Property Record
720 E WISCONSIN AVE
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | NORTHWESTERN MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE CO. |
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| Other Name: | Northwestern Mutual Life Building |
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| Reference Number: | 16184 |
| Location (Address): | 720 E WISCONSIN AVE |
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| County: | Milwaukee |
| City: | Milwaukee |
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| Year Built: | 1914 |
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| Additions: | 1932 |
| Survey Date: | 19842017 |
| Historic Use: | large office building |
| Architectural Style: | Neoclassical/Beaux Arts |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Stone - Unspecified |
| Architect: | Holabird and Root-1932; MARSHALL AND FOX; ALBERT H. SWANKE |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
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| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| Additional Information: | 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 State Historical Society, Division of Historic Preservation. Contractor was the George A. Fuller Co. During this period, the Milwaukee Plan Commission invited suggestions from architects Alfred C. Clas and landscape designers John Nolen and Frederick Law Olmsted to compose a master plan for zoning, park corridors, governmental and educational campuses, and designate sectors for residential, commercial, industrial, and recreational use. In this atmosphere, classic architecture embodied these lofty goals and Northwestern Mutual Life’s design extends their full expression. Northwestern Mutual’s business success translated into quality materials and craftsmanship for its headquarters. The use of classic elements implies this office building is a temple guarding each client in sacred trust. The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co. was established in Milwaukee in 1858. By 1888 it had constructed an imposing new headquarters building at 611 Broadway and was the 4th largest insurance company in the world. An addition was constructed on the north side of the building in 1932, but was razed and replaced with a glass atrium in 1976. 2017 - This eight-story, Neoclassical-style building was constructed in 1914. It has a U-shaped plan, flat roof, and granite exterior. The first story essentially forms the foundation, or base of the columnated building, with a set of three entryways centered on the south-facing façade. Each entryway includes glazed doors within an expansive window surround. To each side of the center entrances are four, regularly spaced, fixed windows. The middle five stories (two through six) contain the building’s columns and pilasters. The façade is slightly recessed to accommodate a colonnade of ten Corinthian columns, with a regular array of windows and bronze spandrels behind them; the windows are grouped in pairs. Fenestration bays on the east and west elevations are differentiated vertically by pilasters. Each bay contains a pair of one-over-one windows per floor. The seventh and eighth stories form the buildings entablature, with the seventh story having a row of 22 single-light attic windows. The eighth story is behind a tall balustrade above a heavy modillion cornice. An addition on the north side of the building was completed in 1932, and then removed in 1976. Construction of a 32-story tower is nearing completion on the property. A three-story, glass-enclosed atrium connects the new tower with this building. "Northwestern Mutual's continued expansion has necessitated its moving to larger quarters several times since it opened its home office in Milwaukee in 1859. And on each occasion the new building has been erected in the prevailing architectural style of the period. The present home office reflects the taste for classicism on a grand scale that dominated American building design for many years after the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893. In 1932 the structure was enlarged with a harmonious, if less obviously classical, addition northward to East Mason Street. This wing is eight stories in height, but its foundation was designed to carry an additional sixteen stories at some later date." Pagel, Mary Ellen & Virginia Palmer for the University of Wisconsin Extension Division, Guides to Historic Milwaukee: Juneautown Walking Tour, 1965. |
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| Bibliographic References: | ZIMMERMAN, 40. BUILT IN MILWAUKEE, LANDSCAPE RESEARCH, P. 86. MILWAUKEE HISTORIC BUILDINGS TOUR: JUNEAUTOWN, CITY OF MILWAUKEE DEPARTMENT OF CITY DEVELOPMENT, 1994. NEW YORK TIMES, 1/10/1996, P. C17. Architectural Record, vol. 40, 8/1916, pp. 128-144. Perrin, Milwaukee Landmarks, p. 55. Buildings of Wisconsin manuscript. Pagel, Mary Ellen & Virginia Palmer for the University of Wisconsin Extension Division, Guides to Historic Milwaukee: Juneautown Walking Tour, 1965. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |