About Milwaukee's ladybug building

Alison Dirr, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Updated ·1 min read

On your way to a fancy night out in the Third Ward, take the right path and you’ll come across a permanent trio of massive ladybugs that look like they could be headed the same direction as you.

It’s hard to tell how massive they are, exactly: They’re perched way up on the side of the Milwaukee Building on North Water Street.

At least, it’s a hard calculation looking up at them from the sidewalk or from a car whizzing by.

50. The late John J. Burke decorated the building that houses the company he started, Burke Properties, with Ladybugs. The fiberglass bugs are each about 6 feet long and 3 feet deep.
50. The late John J. Burke decorated the building that houses the company he started, Burke Properties, with Ladybugs. The fiberglass bugs are each about 6 feet long and 3 feet deep.

The fiberglass bugs are each about 6 feet long and 3 feet deep and have been hanging there since July 1999.

They were thought up by John J. Burke to decorate the building that houses the company he started, Burke Properties, according to his obituary.

Not much has been written about them, which is a testament to how many interesting things Milwaukee offers — we take even giant beetles for granted.

See the rest of Milwaukee's 100 objects

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: About Milwaukee's ladybug building