Milwaukee Honors Cecilia Gilbert, Longtime ‘Queen’ Of City Hall

Cecilia ‘The Queen’ Gilbert Honorary Street Name. Photo courtesy of Rockstar Design.

A posthumous honor was granted to Cecilia Gilbert, a City Hall fixture for decades, when more than 200 of her family, friends and former colleagues gathered at the southwest corner of Cathedral Square Park as a new street sign was unveiled on this block of E. Wells St.

All eyes looked aloft as it was unveiled. In white letters set in an American flag blue background, it reads:

HONORARY

Cecilia “The Queen” Gilbert

It hangs beneath the official “E Wells St” sign.

It was a fitting tribute to Gilbert, a city employee for 41 years, who died in August 2024 at 75. She was given her royal nickname in 1991, when a fellow worker marveled at the vast empire of civil servants who found themselves within her sphere of influence.

Gad, did she have the power! I first witnessed it in 1990, when she was tasked with managing event permits for the city, ranging from block parties to parades. That was the year Hollywood came to town to film a TV movie about John Dillinger. Her job was to transform the ’90s Third Ward of Milwaukee into Depression-era Chicago. Advertising murals were painted on the blank walls of buildings, cables, cameras, lights, camera — action! All under the command of the Queen. It was a lousy movie but a great example of a municipal government functioning efficiently and with a distinct personality.

Just to keep her busy, her bosses put her on storm alert. When a blizzard was on its way, Cecilia would be on the phone at 5 a.m. with TV weather reporters, outlining the city’s plowing strategy.

Cecilia Gilbert. Photo by Dan Bishop. Courtesy of Rockstar Design.

The Royal Garden Party

The ceremony for Gilbert began at 5 p.m. under sunny skies and perfectly delightful conditions. It was organized by Cathedral Square Friends. Guests were greeted by Carl and Ellen Baehr; a framed mayoral proclamation sat between the two, who are rarely that far apart from each other.  Carl’s book Milwaukee Streets: The Stories Behind Their Names, revised in 2025, lists 47 such honorary street names since the program’s inception in 2005. Since the book’s publication, an additional eight street names, including Gilbert’s, have been added. This man’s work will never be done.

Once checked in, guests mingled in the corner of the park in a lovely area set apart with little white domes, star-shaped seating arrays and elegant buffet tables set with fresh garden flowers. Here, a delicious buffet of Mexican food from Electric Lime would be served following the festivities. Beyond, The Hop streetcar disgorged passengers gathering for Jazz in the Park, the concert series which that evening was to feature a tribute to Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul. Earlier that day, the Obama Center opened in Chicago with a joyous celebration. The release of Salah Sarsour from ICE detention was hailed by Rep. Gwen Moore and tomorrow marked Milwaukee’s 55th annual celebration of Juneteenth Day, featuring a parade once organized in part by Cecilia. The stars aligned.

The Program

The Welcome was delivered by Dave Reid, the board president of Cathedral Square Friends and publisher and co-founder of Urban Milwaukee. He attested to the suitability of the sign’s location where it could be easily seen by patrons of Taylor’s, for it was at that corner bar that he first met Cecilia, soon to become a member of her court. A tribute was given by Tracy Stockwell, professor of communication and technology at Alverno College, and was to be followed by remarks from Oscar Tovar of the Mayor’s office, but he was scratched at the last moment, and Mayor Cavalier Johnson himself made an appearance and speech.

Other speakers included area Alderman Robert Bauman, who noted that he had known Cecilia, a constituent, since his election in 2004. Tamara Sherie Mays, a niece, gave a tribute on behalf of the family. The official program concluded with words from County Supervisor Sheldon Wasserman.

Then, with the tug of a rope, the new sign was unveiled. Reid announced the party’s commencement, holding aloft a giant martini glass. Extra honorary signs were presented to the family. The printed programs concluded with this thought: “May Cecilia’s legacy continue to inspire all who pass this way. And all who call Milwaukee home.”

Dave Reid and Richard Gilbert. Photo courtesy of Rockstar Design.

The Gang’s All Here

In the early days of the Queen’s reign, it was the custom for the City Hall crowd to gather at Rosie’s on Water after work, but the opening of Taylor’s in 1995 drew those who still liked to hang out, especially in the presence of her majesty. Although she was not there, her spirit was everywhere in the audience.

For an event of this stature, one mayor is not enough, so Ambassador Tom Barrett made the journey from his chancery on the West Side. I asked him about his time in Luxembourg. Did he have a German or a French chef? “French,” he replied. “And we liked it very much.” This from a guy who used to eat lunch at his desk!

The ebullient Beth Weirick, former head of the Downtown Milwaukee BID 21, delighted in seeing old friends, as did Kimberly Montgomery, a former lobbyist for the city and a close friend of Gilbert’s, who traveled from Nashville, where she takes care of her 92-year-old mother, although she still has family here. Dan McCarthy was there. He and Cecilia worked on numerous Department of City Development projects over the years. Daniel Taylor posed for a photo with his eponymous tavern in the background. Mariiana Tzotcheva, back from Bulgaria, kept Reid on track during the proceedings.

During the Dillinger era, I talked with Cecilia about her professional career. Sure, she knew everybody in City Hall, but she also had to deal with block party organizers, parade sponsors and Hollywood producers, who did not know her yet were served so efficiently.

I wondered how her first interactions with these outsiders went. How many thought she got her job just because she was Black?

“I think most of them,” she replied. My heart sank. That was the way things were, when affirmative action was often derided by conservatives, blinded to merit.

I told this tale to the current mayor.

“That was back then?” the mayor inquired. (Johnson was four at the time.)

“Yes, your honor, that was back then.”

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