What to know about Milwaukee's North Point Neighborhood
There are more than 75 distinct neighborhoods in Milwaukee. Among them is North Point, a primarily residential area known for its turn-of-the-century mansions and views from a bluff overlooking Lake Michigan.
The neighborhood is home to several historic Milwaukee landmarks and attractions: the 150-year-old North Point Water Tower, 168-year-old North Point Lighthouse and 138-acre public Lake Park for ice skating, concerts, walking trails and more.
More: How many neighborhoods are there in Milwaukee? Here's why there's no 'right' answer.
Where is Milwaukee's North Point neighborhood?
North Point is bordered to the south by East Lafayette Place and to the north, East Park Place. To the west are borders along North Summit Avenue and North Downer Avenue. Its eastern border is Lake Michigan. North Point is located in northeastern Milwaukee, just north of the popular Lower East Side neighborhood.
North Point mansions once housed prominent families
Many North Point homes are mansions built between 1885 and 1915. These houses were far larger than others built in Milwaukee around the same time — often, two-and-a-half stories high with a partial third story for servants' living spaces — and housed prominent citizens like the Pabst and Blatz brewing families.
According to a city document about the historic neighborhood, "The North Point area became one of Milwaukee’s most prestigious residential neighborhoods, largely because of the panoramic lake views that the bluff sites commanded."
More: Explore Milwaukee's history through its many home styles
North Point Water Tower is a can't-miss neighborhood feature
Standing 175 feet tall in the center of the neighborhood is the stately North Point Water Tower, constructed in 1873. It is made of limestone from the Hiram and Horace Story Quarry, today the site for Miller Park, and cream city brick.
Using a 58-mile system of underground steam-powered pipes and water from Lake Michigan, the tower once provided Milwaukee with 16 million gallons of water daily. It went out of operation in 1963.
More: What's inside Milwaukee's vast network of underground tunnels?
Lake Park and Bradford Beach are hotspots for recreation, relaxation
North Point encompasses the majority of Lake Park, a 138-acre greenspace along the Lake Michigan bluff. Today the park is home to outdoor summer concerts, walking trails and space for sports like golf, soccer, softball, tennis and ice skating.
Bradford Beach is another popular spot where Milwaukeeans to soak up much-needed Vitamin D in the summertime. Along with volleyball and swimming, the beach is known to shorebirds and waterfowl as a migratory corridor.
The area that is now Milwaukee is located on traditional, ancestral and contemporary Indigenous homelands. The land was forcefully ceded by the Potawatomi peoples to the U.S. government in the 1830s. Although many effigy mounds were destroyed as Milwaukee was built, Lake Park includes a 40-foot-wide, 2-foot-high structure created an estimated 2,000 years ago by Indigenous inhabitants of the area.
North Point features several well-known local landmarks
Also found in North Point is the historic North Point Lighthouse, first opened in 1855. Between the 28-foot tower and bluff elevation, it was the highest lighthouse on any of the Great Lakes. The structure was rebuilt about 100 feet inland in 1888 due to bluff erosion.
Today, the lighthouse located within Lake Park is open to the public for tours and an 84-step climb to the top of the tower.
Originally called the "Sopra Mare," or "above the sea" in Italian, the Villa Terrace Decorative Arts Museum at 2220 N. Terrace Ave. is hard to miss when walking along Lake Michigan. Sitting high on the bluff, the Italian Renaissance-style mansion includes a backyard grand staircase and garden. The museum is also known as the Lloyd R. Smith House, named for the A.O. Smith Corp. president who commissioned the house for his family in 1923.
New to the neighborhood? Here’s how to access Milwaukee services
North Point is located in the 3rd aldermanic district. Contact your alderperson and find news about the district at city.milwaukee.gov/CommonCouncil/CouncilMembers/District3.
North Point is located in the Milwaukee Police Department’s District 1, which has public safety meetings four times a year on Wednesdays. Find more information at city.milwaukee.gov/police/districts/District-1.
Find your garbage and recycling schedules at city.milwaukee.gov/sanitation/GarbageRecyclingSchedules.
Learn how to register to vote and find your polling place at city.milwaukee.gov/election/Voter-Info.
Need to borrow tools for a home improvement project? Check out the city’s Tool Loan Center, 2500 W. Capitol Drive. More details at bit.ly/MKE_ToolLoan.
Want to get emailed updates about police activity, new development and more in your neighborhood? Sign up for the city’s e-notify system at city.milwaukee.gov/News-Events/enotify.
Sources: Encyclopedia of Milwaukee
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: A guide to Milwaukee's North Point neighborhood
