This month’s ‘Spot a Clock’ is St. Lawrence Roman Catholic Church, located at 1434 South Layton Boulevard, Milwaukee.
The parish was founded in 1888 by German Catholics living on the south side of Milwaukee. The church was designed by E. Brielmaier & Sons, which also designed St. Josephat’s Basillica. The architectural style is Romanesque Revival. The church was constructed between 1905 and 1906.
The clock faces date to the original construction of the church. Interestingly, a clock movement and hands were not installed until 1988.
St. Lawrence parish merged with St. Matthew’s parish in 1999 to form the Prince of Peace parish. The church and adjoining school building were subsequently sold to Grace Hmong Alliance Church, which then relocated to a new facility. The school is currently occupied by Notre Dame School of Milwaukee.
This section of Layton is known as the Layton Boulevard Historic District. The district was created to recognize and preserve the residential architecture located in this area of Milwaukee, and is on the National Historic Register. Few commercial buildings are located in the district, but one additional notable facility is located on the west side of Layton Boulevard from St. Lawrence. St. Joseph’s Convent was initially constructed in 1887 and rebuilt following a fire in 1890. A chapel was constructed on the south end of the complex in 1916.
