Margaret Howland
Margaret Martin Elsner Howland lived in the Historic Water Tower Neighborhood (HWTN) until she moved out of state for her senior high school. Residing only two blocks away from the Downer Avenue commercial district, she spent a substantial amount of time in Downer as a child in the 1960s and 1970s.
Howland remembers how she grew up in the neighborhood. Knowing most of the clerks by first name and the owners by name, she considers, “I was brought up by a community of people.” Even when she did not have something specific to do in Downer, she passed through Downer and said hello to her mother’s hairdresser, Leoda. Cashiers at Sendik’s let her try the cash register. Having an “account” at each store on Downer, she could make small purchases, such as her mother’s birthday card, on credit – a clerk said, “I know you’re Elsner.”
Although she was away from Milwaukee for several years, she now lives close to Downer and still frequents some of the stores: Sendik’s, Downer Hardware and Paperwork. Asked what Downer means to her, she replies, “There’s definitely emotional attachment. This is where I grew up.”
Howland remembers how she grew up in the neighborhood. Knowing most of the clerks by first name and the owners by name, she considers, “I was brought up by a community of people.” Even when she did not have something specific to do in Downer, she passed through Downer and said hello to her mother’s hairdresser, Leoda. Cashiers at Sendik’s let her try the cash register. Having an “account” at each store on Downer, she could make small purchases, such as her mother’s birthday card, on credit – a clerk said, “I know you’re Elsner.”
Although she was away from Milwaukee for several years, she now lives close to Downer and still frequents some of the stores: Sendik’s, Downer Hardware and Paperwork. Asked what Downer means to her, she replies, “There’s definitely emotional attachment. This is where I grew up.”
- Margaret Howland, interview by Daniel Cho and Yuko Nakamura, Milwaukee, June 19, 2013.
