North Shore Historic Home & Building Restoration
Wood window and storm window restoration for homes in Fox Point, Glendale, Mequon, Bayside, and River Hills.
Thoughtful Craftsmen provides historic home and building restoration across Milwaukee’s North Shore, including Fox Point, Glendale, Mequon, Bayside, and River Hills. In these communities our work centers on wood windows and storm windows: restoring original sash, building wood windows to match, and fitting custom storms that protect them.
We have separate pages for Shorewood and Whitefish Bay. This page covers the suburbs farther north.
North Shore historic architecture
The North Shore suburbs developed later and at lower density than Shorewood and Whitefish Bay, and their older buildings are more varied.
- Fox Point and Bayside. Along the lake, land that once held summer estates was later subdivided. The area has a strong collection of mid-century modern houses, among them the 1952 Friedlander Residence in Fox Point, designed by Willis and Lillian Leenhouts and recognized as a Milwaukee County landmark.
- Mequon. Rural by origin, Mequon has vernacular farmhouses and a number of German half-timber buildings, some still hidden under later siding. The city has its own Landmarks Commission and locally designated landmarks.
- River Hills and Glendale. River Hills is a village of large-lot houses, many with period revival detailing, while Glendale mixes prewar houses with postwar neighborhoods.
What ties these places together, from a restoration standpoint, is wood. Farmhouses, revival-style houses, and mid-century homes were all built with wood windows, and each type has its own sash profiles, glazing, and hardware. A mid-century window wall and a farmhouse double-hung need different repairs, but both can be restored.
What we restore on the North Shore
- Historic window restoration for double-hung, casement, and fixed wood windows
- Custom wood windows built in our shop to match existing units
- Custom wood storm windows sized to each opening
- Window tuning for sash that sticks or will not seal
- Historic door restoration, porch restoration, and exterior wood restoration
- Restoration painting, cedar shake roofing, and copper roofing
Restoration, renovation, and remodeling are different jobs
Renovation projects update a space, and remodeling changes its layout or use. New construction starts from a cleared site. Historic building restoration keeps the original structure and repairs it with compatible building materials, so the property holds on to its historical significance as well as its structural integrity.
The difference shows up in the details. Before pricing new windows, it helps to know that a restored wood sash paired with a custom storm window can approach the energy efficiency of a replacement unit while keeping old-growth lumber in service. The same logic applies to façade restoration on a commercial block, where brick, terra cotta, and storefront woodwork were designed to work together. Careful repair gives an old building new life and keeps it useful for future generations.
Historic preservation and approvals on the North Shore
Each municipality sets its own rules. Mequon’s Landmarks Commission oversees locally designated landmarks, and the villages have their own permit and design requirements. Confirm what applies with your city or village hall before exterior work begins.
Two programs apply across Wisconsin. Properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places, individually or as part of a district, may qualify for the state homeowners’ tax credit, which returns 25 percent of approved rehabilitation costs and is administered by the Wisconsin Historical Society. The work has to be approved before it begins and is reviewed against National Park Service standards. We write our scope with those standards in mind. Local preservation initiatives and your area historical society are also good sources on how nearby historic sites were built.
How a restoration project runs in the North Shore
Every restoration project we take on in the North Shore starts with an on-site assessment. We document the original construction, note which original materials can stay in place, and separate necessary repairs from work that can wait. That assessment becomes a written scope of work, so you know what will be restored, what will be replicated, and why.
- Measured on site. Every opening, profile, and joint is measured in place, because no two are alike in an old building.
- Built in our shop. Sash, storm windows, trim, and porch parts are milled in-house with mortise and tenon joinery, using Accoya wood where new material is needed.
- Installed by the same team. The craftsmen who measured and built the work also install it, which keeps project management simple and accountability clear.
Some historic buildings also need structural engineering review, masonry restoration, or tuckpointing. Those are separate specialties. When they are part of the picture, we say so up front and sequence our carpentry, window, painting, and roofing work around them.
North Shore restoration FAQs
Do you restore wood windows in Mequon, Fox Point, and Glendale?
Yes. We restore original wood windows throughout the North Shore, and we build matching wood windows in our shop when a unit is missing or beyond repair.
Can wood storm windows be made for large or unusual openings?
Yes. Every storm window we build is custom, so picture windows, casements, and arched or oversized openings can all be fitted.
Do you work on mid-century homes?
We do. Mid-century houses often have large wood window units and doors that are no longer made. Restoring them keeps the design intact, and we can replicate parts when needed.
How do I get started?
Request a consultation through our contact page or call (414) 963-1901. We will visit the property and send a written scope of work.
Talk with our team about your project in the North Shore
Thoughtful Craftsmen has restored historic properties across southern Wisconsin since 1998, with more than 500 homes completed. If you own one of the historic structures in the North Shore and want it repaired with the craftsmanship it was built with, request a consultation or call (414) 963-1901. Whether it is a single sash or a multi-year preservation project, we will tell you plainly what the building needs. You can also browse our completed projects to see the work.
Other areas we serve
Thoughtful Craftsmen works throughout Greater Milwaukee and southern Wisconsin. See the location pages for nearby communities:
Hero photo: Edwin J. Nieman Sr. House, Mequon by Jim Roberts, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Resized.
Ready to restore your historic property?
Serving the greater Milwaukee area since 1998. Let's talk about your project.