Goerke's Corners, Wisconsin | |
---|---|
Former unincorporated community | |
Coordinates: 43°02′11″N88°09′58″W / 43.03639°N 88.16611°W | |
Country | United States |
State | Wisconsin |
County | Waukesha |
Elevation | 265 m (869 ft) |
Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
Area code | 262 |
GNIS feature ID | 1577616 [1] |
Goerke's Corners (also spelled Goerkes Corner, Goerkes Corners or Goerke's Corner) is a former unincorporated community in the Town of Brookfield, in Waukesha County, Wisconsin, United States. [2] It is now the location of a major highway intersection, and the site of a park-and-ride lot.
This crossroads was originally called Storyville, after one Augustus Story who settled in the area about 1837. It was later known as Blodgett or Blodgett's Corners, probably for one Chester Blodgett who arrived in 1843. The Watertown Plank Road between Milwaukee and Watertown was built through this area during 1848–54, and a spur to Waukesha in 1850. The current name comes from Frederick Goerke, blacksmith, wagonmaker, and innkeeper in this area in the 1870s. A post office was located there (under the name Blodgett) from 1885 to 1895, with Frederick Goerke as postmaster. [3] [4]
The first segment of Interstate 94 through this area was opened in 1958. [5] By the late 20th century, this intersection, now involving Wisconsin Highway 164, U.S. Route 18 and Interstate 94, had become one of the busiest in southeastern Wisconsin, and is the westernmost major waypoint in local radio and television traffic reports. It is the site of a park-and-ride lot used by Badger Bus, the Milwaukee County Transit System, and others. [6] The former site of the settlement is now taken up by shopping centers, office buildings, hotels, apartments, and their associated parking lots. The "Goerke's Corners" name continues to be used to reference the area, although it looks much different than it did earlier. [7] [8]
Although obscure outside metro Milwaukee, Goerke's Corners had its moment of pop culture fame. In the 1949 movie It's a Great Feeling , Hollywood hopeful Judy Adams (Doris Day) proudly states that she grew up there. The place is mentioned several times in the movie, and Judy eventually returns there, disillusioned, and the film closes in Goerke's Corners with Judy marrying her old sweetheart. [9]
Waukesha County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 406,978, making it the third-most populous county in Wisconsin. Its median income of $88,985 placed it as the only county in Wisconsin on the list of the 100 highest-income counties in the U.S. by median income as of 2020. Its county seat and largest city is Waukesha.
Washington County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 136,761. Its county seat is West Bend. The county was created from Wisconsin Territory in 1836 and organized in 1845. It was named after President George Washington.
Interstate 43 (I-43) is a 191.55-mile-long (308.27 km) Interstate Highway located entirely within the US state of Wisconsin, connecting I-39/I-90 in Beloit with Milwaukee and I-41, U.S. Highway 41 (US 41) and US 141 in Green Bay. State Trunk Highway 32 (WIS 32) runs concurrently with I-43 in two sections and I-94, I-894, US 10, US 41, US 45, and WIS 57 overlap I-43 once each. There are no auxiliary or business routes connected to I-43, though an alternate route to direct traffic during road closures is signed along local and state highways from Milwaukee County north into Brown County.
Watertown is a city in Dodge and Jefferson counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Most of the city's population is in Jefferson County. Division Street, several blocks north of downtown, marks the county line. The population of Watertown was 22,926 at the 2020 census. Of this, 14,674 were in Jefferson County, and 8,252 were in Dodge County. Watertown is the largest city in the Watertown-Fort Atkinson micropolitan area, which also includes Johnson Creek and Jefferson.
The Town of Brookfield is located in Waukesha County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 6,477 at the 2020 census. The unincorporated community of Goerke's Corners is located in the town.
Brookfield is a city in eastern Waukesha County, Wisconsin, United States. It had a population of 41,464 at the 2020 census. The city is adjacent to the Town of Brookfield and is part of the Milwaukee metropolitan area.
Oconomowoc is a city in Waukesha County, Wisconsin, United States. The name was derived from Coo-no-mo-wauk, the Potawatomi term for "waterfall." The population was 18,203 at the 2020 census. The city is partially adjacent to the Town of Oconomowoc and near the village of Oconomowoc Lake, Wisconsin.
The Milwaukee metropolitan area is a major metropolitan area located in Southeastern Wisconsin, consisting of the city of Milwaukee and some of the surrounding area. There are several definitions of the area, including the Milwaukee–Waukesha–West Allis metropolitan area and the Milwaukee–Racine–Waukesha combined statistical area. It is the largest metropolitan area in Wisconsin, and the 39th largest metropolitan area in the United States.
