Nashotah in Waukesha County, Wisconsin — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Bishop Jackson Kemper Home Built 1849
Photographed By Paul F, July 15, 2010
1. Bishop Jackson Kemper Home Built 1849 Marker
“One of Wisconsin’s brightest names.”
Erected 1957 by Waukesha County Historical Society. (Marker Number 20-01.)
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Churches & Religion • Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical year for this entry is 1842.
Location. 43° 4.302′ N, 88° 25.062′ W. Marker is in Nashotah, Wisconsin, in Waukesha County. Marker is on Oakwood Drive, half a mile west of North Genessee Street, on the right when traveling west. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 153 Oakwood Drive, Nashotah WI 53058, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 3 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Cushing Memorial Park (approx. ¾ mile away); St. John's Military Academy (approx. ¾ mile away); Northwestern Military and Naval Academy (approx. ¾ mile away); Nashotah Mission (approx. 0.8
this page online
More about this marker. This is a private residence. Please respect their privacy.
Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker. To better understand the relationship, study each marker in the order shown.
Also see . . . Jackson Kemper - Photos and documents. (Submitted on July 19, 2010, by Bill Pfingsten of Bel Air, Maryland.)
Additional commentary.
1. Additional History
A small frame house stood on 360 acres of land, situated between the two Nemahbin lakes in Delafield, which Bishop Jackson Kemper purchased in the 1800s.
The bishop had purchased 640 acres for the Nashotah House seminary as well. The seminary was established in 1842 by Bishop Kemper before moving into the small frame house in 1846. After a time, another frame addition was put on which provided a living room, dining room, kitchen and two rooms upstairs at which time the old framehouse
Photographed By Linda Hansen, circa June 2020
2. Bishop Jackson Kemper Home Built 1849 Marker
This is a picture of a replacement marker with the same text.
In 1863 a stone addition was added to the western side of the frame house. This addition was given to th bishop's daughter. Changes have been made to the house over the years and now it looks like it all was built at the same time. As of 1970, the home was still owned by family. It is a historical landmark.
David Jackson Kemper was the son of a colonel in the Revolutionary War. He was born on Dec. 24, 1789 in Dutchess County, New York. He graduated from Columbia University in 1809 as the valedictorian of his class. He was married twice. The first marriage was in 1816 to Jerusha Lyman who only lived two years after the marriage. He married his second wife, Ann Relf, who was the love of his life, in 1821. She died in 1832 after giving him one daughter and two sons. The three children lived for several years with Ann's mother before coming to Wisconsin to live with their father.
Jackson Kemper wanted to do something different with his life other than be a bishop of an Episcopal diocese. He wanted to travel to the outlying areas of the country which were still fairly undeveloped. He was elected the first Missionary Bishop in 1835 of the Espiscopal American Church. So he left the East coast and traveled west to Indiana, Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin setting up dioceses wherever he went. In addition, he also began to found colleges
Photographed By Paul F, July 15, 2010
3. Bishop Jackson Kemper Home Built 1849 Marker
He eventually settled in Delafield where he started the Nashotah House seminary. He was elected as the first diocesan bishop in Wisconsin in 1854 and held this title until his death in 1870. During this time he also founded Racine College. He retired when he was 70 years old in 1859. He then died at the age of 80 and was buried on the grounds of the Nashotah House.
— Submitted April 6, 2012, by Linda Hansen of Waukesha, Wisconsin.
Credits. This page was last revised on July 10, 2020. It was originally submitted on July 16, 2010, by Paul Fehrenbach of Germantown, Wisconsin. This page has been viewed 1,653 times since then and 30 times this year. Last updated on June 20, 2011, by Paul Fehrenbach of Germantown, Wisconsin. Photos: 1. submitted on July 16, 2010, by Paul Fehrenbach of Germantown, Wisconsin. 2. submitted on July 9, 2020, by Linda Hansen of Waukesha, Wisconsin. 3. submitted on July 16, 2010, by Paul Fehrenbach of Germantown, Wisconsin. • Kevin W. was the editor who published this page.
Editor’s want-list for this marker. Closeup photo of replacement marker. • Can you help?
