Milwaukee County Historical Society

Featured Object

Featured ObjectThis watercolor illustrates Milwaukee’s Gertie, caring for her chicks in a nest that she built near the Wisconsin Avenue Bridge.

Weary of war by the spring of 1945, Milwaukeeans were looking for anything to brighten their day; they found Gertie. Located on pilings within viewing from the bridge, people would watch her nest to see if her eggs would hatch. The mother duck held Milwaukee captive for thirty-seven days as her ducklings emerged from their shells. The idea of a bird nesting close to humans was so unique that it captured the attention of the national media. Her story was published in Stars and Stripes, the publication sent to soldiers in Europe and the Pacific. Once all the eggs hatched, it became difficult for Gertie to manage the five ducklings by herself. When one of them fell off the nest into the river and had to be rescued, city officials decided to move the family to a lagoon in Juneau Park, where they could be raised in safety.

Although it is unknown what eventually happened to Gertie, she was not forgotten. Two books were written that shared her story with adults and children alike. In 1997, the City of Milwaukee erected bronze sculptures of the mother and chicks along the Riverwalk to remind Milwaukeeans of the hope that she gave them in a time of uncertainty.