Interstate 794 is a 3.75-mile (6.04 km) auxiliary Interstate Highway in Milwaukee County in the US state of Wisconsin. It is one of two auxiliary Interstates in the Milwaukee metropolitan area, serves the lakefront and the Port of Milwaukee, and connects downtown with the southeastern suburbs of St. Francis, Cudahy, and South Milwaukee.
State Trunk Highway 16 is a Wisconsin state highway running from Pewaukee across the state to La Crosse. Much of its route in the state parallels the former mainline of the Milwaukee Road and current mainline of the Canadian Pacific Railway. Interstate 90 (I-90) or I-94 parallels Highway 16 for most of its length in the state. It serves local traffic in nearby cities including La Crosse, Tomah, Wisconsin Dells, Portage, Columbus, Watertown, Oconomowoc and Waukesha. The highway is mainly two-lane surface road or urban multi-lane expressway from La Crosse to Oconomowoc, and it is a freeway east of Oconomowoc.
State Trunk Highway 19 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It provides a more direct route from U.S. Highway 14 near Mazomanie east to Highway 16 at Watertown, passing around the north side of Madison. WIS 19 is a local connector route that links the communities of Waunakee, Sun Prairie and Watertown. The highway follows two lane surface road for the entire length with the exception of urban multilane arterials.
State Trunk Highway 164 is a Wisconsin state highway running from Slinger, around the city of Waukesha, to Waterford.
State Trunk Highway 341, better known as Miller Park Way and currently Brewers Boulevard, refers to a former unsigned route designation of a segment of the oldest freeway in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. It connects Interstate 94 (I-94) to WIS 59, with a single set of off-ramps to Canal Street and American Family Field's parking lots.
State Trunk Highway 83 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It runs north–south in southeast Wisconsin from Hartford to the Illinois border in the village of Salem Lakes.
U.S. Highway 41 (US 41) is a north–south highway United States Numbered Highway in eastern Wisconsin. It runs from Pleasant Prairie on the Illinois border north to Marinette on the Michigan border. Most of the route is concurrent with Interstate 41 in the state, with the exception of the portion between Howard, a suburb of Green Bay, and Marinette.
U.S. Highway 18 (US 18) in the state of Wisconsin runs east–west across the southern part of the state. The highway serves as major connecting route between Madison and the southwest corner of the state. East of Madison, the route is paralleled by Interstate 94 (I-94) and serves as a local connection route to the communities along the Interstate. US 18 enters Wisconsin at Prairie du Chien and ends in downtown Milwaukee at Lincoln Memorial Drive, across from the Milwaukee Art Museum.
Interstate 94 (I-94) runs east–west through the western, central, and southeastern portions of the US state of Wisconsin. A total of 348.23 miles (560.42 km) of I-94 lie in the state.
Brookfield Square is a regional shopping mall located in Brookfield, Wisconsin, a suburb of Milwaukee. Waukesha Metro Route 1 serves the mall and connects to downtown Waukesha and MCTS Connect 1 to downtown Milwaukee. The mall is located at the intersection of Blue Mound Road and Moorland Road, near Interstate 94. It is managed by CBL & Associates Properties. The anchor stores are JCPenney, WhirlyBall, Marcus Theatres, and Barnes & Noble. There is 1 vacant anchor store that was once Boston Store.
The Watertown Subdivision or Watertown Sub is a 92.7-mile (149.2 km) railway line in Wisconsin operated by Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) through its primary United States subsidiary, the Soo Line Railroad. It meets CPKC's Tomah Subdivision in the west in Portage and runs to Milwaukee in the east where it meets the C&M Subdivision. The Watertown Subdivision had previously been operated by the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad, though the Soo Line Railroad took it over when the Milwaukee Road folded. Canadian Pacific gained ownership via taking over the Soo Line. CP consolidated its operations with the Kansas City Southern Railway on April 14, 2023 to form CPKC.
In Milwaukee, freeways were constructed in response to an 8.5% increase in population during the 1940s. Road plans were drawn up in the 1950s through the 1970s and several freeways were built. A lack of foresight resulted in several communities experiencing sharp increases in property taxes such as in West Milwaukee, or the complete destruction of vibrant, African-American neighborhoods such as Bronzeville. After a decade of aggressive highway building in the 1960s, support for freeway construction began to wane as neighborhoods started to oppose construction. With the election of John Norquist as mayor in 1988, Milwaukee began to undo some of the damage of its highway construction. The dismantling of the Park East Freeway north of downtown led to a housing and entertainment construction boom and is the location of Fiserv Forum.