An elegant, historic Victorian mansion of Italianate style. The Villa Filomena is located in the gracious east side neighborhood of downtown Milwaukee. The building was built in 1874, by architect Edward Townsend Mix, as the family residence for Great Lakes Captain Robert Patrick Fitzgerald. It is a study in symmetry. The double arched windows, the arched doorway, the pillars supporting the porch and the bracketed overhang combine to give the house an air of balance and harmony.
Captain Robert Fitzgerald offered marine insurance, invested in a shipbuilding firm and purchased more ships of his own. In order to spread the risk, it was a common practice for several people to jointly own a vessel. As owner or part-owner, Fitzgerald had an interest in a sizable fleet of Great Lakes ships.
The home he built for himself reflected his own personal success. He purchased the lot on Marshall Street in 1872, but the panic of 1873 convinced him to postpone building plans. The house was finally completed in 1874.
Mrs. Fitzgerald, the former Emma Kavanaugh of New York, enjoyed entertaining, and there were many festive parties in the house. Mrs. Fitzgerald was active in various Milwaukee charities and Capt. Fitzgerald was a key figure in Great Lakes shipping circles, trade groups, and the Seaman’s Friend Society.
In 1897, the house was sold to Oliver Fuller, whose daughter and son-in-law lived there for forty years. It became a rooming house in the forties, and in 1963 it was purchased by the College Women’s Club. The group had planned to tear it down and put up a contemporary structure, but their architect, Mr. Spinti, spoke for the house. He prepared sketches that showed what remodeling could accomplish, and the club agreed to preserve the building. The coachhouse and the west wing were dismantled, but their bricks, brackets, and other details were used to good effect in the auditorium that was added. The grand staircase was removed to create a large reception room inside, but much of the old ornament was used to finish the interior of the auditorium. The combination of preservation and remodeling has created a very harmonious building.
