400 Million Gallons: The Engineering Legacy of Milwaukee's Socialist Mayors

Before 1925, the city of Milwaukee discharged its untreated sewage directly into local rivers, which flowed into Lake Michigan. The city then drew its own drinking water from that same lake. This cycle of contamination ended when socialist mayor Daniel Hoan authorized the construction of the Jones Island Water Reclamation Facility.

The facility, now 101 years old, treats up to 400 million gallons of wastewater daily. Bill Graffin, a guide at the site, noted that private industry could have built the system, but the initial capital investment was too large for private actors. A public tax base was required to fund the project. This approach defined the era of socialist governance in Milwaukee, a period spanning nearly 40 years from 1910.

Milwaukee elected three socialist mayors, a distinction unique among major American cities. John Gurda, a historian specializing in Milwaukee, explained that voters chose these leaders due to widespread corruption and a large working-class population. In 1910, 57% of the city's males worked in manufacturing. The city's slogan at the time was "Machine shop of world," which resonated with a community that included educated German immigrants raised on socialist ideals.

Gurda described the movement as practical rather than ideological, focusing on tangible improvements like parks, public housing, and functioning sewers. He labeled this approach "Sewer Socialism." The second socialist mayor, Hoan, served for 24 years. During his tenure, Milwaukee consistently won national awards for being the safest and cleanest large city in the United States. Gurda remarked that the city won public health awards so frequently it had to be retired to give other cities a chance.

The legacy of this infrastructure extends beyond sanitation. The treatment process produces a byproduct called Milwaukee Organic Nitrogen, marketed as Milorganite. Graffin clarified that the fertilizer is not raw waste but consists of microscopic organisms from the treatment process. The product is still sold today, generating millions of dollars annually for the city. It remains popular among master gardeners and golf course superintendents.

The socialist era concluded with Frank Zeidler leaving office in 1960. By that time, the Democratic Party had adopted many socialist ideas, such as old-age insurance, into its platform. Gurda noted that the New Deal effectively co-opted socialist rhetoric. He observed that the mayors were not rigid ideologues but pragmatic leaders who worked with various groups to improve working-class lives. Their influence persists in the daily operation of the water plant and the sale of its fertilizer byproduct.