Burns Commons

Last updated

Burns Commons
Burns Commons.jpg
The south end of the park, with monument to Robert Burns.
Burns Commons
TypeMunicipal
Location Milwaukee, Milwaukee County, Wisconsin
Coordinates 43°02′51″N87°53′47″W / 43.04747°N 87.89639°W / 43.04747; -87.89639
Area1.5 acres (0.61 ha)
Created1847
Operated byMilwaukee County Parks

Burns Commons is a park in the Milwaukee County Parks system in the US. It is located on the East Side of the city, bound by Franklin Place, Prospect Avenue and Ogden Avenue. It is split into two sections by Knapp Street. [1] The larger, northern section is landscaped with trees, lawn and walkways, and includes public art. The smaller southern portion has a statue of the Scottish poet Robert Burns.

Contents

History

In 1847, the developer James H. Rogers donated the land to the city, making it one of Milwaukee's earliest parks. At the time it was named First Ward Park. It was later named Franklin Square. As stately homes were built around the park, four of the neighboring homeowners took on its upkeep. They provided landscaping and built a fountain. [2] By the turn of the 20th century, the park was known as Baby Park, since the nursemaids in the affluent neighborhood took their charges to the pleasant park. [3]

In 1909, a statue of Robert Burns was donated by James Anderson Bryden, a Scottish immigrant, and erected on the south end of the park. Its dedication was on June 26, 1909. The bronze statue, set on a plinth of Nova Scotia granite, was designed by the Scottish sculptor William Grant Stevenson. [4]

In 1937, the parks of the city and of the county of Milwaukee were consolidated into the Milwaukee County Parks system. At that time, the park became known as Robert Burns Triangle. This was not official, however, since a deed restriction required the name to be kept as Franklin Square. In 1994, the restriction was removed and the park was officially renamed.

The Hop M-Line begins and ends on the north-east side of the park at the intersection of East Ogden Avenue and North Prospect Avenue.

Preceding station The Hop Following station
Ogden at Astor M-Line Terminus

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Milwaukee</span> City in Wisconsin, United States

Milwaukee is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee also is the 31st-most populous city in the United States, and the fifth-most populous city in the Midwest. It is the central city of the Milwaukee metropolitan area, the 40th-most populous metro area in the U.S. Milwaukee is categorized as a "Gamma minus" city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network, with a regional GDP of over $102 billion in 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roads and expressways in Chicago</span> Highway system

Roads and expressways in Chicago summarizes the main thoroughfares and the numbering system used in Chicago and its surrounding suburbs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outdoor sculpture in Washington, D.C.</span>

There are many outdoor sculptures in Washington, D.C. In addition to the capital's most famous monuments and memorials, many figures recognized as national heroes have been posthumously awarded with his or her own statue in a park or public square. Some figures appear on several statues: Abraham Lincoln, for example, has at least three likenesses, including those at the Lincoln Memorial, in Lincoln Park, and the old Superior Court of the District of Columbia. A number of international figures, such as Mohandas Gandhi, have also been immortalized with statues. The Statue of Freedom is a 19½-foot tall allegorical statue that rests atop the United States Capitol dome.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Historic Third Ward (Milwaukee)</span> United States historic place

The Historic Third Ward is a historic warehouse district located in downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin. This Milwaukee neighborhood is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Today, the Third Ward is home to over 450 businesses and maintains a strong position within the retail and professional service community in Milwaukee as a showcase of a mixed-use district. The neighborhood's renaissance is anchored by many specialty shops, restaurants, art galleries and theatre groups, creative businesses and condos. It is home to the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design (MIAD), and the Broadway Theatre Center. The Ward is adjacent to the Henry Maier Festival Park, home to Summerfest. The neighborhood is bounded by the Milwaukee River to the west and south, E. Clybourn Street to the north, and Lake Michigan to the east.

Cleopatra's Wedge is an 18-foot-tall (5.5 m) carbon steel sculpture currently on display at the Burns Commons in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It is part of a growing roster of public art found within the city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Milwaukee County Courthouse</span> Historic courthouse in Wisconsin, United States

The Milwaukee County Courthouse is a high-rise municipal building located in downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Completed in 1931, it is the third county courthouse to be built in the city and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The first two courthouses were built at what is now Cathedral Square Park on the east side of the Milwaukee River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Forest Home Cemetery</span> Historic cemetery in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin

Forest Home Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery located in the Lincoln Village neighborhood of Milwaukee, Wisconsin and is the final resting place of many of the city's famed beer barons, politicians and social elite. Both the cemetery and its Landmark Chapel are listed on the National Register of Historic Places and were declared a Milwaukee Landmark in 1973.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James S. Brown</span> American lawyer

James Sproat Brown was an American lawyer and politician who became the first Attorney General of Wisconsin. He also served one term as mayor of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and represented Wisconsin's 1st congressional district in the United States House of Representatives during the 38th Congress (1863–1865) as a member of the Democratic Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neighborhoods of Milwaukee</span>

The neighborhoods of Milwaukee include a number of areas in southeastern Wisconsin within the state's largest city at nearly 600,000 residents.

