What to know about Milwaukee's Halyard Park neighborhood
Located on the north side of Milwaukee, Halyard Park is known as a “suburb within a city” for the Black middle-class.
And the story of people in Halyard Park dates back before Milwaukee was even settled as a city.
Where is Halyard Park?
Halyard Park sits between Brewer's Hill and Triangle North, bound by Walnut Street, Halyard Street, North Avenue and Doctor MLK Jr Drive.
Indigenous groups first used the area that's now Halyard Park
Before the mid-1800s, what's now Halyard Park was used extensively by various indigenous groups such as the Ho-Chunk, Menominee, and Potawatomi for fur trade.
The business activity along southeast Wisconsin gave Milwaukee its first mayor, Solomon Juneau, who was brought to Milwaukee from Canada as a fur trader.
In the mid-1800s, as Wisconsin was taken over as a state under the American government, the area became home to German immigrants, many of whom worked at tanneries, shoe factories, and the Schlitz Brewery.
German immigrants started to move away in the early 1900s, and Hungarians, Italians, Poles and Jewish people from Eastern Europe settled in the area. In the meantime, African Americans who had migrated from the South started settling in the neighborhood.
At the time, Halyard Park was part of the Bronzeville neighborhood, a predominantly Black neighborhood with thriving businesses and entertainment.
But nationwide urban renewal and highway construction efforts in the 1950s and '60s led Milwaukee to put its eyes on many blocks in Bronzeville for revitalization. Around the same time, highway I-43 was being built through what's now Halyard Park.
Residents on these blocks were forced to move to other parts of the city at a time when many suburban neighborhoods still had racial covenants that banned Black residents from owning houses.
How Halyard Park got its name
After highway I-43 was built and blocks of houses were demolished, a new diagonal street emerged between West Brown Street and West Garfield Avenue. In 1965, the diagonal street was named North Halyard Street, after fair housing advocates Ardie and Wilbur Halyard. A few years later, the neighborhood received the name Halyard Park.
The Halyards first came to Milwaukee in 1923. A year later, they established a financial institution that issued mortgages to African Americans during a time when other banks still practiced discriminatory mortgage policies against Black residents.
In the mid-1970s, local developer Beechie O. Brooks bought large parts of land in Halyard Park and built ranch-style houses that were valued around $40,000 to $75,000.
As a result of the joint efforts between local developers, activists, and Black residents, Halyard Park was able to gain some of its previous Black middle-class residents back, some of whom have owned and stayed at their houses through today.
Halyard Park today
Today, Halyard Park is home to a mix of middle-class homeowners and low-income residents. Nine out of 10 residents are Black, and the undergraduate enrollment rate for people living in Halyard Park is double that of Milwaukee as a whole.
The neighborhood documents the struggles Black Americans faced through the America’s Black Holocaust Museum, which sits on the corner of North Avenue and Vel R. Phillips Avenue.
Established by Dr. James Cameron, who survived a lynching attempt as a teenager, the museum documents the many struggles African Americans faced through slavery, Jim Crow, and the present. It also serves as a communal meeting space, along with Wisconsin Black Historical Society, for community events and organizations.
Popular restaurants in Halyard Park
Pepperpot, a Jamaican restaurant on King Drive just west of the America’s Black Holocaust Museum.
Mi Casa Su Cafe, a cafe serving classic American dishes at 2053 N. King Drive.
Pilcrow Coffee, a coffee shop on Walnut Street offering coffee and pastries.
Things to do in Halyard Park
For people hoping to learn more about Bronzeville’s history, there are daily tours by appointment to visit a replica of Bronzeville’s former commercial heart, Walnut Street. The tour is free and starts at the first floor of Lapham Park Apartments and Senior Center. Reservations can be made at 414-286-8859.
For music lovers, Bronzeville Jazz in the Hood performances are held in early July at 4th Street, between North and Garfield.
Each year in the second week of August, Bronzeville Week celebrations offer a variety of cultural, arts, and services on King Drive between Garfield and Center.
How to access services in Halyard Park
Halyard Park is located in Aldermanic District 6. You can contact your local alderperson for more information about the neighborhood at https://city.milwaukee.gov/CommonCouncil/CouncilMembers/District6.
Halyard Park is located in Milwaukee Police District 5. The district can be contacted at https://city.milwaukee.gov/police/districts/District-5.
You can find your garbage and recycling schedule at city.milwaukee.gov/sanitation/GarbageRecyclingSchedules.
Learn how to register to vote and find your polling place at city.milwaukee.gov/election/Voter-Info.
To borrow tools for home improvement, check out the city's Tool Loan Center at 2500 W. Capitol Drive or visit bit.ly/MKE_ToolLoan.
To get email updates about police activity, new developments in your neighborhood, sign up for the city's e-notify system at city.milwaukee.gov/News-Events/enotify.
Tell us about your Milwaukee neighborhood!
What makes your Milwaukee neighborhood special to you? Are there any photos in the neighborhood you'd like to share? Share more at bit.ly/MKE_Neighborhoods.
Sources: Encyclopedia of Milwaukee, Milwaukee Neighborhoods.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: What to know about Milwaukee's Halyard Park neighborhood
