Black Point Estate & Gardens on the scenic shores of Geneva Lake in the Town of Linn, Walworth County, is one of 11 Wisconsin Historical Society state historic sites participating in the Society’s new “Member Pastport Program.” For more information on Wisconsin Historical Society membership and the Pastport program, visit wisconsinhistory.org/membership. To explore the Society’s historic sites, visit wisconsinhistory.org/sites.
Time travel just got easier – and a lot less expensive.
The Wisconsin Historical Society’s new Member Pastport program offers a unique summer journey sure to appeal to history lovers, family fun-seekers and bargain hunters alike.
From the hidden Lake Geneva retreat of a wealthy beer baron to the colorful spectacle of the great American circus, the Member Pastport offers almost limitless ways to connect with Wisconsin history. The program includes free admission to the Society’s 11 historic sites, in addition to incentives like gift shop discounts, history road trip swag and a free family membership.
“Summer is a great time to hit the road and explore,” said Hannah Hankins, annual giving director, Wisconsin Historical Society. “The Pastport program is an added benefit of Society membership and encourages folks to take ‘The Great Wisconsin History Road Trip’. Plus, it’s a phenomenal travel value.”
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The 32-page Pastport, emulating an official passport, offers a description, visitor tips and photographs of each site, along with a space to receive a Pastport stamp. In addition to the stamp, history road trippers can collect hundreds of experiences along the way, including taking a horse-drawn stagecoach ride, watching a dazzling Big Top performance at the original home of the Ringling Bros. Circus, exploring a Cornish mining village, working alongside a village blacksmith and more.
Wisconsin’s 11 historical sites, located from the southeast corner to the far northern tip of the state, include: Black Point Estate & Gardens, Lake Geneva; Circus World, Baraboo; First Capital, Bellevue; H.H. Bennett Studio & Museum, Wisconsin Dells; Madeline Island Museum, Madeline Island; Old World Wisconsin, Eagle; Pendarvis, Mineral Point; Reed School, Neillsville; Stonefield, Cassville, Villa Louis, Prairie du Chie; and Wade House, Greenbush.
Those who have discovered the joy of historic travel include Julia Silvers of the popular online travel blog, That Wisconsin Couple, and her sister Haley Dolata. Last August, the two embarked on a bucket list road trip, visiting 11 historical sites in 10 days.
“It was truly a trip of a lifetime,” said Silvers. “And I don’t say that lightly. I learned so much, got to cross so many places off my Wisconsin bucket list, and made some great memories with my sister.”
Wisconsin Historical Society membership, starting at $60 per year, includes free admission to 11 sites along with discounts to special programs and events. The Society offers reduced-membership options for families who participate in public assistance programs, members of the military and teachers. Members who collect all 11 Pastport stamps will receive a free family membership, a $125 value. Those who acquire six site stamps receive a free “Great Wisconsin History Road Trip” tote bag and members who present three site stamps garner a $5 gift shop discount. Family memberships also include admission to 1,100 North American Reciprocal Museum Association (NARM) member organizations around the country. Member Pastports are available at all 11 sites.
For more information on Wisconsin Historical Society membership and the Pastport program, visit wisconsinhistory.org/membership. To explore the Society’s historic sites, visit wisconsinhistory.org/sites.
The Madison-based Wisconsin Historical Society, founded in 1846, ranks as one of the largest, most active, and most diversified state historical societies in the nation. As both a state agency and a private membership organization, its mission is to help people connect to the past by collecting, preserving, and sharing stories. The Wisconsin Historical Society serves millions of people every year through a wide range of sites, programs and services.
For more information, visit www.wisconsinhistory.org.
In 42 Photos: Black Point Estate and Gardens, Lake Geneva, Summer 2022
Black Point Bedroom 2.jpg
Black Point, a 17-room Queen Anne-styled Victorian summer estate built by Chicago beer baron Conrad Seipp in 1888, includes numerous, one of which is pictured here. Black Point was owned by four generations of the Seipp family before its 2005 donation to the Wisconsin Historical Society, which opened Black Point Estate & Gardens to the public in 2007.
