Property Record
1211-13 W VLIET ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Wile Building / Clothing Store (on building) |
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| Other Name: | Margolis Furniture |
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| Reference Number: | 115914 |
| Location (Address): | 1211-13 W VLIET ST |
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| County: | Milwaukee |
| City: | Milwaukee |
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| Year Built: | 1923 |
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| Additions: | 1928 |
| Survey Date: | 197920152022 |
| Historic Use: | small retail building |
| Architectural Style: | Art Deco |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Terra Cotta |
| Architect: | Hugo Miller (1923 & 1928) |
| Other Buildings On Site: | N |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| National Register Listing Date: | |
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| Additional Information: | ARCHITECTURAL SIGNIFICANCE: Probably the best preserved example in Milwaukee of the use of stock Terra Cotta tiles with Art Deco motifs to decorate a small store. Construction date, 1922. (1) 2015 Resurvey: Storefront windows infilled with plywood. One second-floor window infilled with plywood. Designed by architect Hugo Miller, this building was constructed in 1923 as a store for the Pierce Cloak Company. It later was home of F.M Schackell’s millinery shop. In 1928, Hugo Miller redesigned the main façade with its current Art Deco appearance for the Wile Brother’s Clothing Store. The Wile’s owned three stores in Milwaukee with the subject building operating as its flagship until 1952. Business turnover, thereafter, was frequent and, today, is vacant. 2015- "Art Deco in style, this tvvo-story retail building is clad primarily with terra cotta. The storefront carries a recessed entrance at the center; the window openings are covered with plywood. Carved stone pilasters are positioned to either side of the storefront. A pair of terra cotta columns separate three upper-level window openings, the middle of which is infilled with plywood. Ornate terra cotta tiles flank the windows and clad the cornice above, the middle of which features a limestone panel with "WILE BLDG." in raised letters. The round-arched parapet displays elaborate scrollwork executed in terra cotta. Designed by architect Hugo Miller, this building was constructed in 1923 as a store for the Pierce Cloak Company. It later was home of F.M. Schackell' s millinery shop. In 1928, Hugo Miller redesigned the main facade with its current Art Deco appearance for the Wile Brother's Clothing Store. The Wiles owned three stores in Milwaukee with the subject building operating as its flagship until 1952. Business turnover, thereafter, was frequent and it is currently vacant." -"W Vliet St, N 27th St (west) to N 12th St (east)", WISDot 2984-00-03, Prepared by Heritage Research, Ltd. (Brian J. Faltinson & Traci E. Schnell), 2015. *2022 - Resurvey by HRL for WisDOT project. Little or no change since 2015, though first floor windows are now boarded over. |
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| Bibliographic References: | 1. Tax Program. Directories, Permits. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |