About Milwaukee's The Rave/Eagles Club
With ghost stories, grandeur, and groovy beats, The Rave/Eagles Club, located at 2401 W. Wisconsin Ave., is one of Milwaukee’s most legendary and historic sites.
Architect Russell Barr Williamson, a student of Frank Lloyd Wright, designed the almost-century-old music and entertainment venue. Upon opening in 1927, the complex served as the home of the Milwaukee chapter of the Fraternal Order Of Eagles. Within its walls were a two-story gym, a barber shop, several bowling alleys, a lounge and a restaurant.
The Eagles Club began welcoming musical artists to perform at Devine’s Million Dollar Ballroom, which later became “The Eagles Ballroom” in the decades that followed.
Over the years, thousands of artists with music ranging from EDM to country and pop to rap have graced the six stages of the venue, which hosts more than 250 concerts each year.
In the depths of The Rave, an empty 75-by-50-foot swimming pool stands as a “haunted” remnant of the dozens of former Eagles Club amenities built into the 20th-century structure. Performers who visit the venue are often permitted to visit the pool and scrawl a message on its walls, including Ariana Grande, Steve Aoki, the 1975’s Matt Healy and the late Mac Miller.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: About Milwaukee's The Rave/Eagles Club
