For Immediate Release

Contact: Kara O’Keeffe
kara.okeeffe@wisconsinhistory.org
608-261-9596

February 28, 2019

Wisconsin Historical Society Placed the Lloyd A. Barbee House on the State Register of Historic Places

Milwaukee, Wis. - The Wisconsin Historical Society placed the Lloyd A. Barbee House in Milwaukee, Milwaukee County on the State Register of Historic Places on February 15, 2019.

The Lloyd A. Barbee House is significant at the statewide level for its associations with the civil rights movement in Milwaukee and Wisconsin. The house’s owner, Lloyd Barbee, was the most prominent civil rights activist in Wisconsin from 1966 to 1980 while residing here. He participated in numerous civil rights campaigns that had a lasting impact on the history of Milwaukee and the state. 

Notably, Barbee was the originator and lead attorney in a 14-year battle in the federal courts to integrate Milwaukee’s public schools that culminated in a consent decree in 1979. This was the most important civil rights campaign in Wisconsin’s history. Barbee did much of the preparation for the lawsuit from his home office, and meetings of the group Barbee founded, Milwaukee United School Integration Committee Important (MUSIC), occurred in the house. Activists from out of town, including the nationally known comedian and civil rights activist Dick Gregory, stayed in the house. Lloyd Barbee and MUSIC were at the forefront of the civil rights movement in Milwaukee and influenced the subsequent course of that movement.

Barbee was an attorney, college professor, and prominent civil rights leader. In addition to the civil rights activities mentioned above, he was the sixth African American to be elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly, serving for 12 years. The Lloyd A. Barbee House is an important link to the modern civil rights movement in Wisconsin and one of its most significant leaders.

The State Register is Wisconsin's official list of state properties determined to be significant to Wisconsin's heritage. The State Historic Preservation Office at the Wisconsin Historical Society administers both the State Register and National Register in Wisconsin.

To learn more about the State and National Register programs in Wisconsin, visitwww.wisconsinhistory.org.

About Wisconsin Historical Society
The Wisconsin Historical Society, founded in 1846, ranks as one of the largest, most active and most diversified state historical societies in the nation. As both a state agency and a private membership organization, its mission is to help people connect to the past by collecting, preserving and sharing stories. The Wisconsin Historical Society serves millions of people every year through a wide range of sites, programs and services. For more information, visit www.wisconsinhistory.org.

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