Remains of Former Playground at 3914 W Galena StThe vacant lot at 3914 West Galena Street is located between two 2 ½ stories houses on the north side of the road. The land is surrounded by chain-link fences upon which a “Private Property” sign is installed. Weeds and unkempt bushes grow inside the area. In front of the fence, a patch of bricks are hidden under wild grass, reveals itself and indicates the ghostly remains of the home that once stood on this site. These ruins face the sidewalk inviting people to imagine how this place may have looked before the house disappeared. This question led to ongoing research about the history of the lot.
Before this space became a vacant lot, a house was existed on this lot. The house appears on the 1910 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map as a 1½ wood story dwelling house with covered porch. The property lot shown on the Sanborn map, offered us yet another mystery. The address on the Sanborn map shows up as 3912 W Galena Street, different from the current address. How did the property number change during the past century? In 1985, the property was owned by Thomas H. Bailey. From 1997 to early 2001, Security Bank S.S.B owned the property before Quincy M. Johnson bought it in April 2001. The ownership was transferred to the City of Milwaukee in July 2014. Long term residents of the street confirmed that the vacant lot used to be a playground. “… 2011 when I was just moving to Milwaukee, there used to be a playground there. And you see how it’s actually connected to the sidewalk,” described Tommy Yang, a former resident in Vliet Street when he shared his memory of Galena Street with us. By October 2015, Google Maps street view showed that the playground had been untended and filled with overgrowth. By September 2019, the playground equipment had disappeared, replaced with tall grass. “That was once … a day care… probably, like about 20 years ago … there used to be a house over there,” explained nearby resident, Michael Ithier. Mr. Ithier told us that there were few playgrounds in the neighborhood. The one he remembered from his younger days was located in a schoolyard on 37th street. He lamented that “There was a lot [of activities] for the kids to do back then, but they took all that away…We have basketball leagues against other playgrounds. … All that stuff is gone now.” Google maps show that the play equipment remained on this space at least until June 2011. At the time, the wooden step functioned as an entrance and the bricks pathways led to the play area. The space was lively, filled with colorful play equipment and a variety of garden beds. Community resident Mr. Lamont Davis too had memories of the lost playgrounds in the neighborhood. “I think school playgrounds and the school itself used to be a gathering spot. Kids would play after school… the basketball court, the lines for track and field. So, a lot of kids even after school would come back to the playground just to play there. And I think that was a great gathering spot, and you know I’m speaking from a kid’s perspective,” said Mr. Davis. Playgrounds function as an area for kids to play and also as a space for them to interact with each other. The loss of playgrounds in the neighborhood may affect the loss of connectivity among the children. Remains of Former Playground at 3914 W Galena St, documentation by Ni Made Frischa Aswarini, July 2021. |
Lamont Davis talks about vacant lots in the neighborhood surrounding Galena Street
|