Wisconsins grand mansions are as diverse as the industries that built them.
Brick tuckpointing and wood repairs completed the transformation, restoring the house to its understated prime.
His design choices hinted at the eras obsession with mixing grandeur and utility.
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Step through oak pocket doors and youll find a curved staircase leading upward.
Inside, Richards showed off his flair for innovation.
Passive air ducts built into the brickwork ushered cool air throughout the rooms.
The roofs funnel shape collected rainwater into a third-floor tank, feeding indoor plumbing decades ahead of its time.
The basement kitchen featured a Dutch oven large enough to bake 24 loaves of bread.
Ornate interiors and manicured grounds overlook the Mississippi, embodying the rugged elegance of Wisconsins frontier wealth.
Hammered copper accents add a metallic sheen, grounding the classical motifs with a touch of industrial cool.
Built in 1905 by the eldest Ringling brother, Al, at the height of his circus empire.
Its billiards room, dining room, and separate his-and-hers bedrooms ooze period charm.
By the 1970s, the mansion was on the chopping block, slated to become a parking lot.
Luckily, preservationists stepped in to save it.
But this dreamscape didnt stay idyllic for long.
A 1914 attack and fire claimed seven lives, including Borthwicks.
Wright rebuilt, only to see Taliesin II gutted by an electrical fire in 1925.
Inside, Eschweiler didnt skimp on flair.
Theyre everywhere, and each one seems to outdo the last with materials like Florido Creme and Tavernelle Clair.
The hall also boasts an Italian Renaissance-style fireplace crafted from Amherst sandstone.
Architects Crane & Barkhausen made sure of that.
Inside, its a masterclass in late-19th-century craftsmanship.
Honduran mahogany in the parlor?
Stained-glass windows in every room?
Floors with intricate inlaid wood?
Wouldnt have it any other way.
Cyril Colnik, Milwaukees resident ironwork genius, left his fingerprints here, too.
Unlike Wrights single-story Usonian staples, this rare two-story design embraces verticality while keeping its democratic architectural soul.
At 3,000 square feet, the Schwartz House displays Wrights knack for making everyday living extraordinary.
The design features warm brick, cypress wood, and vast bands of windows that usher in natural light.
The house boasts one of the countrys oldest continuously operating in-floor heating systems.
The bold L-shaped floor plan hugs the landscape, ensuring privacy while offering views of the surrounding nature.
The house radiates from a central hub topped with a dramatic domed ceiling and clerestory windows.
Overseen by a young John Lautner during construction, Wingspread seamlessly combines form, function, and extravagance.
Constructed of brick, the house showcases tall, hood-molded windows and hammer beam accents framing its steep rooflines.
Elaborate wooden trim creates a visual rhythm from ridge to gable.
The semi-circular bargeboards repeat across smaller gables like a gothic refrain.
David McMillan, a New York transplant turned Wisconsin lumberman, spared no expense in creating this architectural statement.
Soldiers carved in stone still stand on the second-floor balcony, silently guarding what remains of this industrialists mansion.
Inside, the house once dazzled with a grand staircase and finely detailed ceilings.
A second-floor chapel overlooked the portico, and a ballroom occupied the third floor.
But WWII transformed the home into utilitarian dormitories for factory workers.
Recent updates have begun to undo the damage of decades, but many of the finer details remain lost.
The main house, expanded in the 1930s, is an eclectic mix of architectural indulgence and practical living.
