The Schlitz Audubon Center is 185 acres of lakeshore land in the village of Bayside, Wisconsin, north of Milwaukee, that has been set aside as a nature center and dedicated to the education of the public. The land on which the center is located was formerly three farms purchased by the Uihlein brothers of the Jos. Schlitz Brewing Co. in 1885. On this farm, which was named Nine Mile Farm because it was nine miles from Wisconsin Avenue, the family raised grain and quartered the horses used in their brewery. After horses were no longer used in the business the farm was allowed to lie fallow, with a caretaker in residence to care for the buildings.
During the early 1960s several local residents tried unsuccessfully to persuade the Schlitz board to allow the property to become a nature center. However, the land had become so valuable that several proposals for development of the property were put forward. In 1964 a local petition drive was able to block zoning changes necessary for development, and the sale of the farm was blocked. Nevertheless, pressures for development continued. The Schlitz Foundation, which had held title to the farm since the 1950s, was divided over the future of the property. Some members of the family wanted to see it converted into a nature center operated by the school districts of Ozaukee and Milwaukee counties; others preferred that it be sold to a developer and the proceeds used for other charitable purposes. In 1969 a number of local residents including Mrs. Charlotte Zieve, Mrs. Winifred Woodmansee, and Mrs. William C. Messinger organized as the Citizens for the Nine Mile Farm Nature Center to work to save the farm for conservation education. They sponsored meetings and polls to establish a favorable climate of public opinion for the establishment of a nature center. At the same time Mrs. Dorothy Vallier, a member of the Uihlein family, was working to persuade the foundation of the value of the nature center proposal.
On April 26, 1971 the Schlitz board voted to present the land to the National Audubon Society and, largely through the urging of Mrs. Vallier, the board also voted a 1.4 million dollar endowment for development and operating expenses. Negotiations then bogged down over the tax-exempt status of the property and controls the village board proposed to govern the center. Finally on February 29, 1972 the county board granted the center an exemption from property taxes. As a result the National Audubon Society and the village also came to an agreement. In May 1972 Don L. Danielson was appointed director of the center, and in 1974 the visitor center was opened to the public.
