2617 W FOND DU LAC AVE

2617 W FOND DU LAC AVE

Milwaukee

Milwaukee

1928

1940, 1939

1999

social recreational/fraternal hall

Colonial Revival/Georgian Revival

Brick

Carl Ringer, Sr. & Son-1928,Grassold and Johnson-1939,1940

No

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, State Historic Preservation Office. The building has largely retained all of its interior spacing. A flat, metal canopy shelters the main entrance; above the entrance, the words, "FREIE GEMEINDE" are inscribed. The round arched windows at the upper level are trimmed with limestone heads. A limestone cornice with a triglyph and metope-type pattern extends along the building's edge. The building was constructed for $80,000. In 1927, the Freie Gemeinde Society hired Ringer and Son to design a new meeting hall. It was constructed and being used the following year as a meeting hall. It was named Jefferson Hall, in honor of Thomas Jefferson. In 1939, alterations were made by the Milwaukee architectural firm of Grassold & Johnson to accommodate a $20,000 addition. The Society disbanded in 1977. The building subsequently served as a local entertainment facility and later a religious center.

The original drawings for the structure, by Carl Ringer & Son, are on file at the Wisconsin Architectural Archives, Milwaukee Public (Central) Library.

Not Listed