Eric Johnson
Black Point Estate Bedroom
Black Point, a 17-room Queen Anne-styled Victorian summer estate built by Chicago beer baron Conrad Seipp in 1888, includes numerous bedrooms, one of which is pictured here. Black Point was owned by four generations of the Seipp family before its 2005 donation to the Wisconsin Historical Society, which opened Black Point Estate & Gardens to the public in 2007.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Catherina Seipp (1846-1920)
Catherina Orb Seipp, wife of leading Chicago beer baron Conrad Seipp, inherited the equivalent of $97 million, adjusted for inflation, when her husband died in 1890, ensuring the future of Black Point Estate for generations to come. Catherina, born in 1846, passed in 1920. This 1910 photo was taken in the drawing room of her Chicago home on Michigan Avenue.
Black Point: Conrad Seipp portrait
German immigrant Conrad Seipp (1825-1890), a leading Chicago brewer, built his Black Point Estate summer home on the shores of scenic Geneva Lake in the Town of Linn in 1887-1888. Seipp Brewing Co., founded in 1854, ranked as the nation’s largest brewer from 1872-1874 and remained in the top 10 nationally during his lifetime. Despite pivoting to the production of soft drinks, malt syrup and near beer with the arrival of Prohibition in 1920, Seipp Brewing was among Prohibition’s casualties, closing in 1930. Repeal of Prohibition came in 1933, too late for Seipp Brewing.
Black Point: Conrad Seipp photograph
German immigrant Conrad Seipp (1825-1890), a leading Chicago brewer, built his Black Point Estate summer home on the shores of scenic Geneva Lake in the Town of Linn in 1888. Seipp Brewing Co., founded in 1854, ranked as the nation’s largest brewer from 1872-1874 and remained in the top ten nationally until the implementation of Prohibition in 1920. Despite pivoting to the production of soft drinks, malt syrup and near beer, Seipp Brewing was among Prohibition’s casualties, closing in 1930.
Black Point: Emma Seipp Schmidt
Emma Seipp Schmidt (1862-1942), daughter of Conrad and Catherina Seipp, was the second generation owner of Black Point Estate along with her husband Otto L. Schmidt (1863-1935).
Black Point Estate & Gardens, Town of Linn
Designed by Adolph Cudell and built for Chicago beer baron Conrad Seipp at a cost of $20,000 in 1887-1888, Queen Anne-styled Black Point Estate today is one of a handful of surviving Victorian mansions that once ringed Geneva Lake. The 8,000-square-foot summer home, handed down through four generations of the Seipp family before it was gifted to the Wisconsin Historical Society in 2005, includes a distinctive four-story corner tower that offers sweeping, breezy views of Geneva Lake and Yerkes Observatory in Williams Bay. The 12-acre lakefront estate, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in September 1994, includes a variety of picturesque garden plantings.
Eric Johnson
Black Point Estate Grounds
Black Point Estate & Gardens in the Town of Linn offers a variety of plantings and scenic paved walkways on its 12-acre grounds overlooking Geneva Lake. The picturesque gardens are maintained by two part-time groundskeepers with a combine 75 years of service at Black Point.
Eric Johnson
Black Point Flower Bed
Black Point Estate & Gardens on Geneva Lake in the Town of Linn features a variety of colorful plantings on the historic 12-acre house museum site, owned and operated by the Wisconsin Historical Society. Docent-guided tours of Black Point are offered May-October in partnership with Lake Geneva Cruise Line.
Eric Johnson
Black Point Garden Beds
Black Point Estate & Gardens on Geneva Lake in the Town of Linn features a variety of colorful plantings on the historic 12-acre house museum site, owned and operated by the Wisconsin Historical Society. Docent-guided tours of Black Point are offered May-October in partnership with Lake Geneva Cruise Line.
