The Blied family has had their roots in Madison since the early 1850s. Two brothers, Frans and Matthias Blied, were the first to immigrate to the United States from Germany in 1853. They soon brought their mother, sister, and brother-in-law, and would marry into the community, establishing a large family and numerous businesses in the Madison area. 

Franz Blied was a “carpenter-joiner” by trade and worked for the Hoefler, Moulton, and Christopher furniture and undertaking establishment in Madison for many years. Upon immigrating, he lived in a two-story frame building at 230 State Street, where the gift shop Anthology stands today. This is where his sons, Joseph H. and Frank C. Blied, were born. Later, they lived in a brick house at 333 W. Johnson Street, near the Holy Redeemer Parish. His son, Joseph, describes this neighborhood as a hub of Catholic German-American families, even referring to it as their "German Village." This family history is recounted in an interview with Joseph by Alexius Baas of the Madison Capital Times on November 30, 1951.