Milwaukee's Granville neighborhood has a long and storied history. But it wasn't always a part of the city of Milwaukee.
When it was formed in 1840, Granville was a town unto itself, with borders that stretched north from Hampton Avenue to County Line Road and west from 27th Street and Range Line Road to 124th Street. It had more than 50 neighborhoods and covered 36 square miles of unincorporated land in Milwaukee County.
But starting in the late 1800s, other communities eyed what was then an agricultural community to fuel their own growth and parts of Granville started to get annexed.
After World War II, Milwaukee raced to expand its borders, sparking the "annexation wars." The mass of land that made up Granville was nibbled away to form new municipalities like Brown Deer, River Hills and Glendale.
In 1956, Milwaukee and Brown Deer had a hotly contested battle for the remaining portion of Granville. The fight lasted six years, until the state Supreme Court sided with Milwaukee.
The 1962 annexation of the last of Granville (16.5 square miles) was the largest land acquisition in city history. Now, the Granville neighborhood makes up a large part of the city's northwest side.
Early settlers came to Granville in the mid-1830s from New England, New York, Pennsylvania and other mid-Atlantic states. These Protestant settlers of British descent were called Yankee-Yorkers. The neighborhood's name came from the same town in Washington County, New York, where many of the earliest white residents hailed from.
Germans who settled in the area laid the foundation for what would later be known as the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod. They established the German Evangelical Lutheran and Reformed Church (now known as Salem Evangelical Lutheran Church) in 1847.
There also was a community of Black settlers in Granville, but many were displaced after parts of Halyard Park were razed for the Interstate 43 construction in the 1950s and '60s.
Today, Granville is home to a diverse community of Blacks, Hispanics, whites and Hmong. That diversity plays out in the types of restaurants and businesses opening in the area.
There's Adom African Market, 8084 N. 76th St., a grocery store offering authentic West African and Caribbean food items. And new restaurants have brought an eclectic array of dining options, including Smokin' Jack's BBQ, Perkins Boyz on tha Grill, Upscale Galleria and Mexiboricua Restaurant.
“We are so multicultural," said Mary Hoehne, executive director of the Granville Business Improvement District. "A lot of people get down on Milwaukee because it is segregated and the problems with segregation. You come up to the northwest side and it is not (like that).
"You will actually see on the playground every diverse group that lives in the Milwaukee area. ... People don't realize that."
Despite being part of a larger city, Granville still has a rural suburban vibe. Some farmland gave way to residential subdivisions comprised of houses, apartments and condominiums built since the 1950s.
But the area is also a hub for businesses. Granville has more than 140 manufacturers and distributors, including Snap-On Tools, HellermannTyton, Olympus Group, Douglas Dynamics and Miller Baking Company. Grocer Sendik's has its corporate headquarters and distribution center in Granville.
Among its major employers was Northridge Mall, from 1973 until it closed in 2003. Other big-box retailers would soon close.
But Hoehne noted the area is turning a corner. Events like the Granville Blues Fest and others spotlight the positive in the neighborhood. That attracts several new businesses that are opening in the area, which complements the area's long-standing businesses like Minor's Garden Center and JB's Furniture.
“It takes a while to turn a neighborhood, (but) the neighborhood has so much to offer," Hoehne said.
The Blues Fest is not the only neighborhood event. The Granville BID hosted the annual Car, Truck and Bike Spectacular for nearly seven years that brought car enthusiasts to show off their hotrods, classic and custom cars. That event eventually morphed into the family-oriented Harvest Fest. Set for Sept. 14-15, it features arts and crafts, vendors selling food and wares, live bands and karaoke.
The long-awaited Granville Connection is expected to open by Christmas. Billed as an entrepreneurial hub, the Connection features space for emerging businesses, a live performance stage, food vendors, coffee shops and a community gathering space for activities like bingo.
"It is similar to and very different than any of the other collectives in the Milwaukee area," Hoehne said. "It will be a great place to come and shop, to come and eat."
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Sources: Encyclopedia of Milwaukee, Milwaukee Neighborhoods, Urban Anthropology Inc.
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