Eric Johnson
Black Point Gift Shop
Tours of Chicago beer baron Conrad Seipp’s historic circa-1888 Black Point summer estate in the Town of Linn end with a visit to the house museum’s gift shop, which features a variety of local history books and Seipp Brewing Co. memorabelia, among other items. Guests can also purchase a retro-nostalgic recreation of pre-Prohibition beers for on-site-only consumption. The beers are brewed by Seipp’s great-great-great-granddaughter, Dr. Laurin Mack, in partnership with Chicago craft brewer Metropolitan Brewing.
Eric Johnson
Black Point Guests Stroll Grounds
Owned and operated by the Wisconsin Historical Society, Black Point Estate & Gardens on Geneva Lake in the Town of Linn is a popular Lake Geneva area tourist destination.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Headboard Detail
Intricate, detailed carving craftsmanship highlights this Victorian era bed headboard at Black Point Estate.
Eric Johnson
Black Point Hillside View, Approaching From Geneva Lake
National Register-listed Black Point Estate cuts an impressive architectural profile on Geneva Lake as one of the few surviving Victorian mansions on the lake. The Queen Anne-styled summer estate, today owned and operated by the Wisconsin Historical Society as a house museum, was built by leading Chicago brewer Conrad Seipp in 1987-1888, serving as a Seipp family summer home across four generations until 2005.
Eric Johnson
Black Point View From Geneva Lake
Perched high on a cool, breezy hill overlooking Geneva Lake in the Town of Linn, Black Point Estate & Gardens is a popular warm weather tourist destination, drawing some 8,000-10,000 visitors annually to the National Register-listed home.
Eric Johnson
Black Point Medicine Cabinet
A medicine cabinet at circa-1888 Black Point Estate remains as it was left when the National Register-listed summer home was gifted to the Wisconsin Historical Society in 2005 by fourth generation descendants of leading Chicago beer baron Conrad Seipp. Cabinet contents range from 1920s-era tooth powder to a contemporary early 2000s tin of NIVEA skin cream.
Eric Johnson
Black Point Paving Bricks.jpg
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Seipp Beer Bottles
Chicago’s Conrad Seipp Brewing Co. (1854-1930) was a leading Chicago brewer, turning out 250,000 barrels of beer annually at its height. A top-ten national brewer during namesake Seipp’s lifetime, Seipp Brewing ranked as the nation’s largest brewer in 1872-1874 before being overtaken by Milwaukee’s Schlitz and Pabst and St. Louis’ Anheuser-Busch. Like most of the nation’s breweries, Seipp failed to survive Prohibition. A selection of pre-Prohibition Seipp beer bottles is seen on display at beer baron Conrad Seipp’s getaway Wisconsin summer home, Black Point Estate on Geneva Lake in the Town of Linn. Black Point is today owned and operated by the Wisconsin Historical Society as a home museum, drawing nearly 10,000 visitors annually.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Seipp Beer Bottles 2
Chicago’s Conrad Seipp Brewing Co. (1854-1930) was a leading Chicago brewer, turning out 250,000 barrels of beer annually at its height. A top-ten national brewer, Seipp was the nation’s largest brewer in 1872-1874 before being overtaken by Milwaukee’s Schlitz and Pabst and St. Louis’ Anheuser-Busch. Like most of the nation’s breweries, Seipp failed to survive Prohibition. A selection of pre-Prohibition Seipp beer bottles is seen on display at beer baron Conrad Seipp’s getaway Wisconsin summer home, Black Point Estate on Geneva Lake in the Town of Linn. Black Point is today owned and operated by the Wisconsin Historical Society as a home museum, drawing nearly 10,000 visitors annually.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Seipp Beer Bottles 3
Chicago’s Conrad Seipp Brewing Co. (1854-1930) was a leading Chicago brewer, turning out 250,000 barrels of beer annually at its height. A top-ten national brewer, Seipp was the nation’s largest brewer in 1872-1874 before being overtaken by Milwaukee’s Schlitz and Pabst and St. Louis’ Anheuser-Busch. Like most of the nation’s breweries, Seipp failed to survive Prohibition. A selection of pre-Prohibition Seipp beer bottles is seen on display at beer baron Conrad Seipp’s getaway Wisconsin summer home, Black Point Estate on Geneva Lake in the Town of Linn. Black Point is today owned and operated by the Wisconsin Historical Society as a home museum, drawing nearly 10,000 visitors annually.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Seipp family photo
Four generations of the Conrad and Catherina Seipp family called Black Point Estate on Geneva Lake in the Town of Linn their summer home across four generations from 1888-2005. This Christmas 1915 photo of the Seipp family gathered at their Michigan Avenue home in Chicago is among the heirlooms on display at National Register-listed Black Point Estate & Gardens, owned and maintained by the Wisconsin Historical Society as a house museum.
