Old St. Mary’s: Milwaukee’s oldest church still standing

Come along as we delve into the history of Milwaukee’s Old St. Mary’s Church, the oldest church still standing in the city. Built in 1846 and 1847, this Catholic parish was founded by German Catholic immigrants a year before the city of Milwaukee was incorporated. At that time, Wisconsin had not yet become a state. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 1, 1973.

The parish was the first German church in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. The church was designed by Victor Schulte, a Prussian immigrant from Westphalia, in the Zopfstil style. This style, a German counterpart of the American Federal style, featured a low-pitched roof, round-topped windows, and a neat simplicity. Schulte also designed Milwaukee's St. John Cathedral and the 1850 Holy Trinity Catholic Church in the same style. The cornerstone was laid on April 19, 1846.

Constructed of cream city brick, the church features a carved wooden high altar purchased in 1848. Behind the altar is a painting of the Annunciation by Franz Xavier Glink, donated by King Ludwig I of Bavaria. The church’s tower gained a clock in 1860 and three bronze bells cast in Munich in 1868. From 1866 to 1867, the church was modified under Schulte's direction. During this time, a separate school building was constructed, and the lower classroom level of the church building was eliminated to lower the floor of the main worship space.

The exterior was reworked with a new spire added in 1866, and the east end was extended. While the interior was redecorated after a fire in 1893, the exterior still stands very much as it did right after the 1867 remodeling. With the arrival of a number of Cuban emigres to the parish, a statue of the Cuban Madonna, Our Lady of Charity, was installed in the church. Today, Old St. Mary’s continues to serve its parishioners at North Broadway 844 in Milwaukee.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons