Property Record
19480 BLUEMOUND RD
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Mary Eble Farm |
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| Other Name: | |
| Contributing: | |
| Reference Number: | 79402 |
| Location (Address): | 19480 BLUEMOUND RD |
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| County: | Waukesha |
| City: | |
| Township/Village: | Brookfield |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
| Town: | 7 |
| Range: | 20 |
| Direction: | E |
| Section: | 29 |
| Quarter Section: | SE |
| Quarter/Quarter Section: | NW |
| Year Built: | 1895 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 20082020 |
| Historic Use: | house |
| Architectural Style: | Queen Anne |
| Structural System: | Balloon Frame |
| Wall Material: | Aluminum/Vinyl Siding |
| Architect: | |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | Yes |
| Demolished Date: | 0 |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Not listed |
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| National Register Listing Date: | |
| State Register Listing Date: |
| Additional Information: | The house is of two-story frame construction. The T-plan includes front (south) and rear gables with a two-story east-facing gabled bay (the "T") with cut-away corners on the first and second floors. As typical to Queen Anne design, windows are in a variety of shapes and sizes. Window trim was removed when the house was sided. Numerous out-buildings, including two stone sheds directly behind the house, and a large gambrel-roofed barn (moved north of Bluemound Rd. in 1936) still stand, giving a strong visual character to the ensemble. The Eble Farmhouse was a fine example of Queen Anne domestic architecture when built in 1895. Due to re-siding and subsequent covering and/or removal of decorative siding materials, porches and millwork, the home has lost much of its' architectural integrity The grouping of the house, sheds and barns on an open site, however, is an important visual reminder of the growth and development of rural Brookfield Township. Mary Shaw was born in New York state in 1819 and grew up in Illinois, where she married Andrew Eble who had been born in Baden, Germany in 1803. The Ebles were pioneer settlers of Milwaukee County where they settled after their marriage in 1838. This 80 acre farm was purchased in 1879 by Mary Eble after her husband, a newly elected State Assemblyman, was accidentally killed while deer hunting. Her youngest son, Emery, worked the farm, where he was joined later by his new wife, Julia Ann Winzenreid. They raised 12 children, six of whom were born in the 11 room farmhouse which was built in 1895. The property was passed on to the two youngest children, Roy and Florence. Florence, who has lived all her life in a farmhouse, recalls the solitude of the open spaces in this area. When she walked to school she could see planks of the original Watertown Plank Road sticking out of the gravel. Farmers used their horse-drawn implements, along with picks and shovels, to grade the road. Highway 18 (Bluemound) became a narrow lane of tarred macadam, then was paved to a width of 20', widened to 40', and later, double-laned past her door. The Eble Farm was originally split by Bluemound Rd. "Until 1936 our barn was on the south side", said Florence. "We had to drive cattle along Bluemound and across the road to get them to pasture. Then we had to bring them back at night. Besides the dairy herd, we raised chickens, hogs, potatoes and grains. We had our own supply of milk, made our own butter, grew our own vegetables, and canned them to see us through the winter. We butchered and dressed our own hogs, salted our hams and shoulders, and gathered eggs from our chickens. Mother was a good manager and she gave this to her children, that's for sure". The Ebles retired from farming and sold off a herd of dairy cows in 1956. They sold half of the original 80 acre farm south of Bluemound Rd. in 1964. In September, 1987, 31 acres of land were donated by Florence and Roy Eble to Waukesha Co. for a park and ice rink. The property is to remain in public use and serve as a memorial to their family which had owned it and farmed it for over a century. The Mary Eble Farm is representative of the agricultural history of Brookfield Township. The Eble family began farming here in 1879, building the Queen Anne farmhouse in 1895, and continued agricultural pursuits through 1956. Previously surveyed in 1993. Online research (MAP) in 2020 found that the house and barn of this complex were demolished between 2011 and 2015. Just two small outbuildings remain in 2020 and both have been renovated. |
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| Bibliographic References: | Questers, Historic Landmark Tours, 1991. History of Waukesha County, 1880. Brookfield News 2/15/2001. Elm Grove Elm Leaves 2/15/2001. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |