Title

Samuel W. Soule Residence at 135 W. Wells St. (s.w.c. Wells and W. Water St.) from 1862–68

Description

In 1867, the printer Samuel W. Soule was collaborating with Christopher Latham Sholes on a device to automatically number tickets or pages of booklets at Kleinsteuber's machine shop. While there, they met Carlos Glidden, who later claimed to have suggested that the three men collaborate on creating a mechanical writing machine. In 1868, Soule was listed on a patent for the "Sholes, Glidden & Soule Type-Writer," but by the next year Soule was planning to leave Milwaukee, and played no further role in the enterprise.

The city directories have contradictory information for Soule's residence. In 1862 he is listed at the southwest corner of Wells and W. Water St., which is the corner of W. Wells St. and Plankinton Ave. today. The 1868 city directory lists him at 235 Wells, Room 7; however, according to the 1894 Sanborn maps, there was no 235 Wells. However, the building at the southwest corner of Water and Wells had the address of 235 Water St. It seems likely that the city directory mistook the Water St. number for an address on Wells St. Today, the Germania Building stands on this location. It was built in 1896.

The link below shows a photograph of the south side of Wells St between W. Water St. (Plankinton Ave. today) and Second St. At the left of the picture, the address 103 is visible, which corresponds to the address on Wells for building at the southwest corner, where Soule lived. Around the corner at the left of the photograph would be the side facing what was then W. Water St., and which was numbered 235.

The second link below shows the 1894 Sanborn map page containing the intersection of W. Water St. and Wells St.

1895 photograph of the building where Samuel Soule lived for much of the 1860s

1894 Sanborn map showing the intersection of W. Water St. and Wells St.

Coordinates (Decimal Format)

43.040019743747614, -87.91251302801778

Location (Addresses)

New Address: 135 W. Wells St.
Original: Southwest corner of Wells and W. Water

Tag

Inventor, machinist