Tour of Homes: Up, Down, and Around Kavanaugh
by Chris Vogel
Historic Wauwatosa, Issue 138, September 2000
Six homes built between 1882 and 1934 showcase how creative owners can make older homes more livable, while retaining much of their original architecture and charm. The homes are part of this year’s WHS Tour of Homes on Saturday, Oct. 7. The tour will be from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. All homes are within walking distance of each other, in about a ¼ mile area.
Most of the homes on “Up, Down, and Around Kavanaugh” are on quiet Kavanaugh Place, a short street east of and parallel to Glenview Avenue (84th St.). The tour also includes the Gothic Revival St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church at 7809 Harwood Ave., and a “painted lady” Victorian cottage on Glenview.
History of the Kavanaugh Area
The earliest resident owner of the land where Kavanaugh now stands was Robert J. Faries, Wauwatosa’s first dentist. Dr. Faries won acclaim when he created a set of articulated dentures that won an award at the 1867 Paris International Exposition. By 1867, The Milwaukee Sentinel reported the following.
FOR THE WORLD'S FAIR – Dr. Faries (firm of Faries & Foster, dentists) has just finished and sent a double set of teeth to be exhibited at the World's Fair in Paris. They are models of beauty. They were made expressly to the order of Samuel S. Wolfe, Esq., of Philadelphia, the largest dental furnisher and manufacturer in the world, to be exhibited with a case of his articles at the fair. It was deservedly a high compliment paid to Dr. Faries, who for nearly twenty-five years’ practice in this city, has sustained the reputation of having no superior and few equals in his profession in this country. We hail this as another evidence of the ability of the city and state to compare favorably with the handiwork of other parts of this country, at the coming great World's Fair at Paris.
Dr. Faries was also an avid astronomer, and handcrafted his own telescopes and ground his own lenses. [see Historic Wauwatosa of Jan., 1987, for more information on this multi-talented man.] After his death in 1878, Dr. Faries’ heirs sold the land to George McGarigle. In turn, James Douglas and Jean Kavanagh (note the spelling) purchased the land.
James Douglas was a Scots-born architect and builder, with offices on Milwaukee Street in Milwaukee. Jean Kavanagh was a widow and an artist of some local fame, with a studio in the Iron Block building in Milwaukee. In April 1884, James Douglas added his wife, Mary Jane, to the title. They had it surveyed as a subdivision and platted the survey as “Douglas Heights” on November 22, 1884. The survey showed 26 lots, with a road called Kavanaugh Place running south from what is now Harwood Avenue down the middle of the subdivision, dead-ending just south of where Chestnut Street now joins Kavanaugh. Two tour homes are in the Douglas Heights Subdivision.
In July 1891, the Unity Addition Subdivision was platted to the south, and Kavanaugh Place was extended south to Gridley (and later, Portland) Avenue. This portion was developed in the 1920s & 1930s. A definite difference in the architecture and placement of the homes on the south and north ends of Kavanaugh Place indicate the change from 1880s-vintage homes to 1930s-vintage homes. Three tour homes are in the Unity Addition Subdivision.
In 1931, Milwaukee County condemned for “parkway purposes” much land throughout the county, including large portions of the Unity Addition Subdivision. That area is now Honey Creek Parkway and Milwaukee Psychiatric Hospital land.
The Skalecki home is located in the Gridley Subdivision. In 1868, this land was owned by Benson Brazee. The side street to the south of the Skalecki home – now named Red Arrow Court – was originally called Brazee Street [there are many spelling variations in early documents]. Mr. Brazee and his wife, Althea, sold this land to Leander L. Gridley in October, 1870. Mr. Gridley moved here from New York in 1839 and operated a butter and milk business. He subdivided this land into 23 lots in 1884. [For information on the Gridley family, see Historic Wauwatosa for May 1985; March, 1988, and Aug., 2000] Leander L. Gridley’s son, Leander Vernon Gridley, incorporated the L.V. Gridley Dairy Company in 1898 and eventually sold to the Borden Co. of New York.
Highlights of the Tour Homes
1134 Kavanaugh Place, the Bob & Kathy Lemke Home
Research by Peggy Oberbeck
This Lannon stone house in French Normandy style presents many of the original features, either retained or reintroduced. Kathy and Bob Lemke are only the third owners of the home, built 1933-34. A pen & ink sketch of the house appeared in the Milwaukee Sentinel on November 18, 1934. It stated, “Wauwatosa House Completed. Just completed for F.A. Rauch, this French style six room residence with all modern features is one of 5 projects by Chester A. Sullivan, local builder.”
