History. Diversity. Community.

Often referred to by the locals as "Kozy", Kosciuszko Park is located in Lincoln Village, bounded by W. Becher Street and W. Lincoln Avenue and by S. 7th and 10th Streets, near the Basilica of St. Josaphat. It is a source of recreational and social enjoyment. Among the park happenings are fishing, evening events , concerts, community gatherings and during the summer the Pelican Cove Pool (inside the park) allows a place to cool off and have fun. The City of Milwaukee purchased the land in 1890 from J.C. Coleman, and the area was originally known as Coleman Park. It was renamed in the mid-1890s as Lincoln Avenue Park and given its current name in 1900. The park memorializes General Tadeusz (Thaddeus) Andrzej Bonawentura Kosciuszko (1746-1817), who fought in the American Revolutionary War on the American side and in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth’s struggles against Russia and the Kingdom of Prussia. The park is home to a bronze statue known as the Kosciuszko Monument. The Milwaukee Polonia commissioned Italian sculptor Gaetano Trentanove (1858-1937) to design and construct the public art piece in 1903. It was installed on the north side of Kosciuszko Park, near Becher Street, in October 1904, and formally dedicated on June 18, 1905, during a ceremony attended by 60,000 people. In 1951 the statue was moved to its current location on the south side of the park. The statue was fully restored and rededicated in 2013. Presently the statue is cared for by the Friends of the Kosciuszko Monument.

Housed in a historically preserved 115 year-old house this museum focuses on the history of the Park Neighborhoods, Lincoln Village and Baran Park.

The statue of Tadeusz Kościuszko in Kościuszko Park was commissioned by the Polish community of Milwaukee and dedicated in 1905. It originally stood at the north end of the park but was moved to Lincoln Avenue in 1951.

This Milwaukee Landmark was built in 1901 in the Romanesque style of architecture and is a magnificent spiritual place. Saint Josaphat Parish was formed in 1888 as an offshoot of Saint Stanislaus Parish and subsequently became the largest Polish parish in Wisconsin. Its first home was a modest building that burned to the ground in 1889. The parish built a second church but it was too small for its needs. This burgeoning immigrant community desired to construct a church to meet the needs of its more than 12,000 parishioners in the late 19th century. Ground was broken in 1896 and the new building would be finished in 1901.At the time of completion, the only building in the country with a larger dome was the United States Capitol. Cost overruns put the parish in major debt. The Archdiocese searched for an order of priests that would take over the administration and debt of the parish. In 1910, the Conventual Franciscan Friars took over administration of the parish and the debt was retired in 1925. The Friars continue to run this active parish church and school. In addition to being a house of worship the Basilica is a major tourist attraction. Over 25,000.people visited St, Josapaht in 2019 from all over the world. The Basilica also hosts cultural events, such as performances of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra and the city’s Bel Canto Chorus.

Lincoln Village is a residential neighborhood with modest homes and strong commercial corridors along West Lincoln Avenue, South 6th Street, and South 16th Street. Lincoln Avenue is a very diverse corridor, home to a mix of retail, services, and restaurants The corridors truly house “mom and pop” shops. The stores are small by comparison to other neighborhoods, and tend to have long-term occupants. There are nearly 20 ethnic restaurants or delis along these blocks, representing Mexican, Salvadoran, Serbian, and Polish food. This area is a unique commercial district with great historic character. Many buildings date from the 1880's to the early 1940's. Along the corridor are a variety of services from mom and pop type shops to a number of ethnic restaurants, including Mexican, Polish, Ecuadorian, Serbian.

Historic Lincoln Avenue embraces the most classical eastern European styles of architecture. In particular, two architectural styles are of note in this area. One style is commercial, where walls extend above the roof of the buildings and are called parapets (need a photo) These can be angular or curved, and represent an architectural style that was brought from northern Poland to the neighborhood. The style had originally been developed by the Danes, then brought to Germany, and the Germans erected buildings with parapets in northern Poland. The other architectural style of note is residential, and is called the “Polish flat.” (seen in this photo) This developed at the grassroots. Most Poles who arrived in Milwaukee were intent on home and land ownership. Often their first paychecks went toward purchasing narrow lots where they would build three to four room cottages. However, as families grew and more relatives arrived, the homeowners lacked space on the lots to enlarge the homes. Often they raised the cottages and replaced the wood foundations with brick or cement block. This would create a semi-basement dwelling with a separate entrance for another family. The end products were called “Polish flats.”