Saints Peter and Paul Roman Catholic Church Complex

Milwaukee, United States

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The interior is normally open, possibly ticketed.

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Saints Peter and Paul Roman Catholic Church Complex in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, comprises a church, convent, rectory, and two school buildings erected between 1889 and 1912 to serve the rapidly growing German immigrant population on the city's upper east side. The centerpiece, designed by Henry Messmer and dedicated in 1892, exemplifies Romanesque Revival architecture with cream brick walls atop rusticated limestone foundations, a prominent gable roof, and a square tower crowned with a slate spire and Latin cross. The tower's rose window and round-arched stained-glass windows along the sides enhance its design, while the interior preserves original oak pews, a plaster barrel vault ceiling, and a Baroque-styled wooden reredos. A brick narthex was added in 1912. The 1889 convent, designed by Herman Schnetzky in simplified Romanesque Revival style, predates the church. The 1890 rectory, originally the parish school, was designed by Messmer in Neoclassical style with a lunette window above its centered entrance. A second school, built in 1912 by Erhard Brielmaier and Sons in Romanesque Revival form with Gothic accents, intentionally matched the earlier structures' style. The complex was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.

Architect

Henry Messmer Erhard Brielmaier Herman Schnetzky

Movement

Rundbogenstil Romanesque Revival architecture Neoclassical architecture

Built: 1889
Type: church building, clergy house, nunnery
Heritage: listed in the Wisconsin State Register of Historic Places, National Register of Historic Places listed place
Place: Milwaukee, United States

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Location

43.06349, -87.88638