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St. Joseph Convent and Chapel

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1914–1917, Brust and Philipp. 1501 S. Layton Blvd.
  • (Photograph by Andrew Hope)
  • (Photograph by Andrew Hope)
  • (Photograph by Andrew Hope)

The School Sisters of St. Francis teaching order formed in Munich, Germany. Its founding nuns immigrated to Wisconsin after Germany placed education under state control in 1872. The order settled in Campbellsport and then established its world headquarters in Milwaukee in 1886, dedicated to training teachers for religious schools. Their original convent burned in 1890 and was replaced in three stages by the building that extends north to Greenfield Avenue.

The St. Joseph Convent chapel’s conservative Romanesque Revival exterior gives little indication of the splendor found inside. Fifteen kinds of marble from six countries ornament the chapel. Along with extensive mosaics, there are 115 lavish art-glass windows, made in Innsbruck, Austria. The Romanesque round arch repeats throughout the soaring nave in the vaulting, clerestory, arcades, and reredos. The chapel’s exquisite acoustics are attributable to Mother M. Alfons Schmid, who established and fostered the convent’s internationally recognized musical study program.

Writing Credits

Author: 
Marsha Weisiger et al.
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Data

What's Nearby

Urban and Josephine Schlueter House
Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church
Louis Kretschmar House
Burnham Street Historic District (American System Built Homes)
Julius Jahnke House

Citation

Marsha Weisiger et al., "St. Joseph Convent and Chapel", [Milwaukee, Wisconsin], SAH Archipedia, eds. Gabrielle Esperdy and Karen Kingsley, Charlottesville: UVaP, 2012—, http://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/WI-01-MI85.

Print Source

Buildings of Wisconsin

Buildings of Wisconsin, Marsha Weisiger and contributors. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2017, 110-110.

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