From 1936-76, Frederick A. Rauch, his wife Marcella, and their three daughters lived in the house. Frederick worked as a post office clerk, and as a clerk for the railway mail service.
In 1977, the property was purchased by Benno and Rita Bauer. Rita was a drama teacher with the Milwaukee Schools; she may also have participated in community theater groups. It is not known where Benno worked.
The current owners purchased the home in 1991. They have done much to retain the original features of the house. There is a substantial stone frame with a keystone at its top. Above is an arched leaded glass window. The entry hall has an oak staircase and archway to the living room. This room features a bay window and multiple-light casement windows. The walls are textured plaster with ornamental plaster trim accenting the ceiling. The woodwork and floors are oak with their original finish. The Lannon stone natural fireplace has a large oak mantel. The Lemkes removed a mirror above the mantel, and replaced the wall sconces.
A large arch separates the living room and dining room. Clues indicate that this arch at one time had French doors. There was a light fixture in the arch, which the Lemkes removed and covered. The dining room also has oak woodwork and floors, with original leaded glass corner cabinets. The dining room light fixture is original to the house and matches the sconces in the living room and entry hall. The dining room door with the diamond leaded glass window was found in the basement. French doors from the dining room open into a large sunroom. Originally a porch, it was converted to an enclosed sunroom in the mid-1950s.
The kitchen floor was originally covered with gray linoleum with a red border strip incorporated into the design. The Lemkes removed the linoleum and refinished the maple floor. They incorporated the red strip border into the newly finished floor. The side window was closed off when the addition was added. The small bathroom near the kitchen is original to the house. There is an original corner sink to save space.
The oak main stairway leads to an open hall at the top landing. A second-floor bathroom looks out over the front door. The floor is the original peach-colored tile. The tub area also still displays the original peach tiles.
The children’s bedrooms are also accented by the interesting window angles that follow the Mansard rooflines. The master bedroom suite includes a large deck over the sunroom.
1147 Kavanaugh Place: The Keith & Tracy Kalberer Home
Research by Cathy Kebbekus
This Tudor Revival style home, built in 1928, has kept its original charm throughout the years, starting with the crenellated parapet over the front entrance. The round-arched, multiple-light casement windows, coved ceilings, and Spanish plaster are typical of the 1920s. In 1903, many lots in the Unity Addition Subdivision were transferred from the Unity Land Company to R. (Rudolph) J. Schwab, president of Unity Land Company.
In 1925, a dispute arose over the ownership of several of these lots in the subdivision. This dispute was between RJ Schwab, plaintiff, and Benson & Althea Brazee (who earlier owned the Gridley Subdivision land) plus Robert J & Hannah Faries, defendants. However, the judge decreed that the land in question belonged to Schwab.
The following year, many lots in the subdivision were sold by Schwab (now a widower living in Miami, Florida) to Alfred & Ellen Holzbog of Wauwatosa. The Holzbogs in turn sold a parcel to Marie Armitage of Milwaukee.
Marie Armitage was 39 years old when she purchased the vacant lot on Kavanaugh Place. She contracted with Beck Pfeifer Building Corp., who finished her new home in 1928. During the County’s parkway condemnation in 1931, Marie received $165.07 compensation.
Marie and her family occupied the home from 1929 through 1964. Marie’s husband Ralph was variously a correspondent and a stock clerk. Their daughter Florence became a bookkeeper. The 1952 Wauwatosa City directory shows Marie Armitage as the widow of Ralph and, for the first time, lists an occupation for her – Business Agent for Theatrical Wardrobe Union 777. Marie spent her life involved with theatrical pursuits. Her 1964 Milwaukee Journal obituary declared, “Mrs. Armitage Dies; Dressed Stage Stars. Mrs. Marie Armitage, 76, who had dressed stars at the Pabst Theater since 1911, collapsed and died backstage at the theater Saturday night during the performance of ‘A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum’.”
Marie Armitage left her home and other property to her daughter, Florence. The home was vacant in 1965, then was occupied by a succession of renters. Eventually, after Florence died, the home was sold in 1994 by her trustee (her daughter) to the current owners.
The Kalberers found the home in remarkably good and original condition; prior to their ownership, the only building permits filed for the property were for the original construction and for unspecified electrical work in 1993. They were happy to find and retain original light fixtures in the living room, dining room, and sunroom. Since their ownership, the current owners have done electrical, plumbing, furnace and air conditioning updates; they have beautifully landscaped the yard and added a garage (1996); and remodeled the kitchen and powder room (1998). They have painted and stenciled surprises throughout the house, such as the northwoods scene on a bedroom wall, and a chipmunk that appears about to scamper out the back door. They have updated and decorated in a way that retains the original charm of their 72 year-old home.
