Property Record
2405 S 162ND ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Conrad Schmitt Studios |
|---|---|
| Other Name: | |
| Contributing: | |
| Reference Number: | 239821 |
| Location (Address): | 2405 S 162ND ST |
|---|---|
| County: | Waukesha |
| City: | New Berlin |
| Township/Village: | |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
| Town: | |
| Range: | |
| Direction: | |
| Section: | |
| Quarter Section: | |
| Quarter/Quarter Section: |
| Year Built: | 1973 |
|---|---|
| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 2019 |
| Historic Use: | artist studio |
| Architectural Style: | Contemporary |
| Structural System: | |
| Wall Material: | Concrete |
| Architect: | |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
|---|---|
| National Register Listing Date: | |
| State Register Listing Date: |
| Additional Information: | 2019 City of New Berlin survey recommendation write-up: This largely astylistic building is two stories in height and constructed of concrete. An abstract mosaic design covers the entire surface of the building’s projecting block along its street-facing/entrance elevation. The setback portion includes the building’s entrance over which a canopy extends; another abstract design is located on the underside of the canopy/overhang. Tall-and-narrow windows run up the space adjacent to the doorway. Completed in 1973, this structure was built as the office and workshop of Conrad Schmitt Studios. Conrad Schmitt Studios was established by Conrad Schmitt in 1889. It was not until 1909 that a studio headquarters was established at 223 2nd Avenue in Milwaukee; it was also at that time that Conrad’s sons Rupert, Edward and Alphonse joined the business. The studio would relocate four more times before moving to New Berlin, where it has remained since 1973. In 1926, a branch would open in New York; however, it would close in 1933, as a result of the effects of the Depression. That same year, Alphonse would leave to establish his own decorating business. Conrad Schmitt died in 1940 and Rupert and Edward took over the business; Edward died in 1945. In 1953, Rupert Schmitt died and the business was taken over by Bernard O. Gruenke. Gruenke, who had joined the firm in 1936, left for a period of about two years to establish his own church decorating company, known as Bernard O. Gruenke Studios. He returned to Conrad Schmitt in 1950 at the request of Rupert Schmitt, who would die just three years later. Bernard O.’s son Bernard E. joined the firm as an apprentice in 1957, the latter of whom would take over in 1981 as president of the company. The elder Gruenke died in 2012 and Bernard E. died in 2015. The firm continues in the Gruenke family, run by Bernard E.’s children, B. Gunar and Heidi. |
|---|---|
| Bibliographic References: | Historical & Architectural Resources Survey, City of New Berlin, Waukesha County, Wisconsin prepared by tes | Historical Consulting, LLC, 2019. Footnotes for 2019 City of New Berlin survey information provided below: “Conrad Schmitt Studios Timeline,” Available online at https://conradschmitt.com/studio-history/, Accessed August 2019. The April 1973 move to New Berlin was derived from a citation in the following newspaper article that it would be moved “in about six weeks,” in “Art Consultant Offers Services to County,” Waukesha Daily Freeman, 26 February 1973, 4. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |