Property Record
1665 S 57TH ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Nain Evangelical Lutheran Church |
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| Other Name: | Nain Evangelical Lutheran Church |
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| Reference Number: | 145291 |
| Location (Address): | 1665 S 57TH ST |
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| County: | Milwaukee |
| City: | West Allis |
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| Year Built: | 1956 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 20072017 |
| Historic Use: | house of worship |
| Architectural Style: | Late Gothic Revival |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Stone Veneer |
| Architect: | Steffen & Kemp |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
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| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| Additional Information: | Generally oriented on an east/west axis, this Lannon stone-sheathed church is comprised of two sections; the church proper and the office wing. The church proper is located along West Mitchell Street and exhibits a pair of one-story gabled entries at either end; each is framed with modest, stepped buttresses. The nave walls consist of tripartite groupings of rectangular openings which carry leaded-glass, diamond paning, while the gabled wing which extends from the nave's east end carries three tall and narrow lancet windows. Below the windows, an inscribed stone inset reads "NAIN EV. LUTHERAN" and a tall copper spire rises from the ridge of the nave#25;s roof. The gabled office wing extends to the north, along South 57th Street; a shed-roof overhang shelters this entrance and a wide chimney rises from the roof's north end. Finding it difficult to reach their church on the south side of Milwaukee, a group of five families began in 1913 to gather in the basement of one family's home near S. 44th Street. Worship services in that area began shortly thereafter by a recent graduate of the Wisconsin Lutheran Theological Seminary. After canvassing the area for additional potential church members, on 15 October 1914, the Nain congregation was established (Nain means pleasantness or beauty). A portable wooden building was placed between W. Burnham and W. Rogers streets, along S. 58th Street and there they worshiped until 1923. That year, a new wooden chapel was erected on the corner of S. 57th and W. Mitchell streets, where they had purchased six lots. That structure served them well until 1956, at which time construction of the existing Lannon stone-sheathed church began. The congregation hired the architectural firm of Steffen & Kemp to design their new house of worship and dedication services for the building occurred on 31 March 1957. The church continues today as Nain Evangelical Lutheran Church, affiliated with the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS). |
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| Bibliographic References: | Date of construction on datestone on church. Original plans on file at the Wisconsin Architectural Archive, Milwaukee Public Central Library, 2nd floor, East wing, Milwaukee, WI. "Lutheran Church to Celebrate 75 Years with Service, Dinner," West Allis Star, 21 September 1989; "Nain Lutheran Church," Summary of history, prepared by Betty Hartwig of the WAHS, on file in the Churches, Miscellaneous and Lutheran Binder, located at the WAHS; Steffen & Kemp, "Nain Evangelical Lutheran Church," Original plans (1955), On file at the WAA. "Architecture/History Survey for N. 60th Street from W Capitol Dr (south) to W. Hampton Avenue (north), Milwaukee, WI." April 2017. WHS Project #18-0811/MI. Prepared by Heritage Research, Ltd. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |