A Rich History in Quality Furniture.
Miller’s Furniture has a long and rich tradition spanning back for over four generations. Our story began in 1910 when Margaret and Edward F. Miller purchased a small furniture and funeral business on Fond du Lac Avenue from Frank Zwashka.
Edward F’s three sons, Fred, Joseph and Edward E (“Pat”) all grew up in the family business, and spent as much time as possible helping their parents. In 1928, Pat took over management of the business and his younger brothers soon joined the firm as well. Shortly after, the funeral business was transferred to the location on Forest Avenue (where it still exists today), making Miller’s one of the first freestanding funeral homes in Washington County.
In 1939, Pat had an addition of his own design built onto the rear of the furniture store. By this time, Miller’s Furniture was well known all over the region for fine furniture, floor covering and even for sewing machines, radios, and pianos.
Tragedy struck only three years later, when in January of 1942, the furniture store was destroyed by fire. Only the newly built addition remained standing. Edward F and his wife, who lived on the second floor, fled by means of a second story window in the middle of the night to survive the flames. Due to wartime restrictions Pat could not rebuild immediately, so Miller’s Furniture was temporarily relocated to a building on Main Street. As soon as the restrictions were lifted after VE-day (almost three years later), they were able to rebuild the building that had become a cornerstone within the Kewaskum community.
Over the years many of Pat’s children became involved in the business. Mary Ellen, Joan, Isabelle and Clare were interior decorators. Theodore was bookkeeper and Edward J (Pat’s oldest son), became vice-president, and was being groomed to found the third generation of Miller’s Furniture.
In 1974 Pat purchased land north of the store that had been Perschbacher Implement, in order to expand the furniture display area once again. This final addition increased the showroom to its current size of approximately 20,000 square feet. Shortly after the expansion, Pat transferred the management of Miller’s to his son, Edward J. Miller, and thus began Miller’s third generation.
By 1985 it was time to divide Miller’s Furniture and Funeral Home into two separate entities. Miller’s Inc. (furniture) was purchased by Edward J and the funeral home business was purchased by Fred Miller (Pat’s brother).
In the years that followed, Edward J and his sisters focused on expanding the design service that Miller’s offered. Model homes decorated by the Miller’s decorators were featured in Parade of Home models and brightened newly built condominium model units. The Cedar Ridge Community of West Bend was just in its infancy and Miller’s Furniture was chosen to furnish the “concept models”. Edward J also worked with the top manufacturers to create branded in-store galleries that highlighted the new trends in furniture. These innovations brought many awards to Miller’s Furniture for best furniture design in Washington County.
Edward J’s daughter, Cheryl (Miller) Peterson (4th generation) began at Miller’s Furniture in 1995. While computers had long been in use at Miller’s, Cheryl introduced “furniture-specific” software that allowed Miller’s to increase efficiency and improve customer communication.
Cheryl’s husband, Derek joined the company in 1999 and together the couple purchased the corporation in 2001. Their children (5th generation) are familiar throughout our area as they smile out at those who pass Miller’s billboards.
Cheryl and Derek have brought many new developments at Miller’s, too. For example, they have been enthusiastically adding several domestically made furniture lines, including many featuring furniture handcrafted by Amish and Mennonite workshops located in Indiana and Pennsylvania as well as smaller family-run workshops and upholstery manufacturers located in Vermont, Massachusetts, and North Carolina. In the new era of furniture imports, it has become more and more difficult, and even more important than ever to obtain and maintain the high level of quality that has always been associated with Miller’s Furniture.
If you have never visited Miller’s Furniture you will be amazed by the extensive selection of furniture that we have to offer. If you haven’t been to Miller’s Furniture recently, not only will you find the latest styles and trends in the industry, but also you will still feel at home with that comfortable atmosphere that you have always remembered.
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