National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers, Northwestern Branch, Main Building, 5000 West National Avenue, Milwaukee, Milwaukee County, WI

Significance: The Main Building was constructed in 1868-69 and designed by prominent Milwaukee architect Edward Townsend Mix. It was the primary purpose-built structure for the Northwestern Branch of the National Asylum for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers (renamed National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers in 1873). This new federal institution was authorized by Congress in 1865 and charged with caring for Civil War veterans disabled by their military service. That the Northwestern Branch was located in Milwaukee in 1866 was largely due to the fundraising and organization already completed by the Wisconsin Soldiers' Home Society. The Milwaukee women who spearheaded this effort donated $95,000 to the cause and a picturesque campus was established west of the city.

Mix's design for the new Soldiers' Home building was a Victorian Gothic pile with a tall central tower and large flanking wings, prominently placed on a ridge looking east toward the city. Originally intended to be a multipurpose structure housing living quarters, mess hall, kitchen, chapel, offices, and recreation facilities, the Main Building was almost immediately too small for the demands of veterans care, in spite of its impressive size. The end towers, a modification of those omitted during the original building campaign, were added in 1875-76 to expand the living space. Shortly thereafter, expansion of the Northwestern Branch focused on adding new purpose-built structures, including a hospital (1879), theater and home store (1881), chapel (1889), library (1891), and headquarters building with post office (1895). With many of these functions now removed from this structure, living quarters were expanded accordingly and the structure continued to function as a "domiciliary" with bedrooms, mess hall, and common areas until the 1980s.

Unprocessed Field note material exists for this structure: N1612
Survey number: HABS WI-360-A
National Register of Historic Places NRIS Number: 05000530