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Milwaukee Museum Mile includes Jewish Museum Milwaukee

By Shelly M. Sampon

May 1st, 2012

The Jewish Museum Milwaukee is one of the organizations participating in the “Milwaukee Museum Mile” event, to be held Sunday, May 6, 11 a.m.–4 p.m.

This joint effort involves the JMM, the Charles Allis Art Museum, the Museum of Wisconsin Art at St. John’s on the Lake, the Villa Terrace Decorative Arts Museum, and the North Point Lighthouse at Lake Park.

The collaboration aims to create a simple and more affordable way for visitors to enjoy multiple museum experiences, while promoting the historic East Side along the Lake Michigan shoreline.

“Within Milwaukee there are many well-known destinations, but there are also many smaller museums, many of them right along Prospect Ave.,” said JMM executive director Kathie Bernstein. “The five museums in our group offer such a wide array of visitor experiences.”

The event will feature free admission to every museum, docent-led tours, and light refreshments. Free activities for children, including a Milwaukee Museum Mile scavenger hunt, will be featured; and a free, continuous shuttle bus will be available for travel between locations.

John Sterr, marketing manager at the Charles Allis and Villa Terrace museums, conceived of the idea last year after realizing there were amazing cultural resources within blocks of one another that were going unrecognized.

While working to raise the profile of the Allis, Sterr was introduced to Bernstein at a small museum group meeting, and the two approached the rest of the partners, all of whom agreed to participate.

“Through the Milwaukee Museum Mile concept, we are bringing attention to this concentration of museums and, by extension, giving the public a chance to experience something new,” said Sterr.

“Before I began my work at Charles Allis,” he continued, “I shared the public perception that our museums feel limited to the public because of their size and location, and nothing could be further from the truth.”

With ideas for future expansion of the Museum Mile concept in the works, JMM staff members feel excited to be in on the ground level.

“Each museum has such a unique point of view, and together we can help each other grow,” said JMM educator Ellie Gettinger.

For more information about the Milwaukee Museum Mile, view the project on Facebook, visit www.milwaukeemuseummile.org, or call the JMM at 414-390-5730.

• North Point Lighthouse, 2650 N. Wahl Ave., 414-332-6754.