The Neoclassical mansion of the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music

The Neoclassical mansion of the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music

This Neoclassical mansion is a vibrant music school where jazz and classical notes sound side by side. Completed in 1904, who built this mansion and what started its journey to the heart of Milwaukee's art scene?

Sitting on North Prospect Avenue 1584 in Milwaukee, the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music is a Neoclassical-style mansion. Its red brick construction, monumental portico supported by four Corinthian columns, and dentilated copper cornice hint at an elaborate past. The home's history begins in the early 1900s when Charles L. McIntosh, an industrialist who bought a controlling interest in J.I. Case Threshing Machine Co. in 1895, commissioned architect Horatio R. Wilson of Chicago to design a residence.

Wilson designed a three-story building with brownstone trim, a loggia wing, and a mahogany staircase featuring a Tiffany-designed window on the landing. The house was completed in 1904. After the death of McIntosh, his widow Effie sold the mansion in 1921 to William Osbourne Goodrich and his wife Marie. Goodrich, the heir to Milwaukee's one linseed oil business, eventually leased the building rent-free to the Wisconsin College of Music after moving his family to the northern suburbs in 1932.

Today, the conservatory serves as an independent music school and hosts musical concerts throughout the year. It teaches a variety of genres including classical, jazz, rock, folk, and blues. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2000.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons

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