Gothic Milwaukee Launches Walking Tour of Brady Street and Milwaukee’s Lower East Side

MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN (April 11, 2023) — Anna Lardinois, Milwaukee author and founder of Gothic Milwaukee, is releasing a self-guided, GPS-based audio walking tour of Brady Street and the Lower Eastside on Friday, April 14, 2023, in celebration of “414 Day.”

Gothic Milwaukee is the recipient of one of Joy Engine’s six 2022 Community Challenge Grants awarded to fuel creative expressions of joy in the diverse Milwaukee Community. Because of this grant funding, the tour, which gives a glimpse into the past while highlighting the history and architecture of the Brady Street neighborhood, will be free for the public to enjoy for one year on the VoiceMap App.

“We were thrilled to award Anna with one of our Community Challenge grants so that she could bring this fantastic walking tour to life for our community to enjoy,” said Steph Salvia, Joy Engine Executive Director. “The goal of our Community Challenge was to challenge organizations and neighborhoods to discover and creatively express what joy means to their community, and Anna accomplished this by creating a one-of-a-kind, family-friendly, accessible tour that anyone can experience for free.”

| “As a resident of the Brady Street neighborhood myself, my hope is that this tour will help people learn more about their neighborhood, be more connected and joyful, and feel increased pride in the place they call home.” — Anna Lardinois

The walking tour covers an easy stroll through Historic Brady Street, loops through Cass Street, follows along the city’s former Gold Coast, and ends at the Oak Leaf Trail Head on Prospect Avenue. It features long-standing Milwaukee attractions and staples including St. Hedwig, All Saints Catholic Church, Peter Sciortino Bakery, Glorioso’s Italian Market, St. Rita, Cass Park, the Laverne and Shirley House, the Laura and George Peckham Miller House, Jewish Museum Milwaukee, the Mexican Consulate, and more.

“As a resident of the Brady Street neighborhood myself, my hope is that this tour will help people learn more about their neighborhood, be more connected and joyful, and feel increased pride in the place they call home,” said the tour’s creator, Anna Lardinois. “My dream is that one day, someone taking the tour will look up and see someone else with their headphones in — both listening to the tour while exploring their neighborhood at the same time. I’m extremely grateful to Joy Engine for making it possible to create this tour for the community to enjoy.”

Executive Director of the Brady Street Business Improvement District, Rachel Taylor, added:

“The Brady Street BID is so excited for Anna’s project and we thank Joy Engine for their support. Anna’s walking tour is a wonderful addition to what Brady Street has to offer. Whether someone has lived here for years or is visiting for the first time, the tour is an excellent way for them to explore the neighborhood and learn something new about our community.”

The public can access the tour by downloading the free VoiceMap app from the App Store, creating a free account, and selecting the “Brady Street and Milwaukee’s Lower Eastside” tour. Because the tour is GPS-based, the content syncs to the tour goer’s exact location, making it easy for participants to complete the 2.8 mile tour at their own pace. Additional information about the tour is available on Gothic Milwaukee’s website at
gothicmilwaukee.com/joyenginetour.

In addition to Gothic Milwaukee’s Brady Street and Lower Eastside tour, Joy Engine has funded Community Challenge grants for five other Milwaukee organizations that will be completing their projects to spread joy in the community this spring and summer.

For more information about Joy Engine and its Community Challenge Grants, contact Steph Salvia, Joy Engine Executive Director, at 414-202-5754 or steph@joyengine.org. For more information about Gothic Milwaukee’s Brady Street and Lower Eastside Walking Tour, contact Anna Lardinois, Tour Creator and Founder of Gothic Milwaukee at 414-301-2266 or
iseeghosts@gothicmilwaukee.com.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. It has not been verified for its accuracy or completeness.