1169 Kavanaugh Place: The Peter & Cathy Johnson Home
Research by Dr. Frederick I. Olson
The first resident owner combined two adjacent lots in 1924; this property is the only double lot in the vicinity. Jacob Nickel, a carpenter and building contractor, and his wife Alana first built a three-stall frame garage in 1924, then the brick clad house in 1925. The large Prairie-influenced home, almost certainly adapted from a builder’s book, boasts three full floors plus a basement. The style may be referred to as Four Square with Prairie elements, such as eave overhangs, and Craftsman features (although with brick veneer).
My inference is that Nickel built the garage as a convenient facility for construction of his house the following year, and that for the remainder of his ownership used the garage for storage of or preparation of building materials for his building contractor business. There is evidence in the garage, including a stairway to a large loft, a stove, and an outside chimney, to support this view. It is to be noted that in Milwaukee in the mid-1920s almost no middle class home would have had a two-car, let alone a three-car, garage. Nickel also was contractor for the 1937 renovation of another tour home, at 1225 Kavanaugh.
Quality woodwork was provided by builder Nickel, a master carpenter/woodworker. The present owners have refinished much of the original woodwork. Clarence H. Burnett, a dentist, and his wife were owner-occupants 1945-46. There is evidence that Dr. Burnett remodeled a portion of the first floor rear as an office, and included a sink.
Andrew C. Renner and his wife owned the house from 1946 to 1949. Renner was the founder/owner/operator of Renner Olds, then at N. 68th Street and Milwaukee Avenue. In 1949, Renner sold out his interests in the Olds agency and moved to West Palm Beach, Florida, for health reasons.
Robert Carleton Moore, an electrical engineer with Allis-Chalmers Manufacturing Company, bought the house in 1949. He resided there with his wife and their six children. Moore had a long and distinguished career as an engineer and designer of large electrical motors. He then became a part-time instructor, first at the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee and then for the Milwaukee School of Engineering in the Electric Engineering and Computer Science Department for over 20 years. His success in teaching large horse power electrical motor design at MSOE is attested to by their establishing the Robert C. Moore Part-Time Faculty Award, given annually. It is said that Moore never missed a single class in 20 years.
The Moores, with a growing family, had owned and occupied a smaller residence at 1066 Kavanaugh, during which period they became good friends with the Renners. When 1169 became available, they promptly bought it from their friends and moved to their new residence by carting their belongings up the street in a coaster wagon. Their occupancy of 47 years is by far the longest of the property’s five owners.
Peter R. and Cathy Johnson purchased the property from Mrs. Moore in 1996, and thereupon undertook remodeling and updating the property, staying true to the home’s style.
A large front entryway is separated from the living room by French doors, which are identical to the French doors leading from the living room into a large sunroom. Built-in cabinets next to the living room fireplace mirror the built-ins of the dining room. The extensive use of leaded glass windows is characteristic of eclectic architecture of the 1920s. There is now a beautifully updated kitchen and a new full bathroom.
On the second floor, a fourth bedroom was sacrificed to make a large master bath and dressing room, creating a master suite. A spiral staircase was added so that the third floor could be made into an airy family room fitted into the new dormers of the roof. A full bath was installed on the third floor, as well.
1225 Kavanaugh Place: The Dan & Paula Johnson Home
Research by Jim Habek
This Queen Anne home, built between 1886-89, is full of surprises — all the way up to the hubcap set in the top of an 18-foot turret on the third floor!
Early real estate developer Herbert Parker Bradley purchased lots in Douglas Heights immediately after it was platted in 1884. Two years later, he sold one lot to George Anderson of Milwaukee, for $800. It apparently was Anderson, with his wife Mary Jane, who actually built the house, for when they sold the property to Mary E. Moorehouse in May of 1889, the property sold for $6,000. However, no definitive records about the building of the house have been found.
After several transfers of ownership, the property was sold to Arthur C. Fingado and his wife Augusta, in March, 1926. Arthur C. Fingado was the son of Charles Fingado, a prominent figure in early Wauwatosa. Charles had been born in Germany in 1841. He came to Wauwatosa in 1854, served in the 24th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War, and when he returned, he became our first butcher. Charles Fingado sold a portion of his land to the St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, Tour of Homes Headquarters, in 1882. He platted the Chas. Fingado Subdivision located immediately east of Douglas Heights. [See Historic Wauwatosa for Sept., 1991, for further details.]
