Property Record
215 N WATER ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | FRIEND AND MARKS COMPANY |
|---|---|
| Other Name: | Harri Hoffman Co. |
| Contributing: | Yes |
| Reference Number: | 71333 |
| Location (Address): | 215 N WATER ST |
|---|---|
| County: | Milwaukee |
| City: | Milwaukee |
| Township/Village: | |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
| Town: | |
| Range: | |
| Direction: | |
| Section: | |
| Quarter Section: | |
| Quarter/Quarter Section: |
| Year Built: | 1906 |
|---|---|
| Additions: | 1907 |
| Survey Date: | 1984 |
| Historic Use: | industrial bldg/manufacturing facility |
| Architectural Style: | Prairie School |
| Structural System: | Brick |
| Wall Material: | Brick |
| Architect: | Buemming & Dick |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Historic Third Ward District |
|---|---|
| National Register Listing Date: | 3/8/1984 |
| State Register Listing Date: | 1/1/1989 |
| National Register Multiple Property Name: |
| Additional Information: | A 'site file' exists for this property. It contains additional information such as correspondence, newspaper clippings, or historical information. It is a public record and may be viewed in person at the Wisconsin Historical Society, Division of Historic Preservation-Public History. The M in the photo codes is short for MVIS negatives. This five-story red brick building is mill constructed and of a distinctive design. It has retained its original first floor with its exotic stone brackets and its pediment still intact. Rising three stories on the front are three pilasters between which are triple double-hung windows. A wide, shallow arch encompasses eight fifth-floor windows separated by brick mullions with stone corner brackets. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND AND SIGNIFICANCE: In 1907 Eugene Friend and Melvin Marks moved their twelve-year-old wholesale clothing business three blocks south into this factory. They specialized in the manufacture of men's and young men's clothing which they distributed to a largely western market. In 1929 the business and its owners apparently left Milwaukee; by 1934 Moritz and Winter Co. had acquired the building, employing 100 people, also in men's clothing manufacture. The furnace and storage were in the basement, offices on the first sales and stock on the second, finishing on the third, cutting and pressing on the foruth and sewing on the fifth. The company went out of business in 1963 and the factory was vacant for almost 10 years. Harri Hoffman Co., located one-half block away, has since used it for a warehouse. |
|---|---|
| Bibliographic References: | A. Building permits. B. Historic Third Ward Walking Tour, Historic Third Ward Association, 1998. Historic Third Ward Historic Walking Tour, Historic Third Ward Association, 2009. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |