Property Record
10437 INNOVATION DR
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Muirdale Sanatorium Hospital & Administration Building |
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| Other Name: | Milwaukee County Research Park |
| Contributing: | Yes |
| Reference Number: | 78056 |
| Location (Address): | 10437 INNOVATION DR |
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| County: | Milwaukee |
| City: | Wauwatosa |
| Township/Village: | |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
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| Year Built: | 1915 |
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| Additions: | 1935 |
| Survey Date: | 20102016 |
| Historic Use: | live-in care facility/sanitarium |
| Architectural Style: | Neoclassical/Beaux Arts |
| Structural System: | Brick |
| Wall Material: | Brick |
| Architect: | Robert A. Messmer and Brothers |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Muirdale Tuberculosis Sanatorium |
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| National Register Listing Date: | 8/31/2018 |
| State Register Listing Date: | 5/18/2018 |
| 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 State Historical Society, Division of Historic Preservation. This property was previously surveyed in 1995. Although the exterior has not changed since that time, additional photos with tighter views are submitted in 2007. See also AHI#143675 for an associated structure. The sanatorium is often cited as opening on 15 November 1915; however, it did not accept patients until 17 November ("Muirdale to Receive Phthisis Patients Nov. 17th," Milwaukee Journal, 4 November 1915, 1/7). The dedication occurred on 18 November 1915, at the conclusion of the W.A.T.A. annual conference. The fourth and fifth floors were added in 1935 and were constructed with funds from the Public Works Administration. The sanatorium building/hospital is a Milwaukee county landmark. 2010--The Muirdale hospital and administration building, as well as the associated powerhouse stand as a testament to a property type--a tuberculosis sanatorium--that is no longer needed in today's society. Although the fourth and fifth stories of the hospital and administration building were added twenty years after the first three levels were constructed, the design of the additional floors (which were planned for at the project's outset) is in keeping with the original design and purpose of the structure and also falls within the property's larger Period of Significance, 1915-1960. In addition to its significance under Criterion C as a property type, the facility is notable in regards to Criterion A: Health and Medicine. The Muirdale Sanatorium functioned as a health care facility for the treatment of tuberculosis from 1915 until its closing in 1969. In addition to the standard practice of rest, fresh air and proper diet, Muirdale also employed three surgical techniques in order to further the treatment of TB and was one of the few institutions that embraced industrial recreation or #28;occupation therapy#29; in order to aid in TB treatment prior to the state legislature mandating the practice in 1919. Also significant was that Muirdale established a three-month training course in tuberculosis nursing which was taken by nurses from around the state. The Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors authorized the construction of a modern tuberculosis hospital in 1913 to be located on the county grounds in Wauwatosa. The Muirdale Sanatorium, an isolated treatment hospital for tuberculosis patients, was constructed in the county grounds in Wauwatosa in 1915. The sanatorium was designed by architect Robert Messmer and was named after the notable Wisconsin naturalist, John Muir. Messmer and Brothers architects consulted with Dr. Hoyt Dearholt, the executive secretary of the Wisconsin Anti-Tuberculosis Association, on the design of the sanatorium as a large three-story administration building in contrast with previous sanatorium designs that were generally a collection of cottages. The first of its kind, the Muirdale Sanatorium design became the model for future Sanatorium designs. During the same year, a steam power plant was constructed to the east of the administration building. Additional non-extant cottages, outbuildings, and a Children’s Cottage were constructed on the same site over the following decade. Demand for more treatment and operating space at the sanatorium led to an additional two stories being constructed on top of the administration building in 1935. At its peak, the hospital housed up to seven hundred patients. As the treatment of tuberculosis improved with the introduction of antibiotics and chemotherapy, incidences of the diseases declined dramatically after World War II, and the Sanatorium closed in 1970. The large administration building later housed the Milwaukee Nursing Home while many of the smaller outbuildings and cottages were demolished. The facility permanently closed in 1978 and was vacant when slatted for destruction in 1992. The Muirdale Sanatorium Hospital Administration Building was saved due to historic preservation efforts and has since been part of the Milwaukee County Research Park. The smaller Muirdale Powerhouse is likewise a part of the Milwaukee County Research Park as a WE Energies Training Facility. |
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| Bibliographic References: | A fold-out drawing of the grounds, as drawn and laid out by the Milwaukee architectural firm of Robert A. Messmer & Brother, is found at the conclusion of The Crusader, the monthly publication of the Wisconsin Anti-Tuberculosis Association (W.A.T.A.), No. 49, November 1914. Dr. G.L. Bellis, "Muirdale One of the Finest Sanatoriums in the Country," The Crusader, No. 57, October 1915, 8-10. "In Muirdale, Milwaukee County Gives State its Largest Sanatorium," in The Crusader, No. 66, September 1916, 20-22. "Muirdale and Blue Mound," in The Crusader, Vol. 14, No. 9, November 1923, 26-27. H.E. Dearholt, M.D., "Introducing Occupational Therapy," in The Crusader, Vol. 26, No. 1, January 1934, 6-7. Use of Federal Funds in State Summarized," in The Crusader, Vol. 28, No. 4, April 1936, 6. A significant run of The Crusader is located at the Wisconsin Historical Society's library in Madison. Copies of the aformentioned articles are located at the Wauwatosa Historical Society, Wauwatosa. Esther Salome White. "The History of Muirdale Sanatorium, 1914-1967, Wauwatosa, Wisconsin." A report submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Social Work, at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukeem 1968. Report on file in the archives at the Walter Schroeder Library of the Milwaukee School of Engineering, Milwaukee, WI. Joan Seaman Murphy, "History of Muirdale Sanatorium," in The Beacon, the publication of the State Sanatorium (known as Statesan) in Wales, Wisconsin, 5-8. Copy on file at the Wauwatosa Historical Society. Bellis, Dr. Glenford L. "Muirdale: Historical Review". The Town Crier, 1945. Murphy, Joan Seaman "History of Muirdale Sanatorium". The Beacon. July, 1936. Annals of Milwaukee County. The Milwaukee County Employee's Association, 1923. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |