Considering the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s current enrollment of nearly 28,000 students and its giant 92-acre campus, it’s difficult to believe that it all originated 120 years ago as a simple one-building schoolhouse.

In response to a rising population in Milwaukee, the Wisconsin State Legislature passed a law in 1880 requiring the Board of Regents of Normal Schools to build a teacher preparation school within the city. Five years later, after constructing a building on the corner of 18th and Wells streets, the Milwaukee Normal School opened its doors to aspiring educators.

President John Mapel, along with a staff of only six teachers, proceeded to instruct 46 students in the field of pedagogy.

Thanks to then President Lorenzo Harvey and several successful recruiting drives, enrollment quadrupled by 1896, and the school grew large enough to move to a new campus.

After the turn of the century, the school introduced several new areas of study including liberal arts, music education and physical exercises.

In 1909, the freshly acquired 11 1/2-acre Kenwood campus held the school. Mitchell Hall was the first building on campus and housed all of the school’s activities, including the athletic program. The north wing was built three years later to accommodate the new art and campus schools.

The school quickly offered an even wider array of courses. Agriculture, home economics, commerce, journalism, pre-medical and pre-legal subjects were added to a growing curriculum.

Enrollment continued to rise after MSNS absorbed the Milwaukee School of Art and, in 1913, the school of music.

The late 1920s brought numerous alterations to the Normal school. In 1927, the school’s name changed to the Milwaukee State Teacher’s College.

A couple years later, the college acquired Oshkosh’s department for education of the mentally handicapped. Coupled with a previously created teacher training for the deaf, the two departments formed the Division of Education of Exceptional Children.

The first Bachelor of Science program debuted in 1937 after the college dropped all non-four-year programs. The school also added a graduate program for music, elementary and exceptional student education.

Milwaukee State Teacher’s College then became the Wisconsin State College of Milwaukee in 1951.

Amid all these changes, a debate raged through the state Assembly and Senate over the establishment of a lakeshore university. The assembly defeated a measure passed by the senate, expressing concern over the added expense of a university to the city.

After four more years of arguments, however, a measure combining the Wisconsin State College of Milwaukee and the Wisconsin Extension Division passed.

One final name change took place in 1956: the Wisconsin State College of Milwaukee became known as the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. The first commencement transpired the following year.

By this time, UWM had acquired a 32.8-acre campus, six academic buildings, the current Union, a heating plant and three temporary buildings.

Through buying the Milwaukee-Downer Seminary in 1961, the university completed the first of many campus-increasing purchases.

The investment added Garland Hall (named for Pulitzer Prize-winning author Hamlin Garland), Pearse Hall (named for Carroll G. Pearse, a president of Milwaukee Normal School) and Vogel Hall (named for Louise Pfister Vogel, benefactor to Downer College and director/vice-president of Lakeside Children’s Center), along with an extra 8.6 acres of land.

The next great purchase occurred in 1964 with the acquisition of the Milwaukee-Downer College and its 43-acre campus. The campus reached from Hartford Avenue to Downer Avenue, and from Edgewood Avenue to Maryland Avenue. The health center and Holton, Sabin, Merrill and Johnston halls were five of 14 buildings collected from this buy.

The last purchase made by the university was Englemann Hall, containing an auditorium, offices and classrooms. The property also increased the campus size by 6.3 acres.

The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee continues to change and improve with a constantly updated online system, a new parking structure and new upperclassmen housing (the Kenilworth Square Apartments).

Sources: “A Brief History of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee,” by George M. Richard, 1960; “UWM Buildings: Some Pertinent Facts,” prepared by Donald A. Woods, 1968.

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