Property Record
1706 W HIGHLAND AVE
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Edward A. MacDowell School |
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| Other Name: | Highland Community School |
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| Reference Number: | 237849 |
| Location (Address): | 1706 W HIGHLAND AVE |
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| County: | Milwaukee |
| City: | Milwaukee |
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| Year Built: | 1967 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 2019 |
| Historic Use: | elementary, middle, jr.high, or high |
| Architectural Style: | Contemporary |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Brick |
| Architect: | Maynard W. Meyer |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| Additional Information: | The Edward A. MacDowell School is significant for its association with the Milwaukee schools desegregation case and the Civil Rights movement in Milwaukee. In the mid-1960s, construction began on the new MacDowell School, intended to reduce overcrowding at four other nearby elementary schools. A coalition of civil rights, religious, social, labor, and political groups known as the Milwaukee United School Integration Committee (MUSIC) publicly objected to the new school since it would serve as another segregated school due to the de facto segregation that existed in the city. MUSIC had been formed in 1964 by politician and civil rights leader Lloyd Barbee, and in June of 1965, Barbee filed the federal lawsuit that eventually led to desegregation in the Milwaukee schools. In December of 1965, MUSIC members began daily demonstrations at the MacDowell School construction site, holding vigils and sometimes chaining themselves to gates or construction equipment. Despite the protests, construction continued, and the school opened in January 1967. MacDowell School was the site of the last major public activity by the MUSIC group. |
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| Bibliographic References: | Construction Date: MPS. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |