The Jazz Estate has been hosting jazz groups in Milwaukeesince at least the 1970s, but the building itself was first built in the late 1890s.
"The family that owned it, they sort of owned it off and on through the entire time. They were really huge fans of music," says John Dye, the current owner of The Jazz Estate. "The story is that one of the old owners went to World War II and came back with a love of jazz music. So it was just sort of this change in his life that brought him to appreciate jazz."
One of the previous owners was also the first person to call the venue The Estate.
Dye bought the business in 2015 and then closed the building for a full year to renovate the space. It reopened in its current form this past year, and now offers guest an intimate setting with a vintage feel in which to watch live jazz performances.
"[In] every seat, you're right by the stage. So sometimes when you're watching a performance, you're really right in the performance with the artist which is really neat. I think that's been one of the successes of the Estate over the years, is just this feeling of being really close to the artists," says Dye.
