The people, places, and personalities behind some of the Green Bay area's notable places

Yahoo

20-04-2025

Hardly any name in the Green Bay area doesn't come with a story or some mark of the area's long history of immigration, football, or business.
Take the area directly surrounding Lambeau Field, named after Packers founder Earl "Curly" Lambeau.
Running along the stadium's north is Lombardi Avenue, named after former Packers coach Vince Lombardi. There's the mark of the indigenous Oneida and their move from what's now New York on Lambeau Field's Oneida Nation Gate and Oneida Street that the entrance looks across at.
As visitors descend onto the area for the NFL draft ― no doubt some for the first time ― here's an introduction for newcomers and a history lesson for residents on the names of some other places across Green Bay (whose name comes from the French "La Baye Verte" or "La Baye des Puants"), the village of Ashwaubenon (named after Ashwaubomay, son of an Ottawa chief), and Brown County (named after a War of 1812 war hero).
Austin Straubel International Airport: Lt. Col. Austin Straubel descended from a prominent German business family that immigrated to Green Bay in the mid-1800s, according to Brown County Library historians and a biographical record of families at the library. The Brown County Board voted in the 1940s to name the airport after the lieutenant colonel, the first airman from the county who died in combat in World War II while fighting Japanese forces over the South Pacific.
Leo Frigo Memorial Bridge: Leo Frigo, a prominent local philanthropist and founder of the local nonprofit Paul's Pantry, was delivering food on Feb. 13, 2001, when he got into a car accident and died from his injuries. Following his death, the tallest bridge in Wisconsin ― then called Tower Drive Bridge ― was renamed in Frigo's honor.
Donald A. Tilleman Memorial Bridge: The city of Green Bay was shocked on Nov. 27, 1972, when its mayor Donald Tilleman died of a heart attack while on a trip with his wife to New York City. Remembered as a warm, dedicated leader, the Mason Street Bridge across the Fox River was dedicated with Tilleman's name after his death.
Resch Center and Resch Expo: Richard Resch was the CEO of local furniture maker KI. Through his donations to the venues, his name appears on the Resch Center and the recently constructed Resch Expo., across from Lambeau Field. In 2018, he sold his 71% ownership of the company to the employees, which would keep KI in Green Bay, Resch said at the time. He also lent his name, and money, to the KI Convention Center in downtown Green Bay, the Resch Aquatic Center on the city's west side, and the Resch Miracle Field.
Lois Aubinger Park: The park to the south of Lambeau Field was named after Lois Aubinger, a journalist who founded the Ashwaubenon Press and was the mother of influential Ashwaubenon village president Mike Aubinger, according to Brown County Library historians.
Kroll's West: Harry and Caroline Kroll started serving food in 1931 at a family-run hotel in Green Bay, according to the restaurant's website, before opening their first restaurant on the city's east side in 1936. They sold the east-side restaurant to Harry's sister and her husband in 1945. That location is fitting called Kroll's East. Kroll's West opened on South Ridge Road in 1974, but both serve up notoriously good charcoal-grilled butter burgers and Midwest nice.
Hagemeister Park: In 1886, Henry and Louis Hagemeister created a brewing company on the city's east side, according to biographical records at Brown County Library, where East High School and City Stadium now sit. Louis later pursued brewing in Detroit, Chicago, and Dallas before returning to the area to manage the Sturgeon Bay Brewing Company, which was a branch of the Green Bay one. Henry was heavily involved in politics, becoming a City Council member, a Brown County Board member, and state representative.
Leicht Memorial Park: The Leicht Transfer & Storage Company donated about 2.5 acres to the city in February 1999, according to Press-Gazette articles from the time, to be named Leicht Memorial Park. It's seemingly memorialized for Fred Leicht, the company's old president. Leicht served on the Packers' board of directors for over four decades and helped secure the construction of Lambeau Field.
Neville Public Museum: One of the conditions for the creation of the Neville Public Museum, according to its website, was that it must be memorialized for "Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Neville." Arthur Neville is the more well-remembered part of the pair who researched history in his down time, and was a longtime member of the Wisconsin Historical Society and the Brown County Historical Society, according to former Press-Gazette writer Jack Rudolph. His wife, Ella, was a dominant civil figure in her own right, as a champion in 1889 for a public library and honorary founder of the city's Woman's Club.
The Weidner Center: Named after the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay's first chancellor Edward Weidner who helped secure the construction of the performing arts center.
Tarlton Theatre: First called the West Theatre in the 1940s, the theater and restaurant was reopened by Tarl Knight and Mark Mariucci in 2018 and commonly called "the Tarlton."
Meyer Theatre: At the center of the theater's lobby hangs two portraits: one of Betty Meyer, whose donation helped restore the theater in 2002, and her late-husband Robert Meyer for whom the theater is named after.
Jesse Lin is a reporter covering the community of Green Bay and its surroundings, as well as politics in northeastern Wisconsin. Contact him at 920-834-4250 or [e-mail].
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Names around Green Bay show rich history and influences