Immaculate Conception Church, Burlington Wisconsin
The immaculate Conception church building was located on one of the main highways leading through the city of Burlington,. Wisconsin. A modest church building known as St. Sebastian's preceeded this structure. This was built in 1844. In ten years the congregation outgrew this edifice and it was decided to build a new one. So in 1854 Victor Schulte, a Milwaukee architect, was commissioned to draw plans for the new edifice. Schulte was an European trained architect with a decided leaning toward the classic. He was the architect for the superstructure of the St. John's cathedral of Milwaukee, probably the outstanding building architecturally in Milwaukee today (1925). This building is classical in design, but the Immaculate Conception church in Burlington is Gothic.
It took five years to complete the erection of the church building. Money was scarce and because of this shortage, work was suspended from time to time. Finally in 1859 the church was dedicated.
The mason contractor of the church was Joseph Waekerman and the carpenter work was done by the firm of Burhaus and Reuter. The steeple was built by John Kemptner.
The interior of the building has been so completely altered that little remains of the original work. In attempting to make this building serve as a school many changes were made.
In 1891 the Church was abandoned for a new larger building. It appears that it was demolished in the 1930's or 1940's and now is the site of a parking lot for the new building.
