A store of happy memories from my childhood revolve around a place my father called “the old soldiers home”. The place was exactly that, it was built as a permanent home for Civil War Veterans who had suffered injuries. Officially named “The National Home for Disabled Veteran Soldiers”, its stated purpose was “to provide a home where subsistence quarters, clothing, religious instruction, employment when possible and amusements are provided by the Government of the United States…not a charity, but a reward to the brave and deserving.”
Milwaukee was one of the three original sites for these soldiers’ homes. The main building in Milwaukee’s complex was designed by Edward Townsend Mix in the Victorian style. The first veterans walked through the doors in 1869. Ward Memorial Hall was added in 1882 and included a theater, store, restaurant and train ticket office. A chapel and other buildings soon formed an entire complex which was set on 900 acres. Down through the decades, the Soldiers’ Home continued to house and heal veterans from America’s subsequent wars.
Our family home was only a mile from the complex, and my parents loved to take walks there on the many tree-lined paths. It was a green oasis in the heart of the city. I spent hours with them walking and skipping in that bucolic place. Plus, I was awed by the grandeur of those ornate Victorian buildings.
My most vivid memory, however, is of the Soldiers’ Home at night. Milwaukee has a grid pattern of streets. The shortest way for my folks to drive downtown was through the winding roads in the soldiers’ home. Whenever we came home from downtown at night, I always hoped the lights would be on at the Ward Theater. It had a gigantic stained glass window of U.S. Grant on his horse, and I thought it was incredibly beautiful. My father, on the other hand, had different thoughts. Every time we passed it, he would say, “Grant was a drunk, and it’s amazing he could stay on the horse.” Despite all the history classes I have taken since childhood, my father’s words are still entrenched in my brain.
Those historic buildings were closed in 1989. They soon fell into egregious disrepair and were scheduled for demolition. But, sometimes, miracles do happen. Preservation groups rallied and “Old Main” has been meticulously restored. And here is the real miracle: it was not turned into profitable luxury apartments. The building will continue to welcome veterans with its 80 apartments, a fitness center and offices for caseworkers.
And one of these days, General Grant on his horse will also be fully restored, once again riding in glory.
We frequently drive through these grounds and note the progress being made in restoring the buildings. Like you I have many childhood memories of The Old Soldiers Home. I remember being in the Ward Theater and miss that great window.
I loved where I grew up…still do.
Well, ……. it certainly looks better than a stained-glass of Grant lying on the ground next to his horse!
Critics say this a very poorly designed stained glass window, but to me as a kid, it was magical.
Mary, I had a childhood friend whose father was in WWI. In his later years he developed cancer and was able to stay at that home . . .
My dad drove my friend & her mom (& me) to Milwaukee to visit him once. Very touching! And then she & I took a stroll & got
to peer down at a Braves baseball game!
It is amazing that this land has remained in the heart of the city all these years.