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Property Location
| Location (Address) | 357 & 359 MILWAUKEE AVE |
|---|---|
| County | Racine |
| City/Village | Burlington |
| Township | |
| Unincorporated community | |
| Town | |
| Range | |
| Direction | |
| Section | |
| Quarter Section | |
| Quarter Quarter Section |
Property Features
| Year Built | |
|---|---|
| Additions | |
| Survey Date | 1975,2011 |
| Historic Use | house |
| Architectural Style | Other Vernacular |
| Structural System | |
| Wall Material | Fieldstone |
| Architect | |
| Other Buildings On Site | |
| Demolished | No |
| Demolished Date | |
| Additional Comments |
RETURNED EAVES Peter N. Angsten was born in Coblenz, Germany, in 1855. While still in Germany, where he worked briefly as a schoolteacher, he conceived the idea for a camera with a pivoting turret-like, spring-wound lens that could record an almost 180 degree-wide view on film. He immigrated to the United States in 1882, found work as a painter and decorator, and soon patented his idea. He partnered with C. H. Gesbeck and began manufacturing a small number of the camera, called the Al-Vista, in Chicago. In 1897, Leonard J. Smith of Burlington met Angsten in Chicago and was astounded by the innovative camera. Smith bought out Gesbeck, and with Angsten, brothers Gustave C. and William G. Rasch, W. A. Bennett, Edward Caldwell, and William N. Selig formed the Multiscope & Film Company, which commenced production of the first American panoramic camera in Burlington. Angsten served as vice-president and continued to develop improvements for the Al-Vista camera, receiving multiple additional patents. As a side venture to manufacturing the Al-Vista Camera, Smith and the Multiscope & Film Company’s other founders gained a five year franchise in 1895 with the Edison Vitagraph Company of Chicago and New York to show the first moving pictures in the State of Minnesota and gained rights from the holder of Wisconsin’s franchisee to operate the first Vitagraph moving picture shows in Burlington and Elkhorn, making Burlington the first place outside of the largest metropolitan American cities in which the Vitascope was exhibited. In 1902, Angsten abruptly sold his patent rights and entire interest in the Multiscope & Film Company to the other investors. With the exception of a brief period in Chicago, he lived in Burlington for the rest of his life at his residence which is now 357 & 359 Milwaukee Avenue. |
| Bibliographic References | General Files. On file at the Burlington Historical Society, Burlington, Wisconsin. |
National And State Register Of Historic Places Listings
| National/State Register Listing Name | Not Listed |
|---|---|
| National Register Listing Date | |
| State Register Listing Date | |
| 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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Access Property Records
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Antonio Moreno and Film Crew
1917
Antonio Moreno in make-up, jodhpurs, and an undershirt, sits under an umbrella along with a cameraman and a Bell & Howell camera with other cast and crew members in a production still. The camera c...
Vitagraph Production Still
1916
Frederick A. Thomson (at left in straw hat), Charles J. Davis (cranking what appears to be a Moy & Bastie camera), J. Stuart Blackton (in cap and bow tie and wearing glasses), and the actor E. H. S...
Albert E. Smith, Antonio Moreno, and a Small Racing Car
1920
Albert E. Smith, one of the founders of the Vitagraph motion picture company, stands with a cigar in his mouth looking down at the silent film star Antonio Moreno (also with cigar) sitting at the w...
