26, 2022
State Register Listing Date
May 20, 2022
Contributing
Architecture & History Inventory
The Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory (AHI) is a digital source of information on historic buildings, structures, and objects that have been surveyed by the State Historic Preservation Office in Wisconsin. Each property has a digital record providing basic information about the property and images.
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Questions?
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Email UsAttribution
For a credit line: Wisconsin Historical Society, Creator, Title, Unique Identifier.
The Unique Identifier can be found at the top or bottom of the page for each item. The name of a downloaded file is NOT the unique identifier.
For bibliographic citations please consult the UW-Madison Libraries Citation Research Guide to ensure compliance with appropriate style guidelines.
Access Property Records
Some properties have more materials (correspondence, clippings, historical information, etc.) not in the digital record. If a 'Site File' exists, it's noted in the 'Additional Comments' field. Contact us for an appointment to view these materials.
National or State Regi...
419 W Vliet St
100008208
Located in Milwaukee, Milwaukee County
Property Record
918 Vel R. Phillips AVE (918 N 4TH ST)
41836
Located in Milwaukee, Milwaukee County
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