Shorewood Village Hall facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Shorewood Village Hall
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Shorewood Village Hall
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| Location | 3930 N. Murray Ave. Shorewood, Wisconsin |
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| Architectural style | Neoclassical |
| NRHP reference No. | 84003739 |
| Added to NRHP | September 7, 1984 |
The Shorewood Village Hall is an old and important building in Shorewood, Wisconsin. It's where the local government of Shorewood works. This building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. This means it's recognized as a special place in American history.
A Building with a Past
The Shorewood Village Hall has a long and interesting history. It was first built in 1908. Back then, it wasn't a village hall at all! It was a school called School House No. 4. This was when the area was known as East Milwaukee.
By 1915, the town had grown a lot. The school building was too small for all the students. So, a new school, Atwater Elementary, was built. In 1916, the village of Shorewood bought the old school building. They decided to use it as their new village hall. It has been the main place for Shorewood's local government ever since.
Making the Hall Look Grand
When it was first built, the schoolhouse looked quite plain. It was a three-story building made of cream-colored bricks. These bricks were famous in Milwaukee. The building had a simple cross-gabled roof.
In 1937, the village wanted to make the building look better. They also wanted to help the town's economy. This was during the Great Depression, a time when many people were out of work. The village worked with a government program called the Works Progress Administration (WPA). The WPA helped create jobs during the Depression.
New Look for the Village Hall
Together, they gave the building a grand new look. They made it more like the Classical Revival style. This style uses ideas from ancient Greek and Roman buildings. They added a fancy front porch, called a Doric portico. They also added flat columns, called pilasters, around the main entrance.
Rough-looking stone was added to the bottom part of the building. Inside, the old wooden parts were replaced with new knotty pine wood. The WPA paid about $14,500 for these changes. The village added another $3,500. These updates made the Shorewood Village Hall a beautiful symbol for the community.
