Underground Railroad Project
Our Goal
We are trying to create a memorial to represent the Underground Railroad history in Milwaukee. Some possibilities for the memorial include a sculpture, AR/VR technologies, mural, etc. Caroline Quarlls and Joshua Glover were two individuals who passed through Wisconsin's Underground Railroad and their stories deserve to be highlighted. Our goal for this project is to share these stories with the Lindsay Heights neighborhood and Milwaukee as a whole.
The Team
Throughout the year, we worked together on this project, trying to better represent the Underground Railroad History in Milwaukee.
From left to right: Hudson Arney, Leo Burmiester, Emma Klatt
The Sign
The only tangible thing that represents this history is a small sign. This sign is on a small triangular plot of land and cannot be easily accessed. Cars drive too fast to read it and there is no sidewalk to reach it. This sign does not give justice to the history of the Underground Railroad in Milwaukee. Which is why we decided to create a new piece of artwork to represent this history.
The Location
I43° 3.373′ N, 87° 56.009′ W.
Histories and Stories from the Underground Railroad
Ideas For Sculptures or Art Pieces
There are some really inspirational pieces in Milwaukee and the United States, so to gather possible ideas we did some research on different pieces. Each display, effectively showcase an important history which is why we thought it was important to include in our planning process.
Below are some displays we researched...
Our Accomplishments
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We have decided to come up with an idea that continues to incorporate the history from Caroline Quarlls while modeling a new formulated structure of the Samuel Brown House in Milwaukee. Samuel Brown helped provide refuge to Caroline Quarlls once she arrived in Milwaukee. His house was also located near this intersection that we hope to build on.
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The new structure that we hope to build should include a stone path, with some of the stones including engravings of certain information regarding the Underground Railroad in Milwaukee. This path should lead to a small structure that resembles Brown’s house and allows people to walk inside and look at more stories regarding Caroline Quarlls and Samuel Brown.
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We also hope to partner with the Adams Garden Park group and create patterns of Freedom Quilts that could go onto the path leading up to the structure. Overall in this structure, we hope to provide a strong sense of symbolism and history that leaves people with a strong impression of what they experience while learning history that may be due to them.
The Samuel Brown house that played an important role in Milwaukee's Underground Railroad history. In the future, we hope to incorperate some aspect of this house into the historical representation.
Above are Sharon and Larry Adams, the founders of Adams Garden Park. In the furture, we hope to partner with them since the park is so close to the site. Partnering with Adams Garden Park would allow for the Underground Railroad history to be shared even more.
WHAT PEOPLE SAY
Emma Klatt
Biomolecular Engineering
This project has taught me so much about the history of the Underground Railroad specific to the Milwaukee area. The stories of Caroline Quaralles, Joshua Glover, and Samuel Brown are so inspiring and deserve to be highlighted. We hope the work we completed this year will aid in future developments of a historical monument to document this history.
Hudson Arney
Computer Science
From this project, we have had many shortcomings but what remains true for me is the gain in knowledge. Before this class, I had never even known that the Underground Railroad was a part of Milwaukee, let alone the multiple different people that it was able to successfully free. From this project, I hope to pass this knowledge onto others as it can be greatly insightful.
Leo Burmeister
Biomedical Engineering
Prior to this project, I was unaware of the role the Milwaukee area played in the Underground Railroad. It was a rewarding experience to try and represent this unknown history in a way that others can access and enjoy.
Community Partners
Our community partners helped tremendously in this project. Without them we would not have accomplished the tasks we did.
Dr. Carriere
Dr. Carriere is the head of the MSOE Honors Program. He helped us get in contact with Glenn Williams and had the initial idea for the project.
Glenn Williams
Glenn Williams is the Area Head of digital studio practice and sculpture, and an Associate Professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. With his expertise in architecture and design, he has helped us develop ideas for the sculpture and ways to represent this history.
