1958 Map of Milwaukee

About this map

Milwaukee’s mid-century urban landscape is defined by the heavy industrial and transport corridor of the Menomonee River valley, where extensive rail yards for the Chicago Milwaukee St Paul and Pacific and Chicago and North Western railroads intersect. This era finds the city at its peak industrial density, before major freeway construction altered the neighborhoods surrounding Marquette University and the downtown Courthouse. The map captures the city's complex social fabric through its dense concentration of parochial schools and institutions, such as Divine Savior High Sch, St Joseph Sch, and the Sacred Heart Sanitarium. Along the Lake Michigan shoreline, Jones Island is shown with its massive Sewage Disposal plant and Oil Tanks, while residential expansion pushes into Glendale and Whitefish Bay. Major landmarks like County Stadium and Washington Park stand as significant recreational anchors in the bustling city grid.