Berlin’s Victorian homes speak to its mining and fur trading history
The Fox River has long played a role in the history of Berlin, establishing the city as a trading hub for fur and leather in the 1800s. The rhyolite quarry nearby earned the attention of Scottish, Welsh, Italian and Polish immigrants, who settled in the area during the late 1800s. “There are a lot of Victorian homes with the stone basements from the old quarry right off of 91,” says Jason Weiland, an agent with Gaatz Real Estate. These historic homes line the Nathan Strong Park Historic District, which straddles the river and contains the city’s restaurants and historic storefronts.
A range of architectural periods is evident across Berlin
Historic Victorian homes tower above the sidewalks that run through most of central Berlin. Victorian farmhouses and historic cottages built between the late 1800s and early 1900s go from $75,000 to $400,000. Prices depend on lot size, and larger properties often come with several outbuildings for hobby farming. Craftsman homes constructed a little later — between the early 1900s and the 1930s — come with porches and patios on lots up to a half-acre in size, ranging between $125,000 and $290,000.
Split-level and ranch-style homes were added starting in the 1950s through the 1990s, selling between $150,000 and $385,000. New Traditional homes from the early 2000s and new constructions fetch from $320,000 to $450,000. Some of these more recent builds are part of the Hunters Pond community, which charges monthly homeowners association fees between $10 and $20.
Riverside entertainment, an aquatic center and Nathan Strong Park
Stretching across 38 acres of the Fox River’s east bank, Riverside Park is Berlin’s largest green space and one of the city’s popular fishing spots. The park’s amenities include volleyball courts, a nine-hole disc golf course, horseshoe courts, two baseball diamonds and five different playgrounds for younger children. A mushroom waterfall, a spiral slide with several twists and in-water basketball hoops entertain children at the Berlin Aquatic Center as well. Just east of downtown, a Victorian bandstand is often the site of community events at Nathan Strong Park, which is also home to the Soldiers and Sailors monument and a number of authentic Civil War cannons.
The loaded Bloody Mary at Izzy’s Dockside Diner and stores downtown
Broadway Street is one of Berlin's main thoroughfares, and it turns into Huron Street once it crosses the Fox River. A mélange of brick storefronts — many home to a variety of eateries — lines the street. Izzy’s Dockside Diner & Pub sits just south of Broadway Street and overlooks the main stretch of downtown from the west bank of the river. Breakfast, which is served all day, features a very loaded Bloody Mary, topped with onion rings, breakfast sausage and other fried treats. “Country Inn is a little farther out, but it has amazing fish on Friday nights,” Gaatz says. The famous weekly special comes with coleslaw, rye bread and a pickle in a rustic cabin with wood-paneled walls and various mounted animals. Specialty stores, like El Pariente Mexican Store and Frank’s Hometown Meats, can be found downtown, while a Walmart Supercenter is on the western outskirts of Berlin.
Several live performance opportunities at Berlin High School
Children in Berlin may start their K-12 journeys at Clay Lamberton Elementary School, which scores a B grade from Niche. It’s also home to the Miller Natatorium Indoor Pool, where the community’s Barracuda Swim Club trains year-round. Students may enroll in B-rated Berlin Middle School and Berlin High School, which earns a B-plus and offers extracurricular activities, like Academic Decathlon, Mock Trial and Forensics. On the performing arts side of things, students can participate in a fall musical and a spring play, as well as join the show choir. The school has both a classical and a contemporary a cappella group.
Highway access to Oshkosh, interstate connection to national flights
Broadway Street becomes Wisconsin state Route 91 and travels east toward Oshkosh, about 22 miles away. Nearby, Interstate 41 continues north toward Appleton Airport, about 40 miles from Berlin. The closest commercial airport to Berlin, Appleton Airport offers flights to several destinations across the country. Wisconsin state Route 49 travels north to south through Berlin.
