Walker's Point Historic District

Walker's Point Historic District is a neighborhood in Milwaukee with residential and industrial buildings dating from 1849 onward. The streets show a mix of former factories, breweries, tanneries, churches, and worker cottages that tell the story of life during the industrial era.

George Walker established a trading post on this land in 1833, creating one of the three original settlements that would eventually form Milwaukee. The area then grew into an industrial center during the 1800s, attracting workers and immigrant families who built the neighborhood.

You can see how German, Scandinavian, Irish, and Polish families shaped the buildings around you: sturdy brick churches, small wooden houses, and social halls line the streets. These communities left their mark not just in what they built, but in how they used the neighborhood as their own gathering place.

The district is located between the freeway, the Menomonee Canal, and several main streets, making it easy to reach by car or public transit. Walking through the neighborhoods allows you to move between different streets and buildings at your own pace.

The Philip Best Brewery, which became Pabst, and the Pfister and Vogel Tannery operated here as major industrial employers that shaped the neighborhood's economy. You can still walk past the buildings where these operations once thrived, seeing how their scale dominated the area.

Location: Milwaukee

GPS coordinates: 43.02417,-87.91667

Latest update: December 14, 2025 13:03