Walking tour: Stories of Strength - Honoring Black Milwaukeeans

Milwaukee's rich Black history dates back to the early 1800s, with significant contributions to the city's development and culture. “Stories of Strength” honors several early Black Milwaukeeans who have shaped our community including*: 

• Susanna & Sully Watson, early settlers and entrepreneurs (featured prominently in the Milwaukee Public Museum Streets of Old Milwaukee) 

• Matilda & Louis Hughes, entrepreneurs, author and co-founders of St. Mark AME Church 

• Catherine & Ezekiel Gillespie, advocate for voting rights and co-founders of St. Mark AME Church

• William T. Green, attorney who wrote Wisconsin’s 1895 civil rights law 

• John Jordan Miles, Civil War veteran and head waiter at Plankinton Hotel 

• Mabel Watson Raimey, first African American woman to practice law in Wisconsin 

• George Marshall Clark, barber and victim of documented lynching 

• Ardie & Wilbur Halyard, established Columbia Savings & Loan to finance home loans for Black families 

*Subject to change 

ABOUT YOUR GUIDE

Sara Wong is a local history enthusiast known for her engaging walking tours. She aims to inform participants about historical events, figures and spaces, inspiring others to explore and appreciate the diverse history of our community. 

IMPORTANT INFO

This 1.5-mile walking tour moves at a brisk pace over uneven cemetery roads and grounds. Please wear comfortable footwear and watch your step! Our tour guides have a lot to share but are on a tight timeline, so please try to stick together.

This tour will run rain or shine and will only be canceled in the event of a dangerous weather event. Tickets are non-refundable.

Please arrive about 10 minutes before your tour. Meet under the canopy outside Halls of History (next to the main office inside the Lincoln Avenue entrance).

You may park anywhere you like in the cemetery (including near and behind the chapel), but the spots in front of the office are reserved for funerals and cemetery business.

If you enjoy your tour, please take a moment afterward to leave a review on TripAdvisor or Google.

Proceeds from all tours and events help preserve and enhance the historical and natural elements of the cemetery.

ABOUT FOREST HOME CEMETERY & ARBORETUM

Established in 1850, Forest Home Cemetery is Milwaukee’s oldest operating cemetery, open to all since its inception. Forest Home Cemetery is on the National Registry of Historic Places and is the finest example of a Victorian-era rural garden cemetery in the Upper Midwest.

In 2021, Forest Home became the city’s first accredited arboretum, Milwaukee’s largest green space with more 2,600 trees on nearly 200 acres.

Our 189 acres are open daily to the public. Leashed dogs, jogging, strollers and bicycles are welcome. Each year, we host public and private historical and nature-based tours and wellness events, birding opportunities, Doors Open, a Memorial Day event, a Dia de los Muertos 5K and festival and our new Spirits of the Silent City after-dark historical tours. Sign up for our newsletter on the website and follow us on Facebook and Instagram (use #foresthomecemetery) so you don’t miss any of our tours and events!

If you enjoy our beautiful space, stay longer! Stop in the office Monday-Friday 8-4:30 and Saturday 10-3:30 or call a counselor (414) 645-2632 to find out about our many burial and placement options.

Host or Publisher Forest Home Historic Preservation Assoc.