Property Record
857 N PLANKINTON AVE
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Hecht and Zummach, Wholesale Paints |
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| Other Name: | Waldheim's Furniture |
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| Reference Number: | 116204 |
| Location (Address): | 857 N PLANKINTON AVE |
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| County: | Milwaukee |
| City: | Milwaukee |
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| Year Built: | 1886 |
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| Additions: | 1928 1905 |
| Survey Date: | 19792016 |
| Historic Use: | industrial building |
| Architectural Style: | Romanesque Revival |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Brick |
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| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | Yes |
| Demolished Date: | 0 |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| Additional Information: | ARCHITECTURAL SIGNIFICANCE: Large commercial building constructed of brick and cast stone. The facade is dominated by a round-arch arcade supported by pilasters with foliated cast stone capitals. The building has an unusual construction history spanning forty years. The original store block is four central bays facing Plankinton Ave. and is assumed to have been built about 1886. This date is supported by engravings of the structure and by occupancy records. A four-story addition was built about 1905 to the north of the original block, bringing the structure to the corner of Plankinton Ave. and Kilbourn, but, its exterior did not appear as it does today. The present form and exterior design date from 1928, when the building was extended west along Kilbourn and south along Plankinton. At that time extensive exterior alterations were made to combine all additions under one facade, replicating the design of the original 1886 block on a grand scale. Construction date, 1886. Additions and alterations, 1905 & 1928. (1) Dahlman Const. Co., Builder, 1928. (1) D. Hecht & Wm. Zummach, Owners 1886-1927. (1) Northwest Furniture Co., Owner, 1891-1945. (1) Waldheim's Furniture, Owner, 1945. (1) NOTE: Photo Re-take 4-24/27. HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE: This site has been the location of three important business establishments in Downtown Milwaukee. First to be located here were David Hecht and William Zummach, proprietors of wholesale paint, glass and oil. Hecht left Germany in 1879 and settled briefly in Albany, New York before coming to Milwaukee in 1884. In that year he formed a partnership with Zummach. They moved their business in 1886 to this address on Plankinton and became one of the largest paint wholesalers in the city. Hecht died in 1907 and Zummach continued at this site under his name until 1927. Today the Zummach-Peerless Chemical Corporation is located at 120 W. Mineral St. The Northwest Furniture Company, established in 1886 in Milwaukee, was located at this address from 1891 to 1945. Until 1927 the firm shared the premises with Zummach, and in the next year undertook major additions and alterations to the building complex. The current occupant of the building is Waldheim Furniture Company. Founded by Victor Waldheim this business has been a fixture in Downtown Milwaukee since 1892. Waldheim was born in Cincinnati, Ohio where he began as a furniture retailer. His was reputedly the first business in the U.S. to adopt a time payment plan for goods sold. In 1889 he sold his interests in Cincinnati and moved to Milwaukee. Waldheim's was located in various buildings on Plankinton Ave. before moving to this address in 1945. (1) |
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| Bibliographic References: | 1. Robin Wenger, Primary research for environmental review of site, Jan. 1980. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |