Jones Island is an industrialized peninsula in

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at th ...

. It began as a marsh island between the

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...

and Kinnickinnic rivers, and now forms the city's inner harbor design.

History

Extensive filling and channelization of the area began in the mid-19th century when city co-founder

Byron Kilbourn Byron Kilbourn (September 8, 1801December 16, 1870) was an American surveyor, railroad executive, and politician who was an important figure in the founding of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He was the 3rd and 8th mayor of Milwaukee. Biography Kilbour ...

advocated a "straight cut" from the Milwaukee River near the

Menomonee River :''See also Menominee River'' The Menomonee River is one of three primary rivers in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, along with the Kinnickinnic River and Milwaukee River. Description Named after the Menomonee (also spelled Menominee) Indians, the word wa ...

confluence out to

Lake Michigan Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by volume () and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the east, its basin is conjoined with that o ...

. This channel was made in 1857 and is still in use today. Prior to that, the natural outlet for all three rivers was at the southern end of Jones Island where the Kinnickinnic now turns north to flow out of the straight cut. This area was later filled to provide railroad access. It was initially settled by Kashubian and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

immigrants in 1870, who made their living by fishing

. Having never officially obtained a deed for the land, they were considered squatters by the City of Milwaukee and the vast majority of them were evicted in the 1920s to make way for a shipping port as part of an inner harbor design. The last Kashubian holdouts left the island in the early 1940s Shipping formed around the natural inner harbor created by the rivers, but designs were made for an outer harbor. Long piers built in and on the exposed edge of Jones Island was used for a system of docking terminals. After years of false starts, changing designs, and petitioning the federal government for funding, an inner harbor design was finalized that also included improvements to the outer harbor and breakwaters. Currently Jones Island is home to the

Port of Milwaukee The Port of Milwaukee, branded as Port Milwaukee, is a port in the city of Milwaukee on Lake Michigan. It primarily serves Southeastern Wisconsin, Southeastern Minnesota, and Northern Illinois. The port owns of rail that connect to two Class I ra ...

, the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District's primary wastewater treatment plant, and other municipal services. It also supports the

Hoan Bridge The Daniel Hoan Memorial Bridge is a tied-arch bridge that connects Interstate 794 in downtown Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to the Lake Freeway across the Milwaukee River inlet. Originally called the Harbor Bridge, it was renamed after Daniel Hoan, one ...

, a long span bridge. The land is heavily industrialized and only contains a couple of mature trees.

Notable people

* George L. Tews,

machinist A machinist is a tradesperson or trained professional who not only operates machine tools, but also has the knowledge of tooling and materials required to create set ups on machine tools such as milling machines, grinders, lathes, and drilling ...

, businessman, and three-time

Socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

member of the

Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Representatives are elected for two-year terms, ...

References

External links

Urban Anthropology Tour: The Kashubes of Jones IslandHistoric MapJones Island on Milwaukee Neighborhoods Guide from UWM Library
{{Authority control Neighborhoods in Milwaukee South Side, Milwaukee