Property Record
1642 S 77TH ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Jordan Evangelical Lutheran Church |
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| Other Name: | Jordan Lutheran Church |
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| Reference Number: | 145246 |
| Location (Address): | 1642 S 77TH ST |
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| County: | Milwaukee |
| City: | West Allis |
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| Year Built: | 1949 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 200720152017 |
| Historic Use: | house of worship |
| Architectural Style: | Early Gothic Revival |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Brick |
| Architect: | Herman H. Bruns (Chicago) |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| Additional Information: | Datestone identifies pivotal dates of church--established in 1894 and second church built in 1927. Very modern example of Gothic Revival style. 2015- "Built in 1949, this brick-faced and stone-trimmed, gabled church is largely Contemporary in styling. The primary (south) edifice is anchored by a two(+)-story tower topped with a copper-sheathed spire. Tall-and-narrow, rectilinear window openings punctuate three of the four elevations, while the primary, wooden, double-door entrance is located along S. 77th Street. A two-story, tower-like block is situated opposite the entrance tower, with a parapeted gabled section located in between. Five, tall-and-narrow, stained-glass windows occupy the upper portion of the gabled section, with smaller sash windows located along the first level, along a one-story projection to the south that is accented with modest brick buttressing. Buttressing continues along the church’s side walls and alternates with rectangular, four-light windows along the main level, while glass block fills the basement-level windows. A modern entrance and elevator shaft extends from the structure’s east wall, while a one-story, original block extends to the rear. Designed by Chicago architect Herman H. Bruns, Jordan Evangelical Lutheran Church was built in 1949. The subject Lutheran congregation was established as a mission in 1894, in what was then the Village of North Greenfield. The meeting was held in an Episcopal church, at the current site of the subject church. It was not until a year later that the name of the congregation was chosen: “Evangelisch Lutherische Jordan-Gemeinde zu North Greenfield,” and the Episcopal church property was purchased. In 1905, that church was destroyed by fire; dedication of their new edifice occurred in April 1907. That same year, the church voted to have a full-time resident pastor and, three years later, the mission church had become self-sustaining. Although the decision to establish a Christian day school was made as early as 1907, it did not come to fruition until the 1927-28 construction of the school unit (the basement, erected at a cost of $46,000) of the planned combined church and school facility. The Great Depression delayed plans for the construction of the church edifice atop the school; the advent of World War II further pushed off its construction. A 1945 newspaper article indicated that the church finance committee needed to raise $25,000 in order to begin construction of the Neo-Gothic Revival-style church building (as had been originally designed in a more traditional vein) by Herman H. Bruns and which would cost approximately $100,000. When completed (and dedicated) in February 1950, the cost of the Modern Neo-Gothic church with furnishings and the $18,000 organ amounted to about $235,000. The church’s stained-glass windows were added in 1960. In 1985, the church purchased the former Johnson School in West Allis and moved their school operations to that facility the following year. In 1990, the sanctuary space was changed, moving the pulpit out of the chancel and the communion railing to the chancel steps; in 1992, new carpeting was installed. In 1994, all windows except the stained glass examples were replaced with glass block and in 2004, the elevator addition was built along the east side of the nave." -"W National Ave- S 76th St to S 70th St", WisDOT #2410-00-07, Prepared by Heritage Research, Ltd. (Schnell), (2015). |
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| Bibliographic References: | Date of construction from datestone. 2015 citations to match the two 2015 paragraphs in "Additional Comments": “Jordan Evangelical Lutheran Church,” Dedication Services booklet, 19 February 1950, Copy on file at the West Allis Historical Society, West Allis, WI; “Our History,” Jordan Evangelical Lutheran Church website (includes timeline), Available online at www.jordanwels.org/site/cpage.asp?cpage_id=140006850&sec_id=140001610, Accessed October 2015. “New Jordan Church to Rise on National Ave.,” unidentified newspaper clipping (although likely the West Allis Star), 18 October 1945; “Jordan Lutheran to Dedicate Church in Sunday Services,” unidentified newspaper clipping, undated (circa February 1950), this and previous clipping in Churches Binders (Jordan Evangelical Lutheran Church), Located at the West Allis Historical Society, West Allis, WI; Building permit for 1642 S. 77th Street, 5 November 1945; “Jordan Lutheran Church,” Centennial booklet, Prepared by the congregation (1994), 5, 7, 8. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |