Property Record
176 N BROADWAY
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | MILWAUKEE FIRE DEPARTMENT FIRE ENGINE COMPANY #10 |
|---|---|
| Other Name: | BECK BOX AND CARTON CO. |
| Contributing: | Yes |
| Reference Number: | 68572 |
| Location (Address): | 176 N BROADWAY |
|---|---|
| County: | Milwaukee |
| City: | Milwaukee |
| Township/Village: | |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
| Town: | |
| Range: | |
| Direction: | |
| Section: | |
| Quarter Section: | |
| Quarter/Quarter Section: |
| Year Built: | 1893 |
|---|---|
| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 1984 |
| Historic Use: | fire house |
| Architectural Style: | Commercial Vernacular |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Brick |
| Architect: | Sebastian Brand |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Historic Third Ward District |
|---|---|
| National Register Listing Date: | 3/8/1984 |
| State Register Listing Date: | 1/1/1989 |
| National Register Multiple Property Name: |
| Additional Information: | This three-story, red brick fire department building has Queen Anne style characteristics with classical garlands on a bracketed cast-iron cornice, attenuated gothic foliage on the capitals, and rope trim on the lintels. The building is architecturally significant as an intact firehouse with fine details. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND AND SIGNIFICANCE: The preceding firehouse on this site, built in ca. 1886, was destroyed in the 1892 fire which swept the Third Ward, and was the only firehouse to be destroyed by fire in Milwaukee. A new three-story Engine Company #10 was completed in August, 1893. The building had a hose tower in the southwest corner, storage space on the ground floor for a water wagon and horse sheds and hay barn to the rear. The station was steam-heated in 1908 and wired for electricity in 1918. The building remained largely intact form its abandonment in 1949 until it was altered for new use by Beck Box and Label Co., located next door. In 1968, it was refurbished to serve as a background in "Gaily, Gaily," a motion picture filmed in the Third Ward and set in turn of the Century Chicago. The firehouse is one of the best-preserved structures in the neighborhood. |
|---|---|
| Bibliographic References: | JANESVILLE GAZETTE 8/4/1996. Historic Third Ward Walking Tour, Historic Third Ward Association, 1998. Building Permit. Historic Third Ward Historic Walking Tour, Historic Third Ward Association, 2009. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |