Beer magnate's summer home rises in glory

Historic Black Point in Lake Geneva, Wis., will be available for tours for the first time beginning June 15. The summer "cottage" was built in 1888 and is in the Queen Anne Sstyle. Tours will run in the summer through October. (Photo from Lake Geneva Cruise Line website)

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When you think about a grand summer home, perhaps your mind drifts to the Adirondacks or to Newport, R.I., but those particular "cottages" of the rich require more than a little driving time to reach. The good news is, you don't need to take out a loan for gas money if you narrow your vision to the "Newport of the West," Lake Geneva, Wis. This is an area that once attracted Chicago industrialists after the Great Chicago Fire in October 1871.

One of those was Conrad Seipp, a Chicago beer magnate, who built a summer cottage called Black Point in 1888. Normally it would be impossible for the public to get a close glimpse of such a family summer estate. However, in 2005, Seipp's great-grandson handed the house, which had been in the Seipp family for seven generations, to the state of Wisconsin. Beginning June 15, the historic Lake Geneva estate will welcome visitors.

The Queen-Anne style home sits on eight acres of land on the shores of Geneva Lake. It has 13 bedrooms, one bath, a four-story tower and a porch that can seat about 40 people. What is doesn't have is heat, so it will only be open to the public through October.

What will be even more fun, is those visiting the house will arrive, just as the Seipps once did, by boat.

"We not only want the people to feel like they went back in time as they tour the house, we want the guests to approach the mansion in the way the original owner did," Tara Blazer, Black Point's executive director, said.

When you get there, you'll find the house has one of the most intact collections of Victorian furniture in the Midwest, having once been furnished with the contents of the family's main house in Chicago.

Touring the estate will be done in groups of 45 people, conducted twice a day through Lake Geneva Cruise Line. The tours will leave the Riviera Docks at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., returning at 2:45 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.

"The opening of Black Point is one of the most notable additions to the area's tourism landscape in many years," George F. Hennerley, executive vice president of the Lake Geneva Area Convention & Visitors Bureau, said. "For decades, visitors to Lake Geneva have only been able to view the area's historic homes and present day estates by boat and via the Geneva Lake Shore Path that surrounds the lake. Now, visitors have the opportunity to seemingly step back in time by touring one of Lake Geneva's most notable structures and witness what summer was like on Geneva Lake for the Seipp family for more than a century."

What was Black Point like in the good old days? Originally, it was built to house a large family for the summer. It once covered more than 100 acres, which included a small farm, and more than a thousand feet of wooded lakefront. The estate is on a bluff overlooking the lake.

This visit may not be for everyone though, before embarking on the adventure to look at this three-story mansion, visitors should keep in mind it is a walking tour and it does involve a large amount of stairs.

For those who want to make a picnic of it, box lunches are available on the boat ride from Lake Geneva to Black Point on the 11 a.m. tour at an additional cost and by advanced reservation. The tours also feature a narrated boat ride and about two-thirds of the lake.

You just don't need to wait for another Chicago fire to appreciate summer in Lake Geneva.

If you go ...

What: Black Point.

When: Opens June 15 through October. Tour times 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.

Where: Lake Geneva, Wis. - at Riviera Docks through Lake Geneva Cruise Line.

Cost: $32 for adults, $30 for seniors, $27 youths (13-17) and $21 for children (4-12).

For information: Call the cruise line at (800) 558-5911 or visit www.cruiselakegeneva.com. For Lake Geneva information, call the Lake Geneva Area Convention & Visitors Bureau at (800) 345-1020 or visit www.lakegenevawi.com.