Alexander Chadbourne Eschweiler was an American architect with a practice in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He designed both residences and commercial structures. His eye-catching Japonist pagoda design for filling stations for Wadham's Oil and Grease Company of Milwaukee were repeated over a hundred times, though only a very few survive. His substantial turn-of-the-20th-century residences for the Milwaukee business elite, in conservative Jacobethan or neo-Georgian idioms, have preserved their cachet in the city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Henry Park</span> American sculptor

Richard Henry Park was an American sculptor who worked in marble and bronze. He was commissioned to do work by the wealthy of the nineteenth century. He did a marble bust of John Plankinton, an astute businessman who founded the meat industry in Wisconsin and was "Milwaukee's foremost citizen."

<i>Leif, the Discoverer</i> (Whitney) Sculpture by Anne Whitney

Leif, the Discoverer is a bronze sculpture of Leif Ericson created by American sculptor Anne Whitney. The statue was erected on November 15, 1887 in Juneau Park in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States.

<i>Washington Monument</i> (Milwaukee)

The Washington Monument is a public artwork by American artist Richard Henry Park located on the Court of Honor in front of the Milwaukee Public Library Central Library, which is near Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The bronze sculpture is a full-length portrait of a 43-year-old George Washington, and stands on a granite pedestal; a bronze woman points up at Washington while a child, also made out of bronze, gazes upward. It was sculpted by Richard Henry Park and was erected in 1885 with philanthropic financial support from Elizabeth Plankinton. The statue was restored between July 2016 and January 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of Robert Burns (Milwaukee)</span> Monument in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

The statue of Robert Burns in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is a work of public art by the Scottish artist William Grant Stevenson, RSA. The bronze statue, of the Scottish national poet Robert Burns, stands on a plinth of Nova Scotia pink granite with two bronze bas relief panels. The monument was donated to the City of Milwaukee by James A. Bryden.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Franklin Park (Columbus, Ohio)</span> Place

Franklin Park is a neighborhood located on the Near East Side of Columbus, Ohio. Both the historic neighborhood and landmark, the Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, are named after the 88-acre park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Hop (streetcar)</span> Tram service in Milwaukee

The Hop, also known as the Milwaukee Streetcar, is a modern streetcar system in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The system’s 2.1-mile (3.4 km) original “M” line connects the Milwaukee Intermodal Station and Downtown to the Lower East Side and Historic Third Ward neighborhoods. In October 2023, a 0.4-mile (640 m) Lakefront, or “L” line, to the still under-construction high-rise development The Couture, began limited Sunday service, and will offer daily service beginning in early 2024. The system is owned by the city and operated by Transdev.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elizabeth Plankinton</span> American philanthropist (1853–1923)

Elizabeth Ann or Anne Plankinton was an American philanthropist in the early 20th century, the daughter of Milwaukee businessman John Plankinton. She was also known as "Miss Lizzie" and the people of Milwaukee called Plankinton the "municipal patroness" because of her generosity. She made a large donation that built the first YWCA in Milwaukee. She also purchased an elaborate large-scale pipe organ for the newly constructed city auditorium.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Statue of John Plankinton</span> Artwork by Richard Henry Park

The John Plankinton statue is a six foot (1.8 m) lifelike representation of the businessman and industrialist. It took the sculptor Richard Henry Park six months to make and was initially placed in the Plankinton House Hotel in downtown Milwaukee in 1892. The property in 1916 was redeveloped into the Plankinton Arcade shopping plaza. The property was again redeveloped in the 1970s into the John Plankinton Mall at the same location where the hotel once stood. The latest redevelopment of the property occurred in 1980 to 1982 and renamed the Shops of Grand Avenue. The statue was restored in 2012 and placed on a 15 foot (4.6 m) pedestal becoming a permanent part of the shopping plaza. It is now viewed by hundreds of shoppers daily.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Downtown Milwaukee</span> Area of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States

Downtown Milwaukee is the central business district of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The economic and symbolic center of the city and the Milwaukee metropolitan area, it is Milwaukee's oldest district and home to many of region's cultural, financial educational and historical landmarks including Milwaukee City Hall, Fiserv Forum and the Milwaukee Art Museum. The city's modern history began in Downtown Milwaukee in 1795 when fur trader Jacques Vieau (1757–1852) built a post along a bluff on the east side, overlooking the Milwaukee and Menomonee rivers.

References

  1. "Burns Commons Map from MKE County Parks" (PDF) (Map). Milwaukee County Parks. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 22, 2019. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  2. "Burns Common (First Ward Park)" (Still image). Archives, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Libraries. 1895. Archived from the original on December 11, 2019. Retrieved December 11, 2019. Alternative URL
  3. "When 'Baby Park' Was in Its Infancy" . Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee, Wisconsin. November 19, 1946. p. 16. Retrieved December 11, 2019 via Newsbank.
  4. "James A. Bryden's Gift is Unveiled" . Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. June 26, 1909. p. 4. Retrieved December 11, 2019 via Newsbank.