Our Noble History
America's First
Public Housing
Mayor Daniel Hoan
The Garden Homes Historic District celebrates the country's first public housing project, established in 1923. A dream of Milwaukee mayor Emil Seidel, Garden Homes was to provide desirable but affordable housing to working class citizens. At the time, Milwaukee faced a major housing crisis, especially after World War I. The development was implemented under mayor Daniel Hoan, working with architect William Schuchardt. The project included a central park plus designs keyed to low cost construction.
At left is a map of the original Garden Homes development.
The project was first conceived as a single development where residents and investors would have shares in it. Residents would mnake a down payment and pay rent, then owning their homes after 20 years. Because of a lack of investors, the development was sold off to the residents with financing.
In 1990, initial Garden Homes plat was added to the National Register of Historic Places, which helps to preserve the original character of the neighborhood.