The Rave/Eagles Club

The story

The Milwaukee chapter of the Fraternal Order of Eagles broke ground on a new clubhouse in 1925 and opened it in 1927. Its showpiece is the Eagles Ballroom, with a 25,000-square-foot oval wooden dance floor under a domed ceiling. The building is now split into six venues so several acts can play at once.

The Jonas Brothers played their first major headlining concert here, and Bob Dylan, Green Day and Nine Inch Nails have played the ballroom. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 29, 1986.

Everything that was here

• 1927–present · still open

  The Rave/Eagles ClubConcert Hall

  The Eagles built this 1920s clubhouse around a 25,000-square-foot oval dance floor, and touring bands now sign the walls of its unused basement pool.

  See the map in 1928 →
• 1893–present · still open

  The Pfister HotelHotel

  Guido and Charles Pfister opened this hotel in 1893 at a cost of more than $1 million, with fireproofing, electricity and thermostat controls, all rare at the time.

  See the map in 1894 →
• 1906–2000

  Sydney Hih BuildingMixed Use

  This counterculture haven hosted Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Smashing Pumpkins in its basement Unicorn club before being demolished against preservationists' wishes.

  See the map in 1907 →
• 1927–1984

  Hotel RandolphHotel

  Crowds gathered downtown at dawn on July 21, 1985 to watch this elegant hotel imploded in a spectacular controlled demolition.

  See the map in 1928 →

Did you know?

Nearby history