Arthur built the frame 3-car garage (very large for those times) in 1927, for “garage and storage purposes.” In 1937, he changed the house from a one-family to a two-family residence. The contractor was J. Nickel (who also built the tour home at 1169 Kavanaugh). The original staircase, located near the center of the house, was floored over, a north-facing window was almost completely closed off, a new front door was cut into the north end of the house, and an enclosed staircase was added which runs along the north wall of the house. The first floor of the house continued to have the original 1223 Kavanaugh Place address; the upstairs became 1225 Kavanaugh Place.
After Mrs. Fingado died in 1948, the house became a rental property, with renters upstairs and down. In 1957, Elliot and Jean Coffin became tenants, and remained there until 1993, even though the property changed owners. Phyllis N. Stuart, a schoolteacher, purchased the property in 1989. She erected the deck on the south and west sides of the house, and installed a new kitchen on the first floor. Phyllis and her new husband sold the property to the current owners in 1996.
The Johnsons spent 400 days – and used 137 sheets of drywall – to create three bedrooms and a bathroom in the gabled third floor. That dusty attic area had been used during World War II to raise ducks for meat. (Remember, Arthur’s father Charles had been a butcher!)
The second floor kitchen, in what had been a maid’s bedroom and kitchen, has a painted tin ceiling salvaged from a West Allis feed store. The Johnson family lives on the home’s second and third floors; tenants lease the first floor.
1233 Kavanaugh Place: The Mark & Sue Rowbottom Home
Research by Michael R. Smith
A simple, early Queen Anne style home, built in 1885, this house is clapboard with staggered shingles and bargeboards on the front gable. The current owners have added further Victorian detailing since purchasing the house in 1994: turned posts on the porch, scrolled brackets on the sides of the porch roof, and a spindled frieze along the roof of the porch with a pendant hanging down in the middle of the frieze. There are cutaway corners on the bay window on the south side of the house, and colored glass around the first and third floor windows. In the 1960s, the owners added a one-story addition (the kitchen area) to the rear of the house.
The same day that the Douglas Heights subdivision was platted, the owners sold this lot to Herbert Parker Bradley and his wife, of Milwaukee. Obviously, Bradley was a purchaser who had lined up the transaction in advance. Bradley also purchased the lot that now is 1223/1225 Kavanaugh, also on this tour. Since they are similar in style, both houses may have been constructed by the same builder. This house is reputed to have been built around 1885, which is consistent with the architectural elements.
Herbert Bradley was a draftsman who later moved to the real estate and insurance business. An early history of Milwaukee County lists him as follows: Herbert…was employed as clerk in the E.P. Allis works for eight years. Coming to Wauwatosa he engaged in the real estate business for about two years, and since 1894 has been town clerk [Town of Wauwatosa is the area outside the original village boundaries] now serving his eighth term, and is also health officer of Wauwatosa. In politics he is a Republican, and in his religious faith a member of the Episcopal Church. Harry E. Bradley [older brother of Herbert P.] is a leading physician of Milwaukee, and was surgeon major during the Spanish-American war.
William and Mary Edith Taylor owned the property for 17 years. William was a painter, with a shop on State Street. The Taylors were in the house for the 1900 U.S. Census. The house is classified as a farm, with Mary Edith’s family employing a German maid. There appears to have been a trend towards diminished financial circumstances for the Taylors. They rented the house to other occupants for a while, then sold the property in 1909. However, by 1920 — 11 years after she and her husband sold the house — Mary Edith Taylor is once again living in the house, but as a housekeeper. Her social status had dramatically declined, from a 40-year old woman who employed a maid to a 60-year old woman who was a maid.
In 1917, Miss Harriet E. Rice (later Bohnert) purchased the property. She lived in the house for 44 years, until 1961. During that time, she married Otto Bohnert and continued to live in the home after she was widowed. Harriet was the granddaughter of one of Wauwatosa’s pioneer settlers, Alba Mower, who arrived here in 1842.
Harriet was a clerk at the post office and Otto Bohnert was a barber. Otto became a “retail merchant—men’s furnishings,” and later was a tailor and clothes cleaner in the Village.
Life-long Wauwatosa resident George Wells remembers Mr. and Mrs. Bohnert as a very nice older couple who kept roomers. All the youngsters liked the Bohnerts, who at Halloween always gave out the best treats. Mrs. Bohnert would also serve youngsters milk and cookies or lemonade as they cut through her yard. He remembers Mr. Bohnert as being the tailor to the local wealthy people. His trade was hurt by the Great Depression, so he closed his shop and took a job at Lefeber’s, handling clothing sales and alterations, from 1949-57.
