and the addition of branded signage Plans were initially announced by
First Wisconsin National Bank to construct a new headquarters building on August 21, 1969. Although no architectural designs were complete at the time of its announcement, bank officials indicated it would rise at least 40 stories. Along with bank officials, mayor
Henry Maier, county executive
John Doyne, and Wisconsin governor
Patrick Lucey attended the ceremony. In July, one worker died and four others were injured when a
derrick used in installing a aluminum panel broke free and fell 41 floors to the ground. The $138 million suit alleged the bank acted in a "
monopolistic" manner to control office development, in an effort to derail the plaintiffs proposed 25-story office tower project on a property adjacent to the First Wisconsin Center. The following October, the court found First Wisconsin guilty and awarded the plaintiffs $6 million in damages that was then tripled to $18 million due to federal laws on damages awarded to
antitrust suits. First Wisconsin appealed the ruling, and in August 1977, a federal court ruled the case be retried due to the complexity of the original trial, along with the plaintiffs being allowed more time and the admission of
hearsay testimony. Upon appeal, in June 1978 the court ruled in favor of First Wisconsin in clearing the company of all charges. After remaining under the ownership of First Wisconsin since its opening, in June 1987 it was announced the tower would be purchased for $195 million by the
Dallas development company
Trammell Crow. At the time of the announced sale, Trammell Crow unveiled plans to construct a 50-story tower southeast of the First Wisconsin Center in overtaking it as the state's tallest building. It has since remained unbuilt.
Firstar Center In December 1988, First Wisconsin changed its name to
Firstar Corporation as its operations expanded beyond the state of Wisconsin. In May 1992 the First Wisconsin brand was dropped and all retail banking operations were unified under the name Firstar Bank. As a result, on September 14, 1992, the building was renamed the
Firstar Center. In 1996, a $1.2 million
skywalk was constructed over Van Buren Street to connect the tower with the neighboring Lewis Center. The addition was funded in part by the city of Milwaukee as an
economic development project as Firstar had significant operations in both the tower and neighboring Lewis Center. The following November
Star Banc Corporation of
Cincinnati announced the re-purchase of the tower into company hands for $200 million at the time of their purchase of Firstar.
U.S. Bank Center In October 2000, Firstar Corporation announced its purchase of
U.S. Bancorp and stated the new company would take the U.S. Bank moniker. The Firstar–U.S. Bancorp merger was approved in February 2001, and on May 3, 2002, the Firstar Center became the U.S. Bank Center when the rebranding was completed in Wisconsin. In April 2008, a panel in the center's adjacent
parking garage fell and crushed a car. As a result of this incident, the building owners decided to tear down the garage constructed in 1973 and replace it with a six-story,
precast concrete garage. The windows on the U.S. Bank Center are sometimes used to display lighted messages, during significant events in Milwaukee. In 2003, the letters "HD", for
Harley Davidson, were displayed during
HarleyFest to signify their 100th anniversary. In 2005, the letters "UWM", for
University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, were displayed during their
Milwaukee Panthers men's basketball team's
Sweet Sixteen run in the
2005 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament. The visible trusses at the top of the building near the U.S. Bank sign are also sometimes lit in germane colors to signify events such as holidays. In the week leading up to the
2007–08 NFC Championship Game they were lit in green and yellow in tribute to the
Green Bay Packers. This was done again during the week leading up to the Packers appearance against the
Chicago Bears in the
2010 NFC Championship Game on January 16, 2011, in
Chicago, Illinois. In November 2023, Baird began to replace two of the four signs that previously said U.S. Bank to Baird. The two signs that said Baird are on the north and south sides, while the other signs on the east and west sides remain as U.S. Bank. The U.S. Bank Center is professionally managed by Hines as of November, 2024. ==Architecture==