Richard and Verona Matheys bought the house from Harriet Bohnert’s executors. They lived in the house 1961-1988. The Matheys added a one-story addition (kitchen area) to the house and replaced the old garage.
Gretchen Fergeson purchased the house in 1988, and owned the house for 15 months. She sold to Mark J. and Karen J. Hamilton, who owned the house 1989-1994. Current owners Mark and Susan Rowbottom have lived in the house since 1994. They have remodeled the kitchen, and accented the home’s bright and airy atmosphere. A bay window fills the dining room with light. The graceful stairway features a curved banister and a landing. Bedrooms on the second and third floors are beautifully appointed, with many nooks and crannies.
When the garage burned down in the mid-1990s, the current owners built a new garage, which features a large family room and children’s play area in the gables of the garage’s roof.
1157 Glenview Avenue: The John & Debbie Skalecki Home
Research by Barb Bergquist
This home’s original owners might still feel at home here, as the house has been restored by the current owners to reflect its early days. The current owners, who purchased the house in 1985, have restored this home to original Victorian style, doing all the work themselves. Now a peach color accented with coral, green, and white, the house has the style of a charming cottage.
The land patent for this property was dated March 3, 1843, and recorded June 6, 1868, by the USA to Benson Brazee. Of interest is the name of Brazee Street, which is the side street to the south of the Skalecki home, now named Red Arrow Court.
The first several owners of this home resided here only a few years. In 1902, Daniel and Anne Scully purchased the property. Daniel and his brother William owned and operated a saloon on State Street and Park Avenue (Park Avenue later became 75th St).
The area behind the home to the west, along Brazee Street, was also owned by Scully. This lot had to be sold in order to pay debts after his death in 1912. This lot had no sewer, water, sidewalk, or other street improvements at this time. The youngest Scully daughter, Ruth, married Mr. Enright and built a house (estimated 1950s) on property just behind the tour home lot. This home still stands today.
Subsequent owners Mr. and Mrs. James Stahlman sold the property to the current owners, John and Debbie Skalecki, in 1985. The Skaleckis took decorative painting classes at Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design, and have used a variety of techniques on the walls of their home, including color washes, sponge painting, and marbleizing.
The owners first restored the interior, stripping the kitchen maple wainscoting hidden under eight layers of paint, repairing the original tin ceiling in the kitchen with leftover tin, and installing a first-floor bathroom and hardwood floors. The kitchen has no counters – the family uses a marble-topped table for food preparation – or cabinets. The sink is in one pantry, and a powder room does double duty as another pantry.
A brick walkway along the south side of the house was made using the old bricks from the original chimney. The outside of the house got a face-lift, one side per year. A screened-in back porch and patio were added in 1986, and the drive and garage were relocated to the side street, Red Arrow Court, in 1989.
A beautiful concrete patio and driveway lined with bricks has just been finished. The Skaleckis are also enclosing the screened-in back porch with floor-to-ceiling casement windows and a new door.
Tour Headquarters
7809 Harwood Avenue: St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran ChurcH
Research by Charlotte Hansen
St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church was organized in January, 1882, by 24 men. Fittingly, Pastor William Rader was called as the church’s first pastor after his ordination in April, 1882 – as it was he who helped gather the original families when he was doing mission work as a seminary student. Early Wauwatosan Charles Fingado sold the congregation a plot of ground on Harwood Avenue for $500. Fingado’s butcher shop and ice cream parlor was located across Dewey Avenue, where St. John’s School is now. The church building was built and dedicated in 1882. It was built by Charles Dittmar, one of the charter members of the church. Mr. Dittmar was one of the first elders; Mr. Fingado was one of the first trustees.
As the area’s German population grew in the 1880s, the church also grew; in 1889 there were 188 members, making it one of the largest church bodies in Wauwatosa. By the 1920s, the need for a new structure was apparent. The present Gothic church building, made of Lannon stone, was dedicated in 1929. The Lentz family, who owned Lentz Mill Works in the Village, did all the oak wood work. This new church was built the same year the stock market crashed, creating a real struggle for the congregation.
St. John’s Congregation has operated a Christian Elementary School with grades K-8 since its organization. This is the oldest parochial school in Wauwatosa. A separate building for the grade school was built in 1888. The school building on the southeast corner of Harwood and Dewey Avenues was built in 1957 and dedicated in September, 1958.
Three ministers – Joel Leyrer, Steven Pagels, and Michael George – currently serve the congregation. Seven elementary teachers serve in the school.
This was the first non-English-speaking church in Wauwatosa, and continued services in German until 1965. St. John’s is a member of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS). It was one of the founding congregations of the newly formed Wisconsin Lutheran High School conference in the early 1950s.
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