Black Point: Side View Showing Verandas
Built by leading Chicago brewer Conrad Seipp as a breezy and cool Wisconsin summer getaway from the hot and humid Windy City, Queen Anne-styled Black Point Estate features airy wrap-around ground and second floor verandas overlooking the estate’s colorful, shady grounds and picturesque Geneva Lake. Built in 1887-1888, Black Point served as a summer getaway for four generations of the Seipp family, which gifted the summer estate to the Wisconsin Historical Society in 2005. Opened to the public in 2007, between 8,000-10,000 visitors tour Black Point annually during its May-October tour season.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Site Director David A. Desimone
David A. Desimone serves as site director of Black Point Estate & Gardens for the Wisconsin Historical Society. In the off-season, Black Point presents off-site programs on local history throughout the Lake Geneva area.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Table Scene
Four generations of uninterrupted Seipp family ownership from 1888-2005 have built Black Point Estate into a unique time capsule of Geneva Lake and Chicago brewing history. Built by leading Chicago beer baron Conrad Seipp as a summer vacation residence for his family, Black Point Estate is today owned and operated by the Wisconsin Historical Society, with tours offered annual from May to October.
Black Point: Billiard Room
The billiard room at Black Point Estate.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Group Outing Visit
With an 8,000-square-foot mansion on 100 lakefront acres back in the day, Chicago brewer Conrad Seipp’s Black Point Estate could accommodate large groups for social gatherings of various sorts. On July 26, 1908, members of the Seipp’s Säengerbund choir from the family’s Chicago brewery and Lake Geneva’s Germania Mannerchor singing society gathered at Black Point for a joint men’s choir concert at Black Point.
Black Point: Music Room
One of the most lavishly appointed rooms at Black Point Estate is the main floor music room, which includes fine artwork, a ornate and colorful stained glass window, and a crystal chandelier. Centerpiece of the music room is the Seipp family’s 1911 Chickering grand piano. As part of its 2005 donation of Black Point Estate, the Seipp family left the Wisconsin Historical Society a sizeable collection of piano sheet music.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Parlor 2
The parlor at Black Point Estate.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Parlor
The parlor at Black Point Estate.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Billiard Room 2
The billiard room at Black Point Estate, the original man cave, is anchored by this 151-year-old pool table, built in 1871 by Chicago pool table manufacturer Zeller.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Tower View of Geneva Lake in the Early Evening
An early evening view of Geneva Lake as seen from Black Point Estate’s signature four-story tower.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Dining Room
The dining room at Black Point Estate.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Early Evening View of Geneva Lake from Tower
An early evening view of Geneva Lake as seen from Black Point Estate’s signature four-story tower.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Amy Bachtell of Hartland Taking Picture of Flowers
Looking for some gardening ideas to take back home, Hartland resident Amy Barchtell takes pictures of the colorful plantings at Black Point Estate & Gardens during a recent tour.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Stained Glass in Music Room.jpg
Detail of the stained glass window in the music room at Black Point Estate.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Staircase
A visit to Black Point Estate & Gardens is a step back in time to the Victorian era. The Queen Anne-styled summer estate was built by leading Chicago brewer Conrad Seipp in 1887-1888 and used by four generations of the Seipp family until 2005, when the property was donated to the Wisconsin Historical Society for use as a house museum. Some 8,000-10,000 visitors tour Black Point annually between May-October.
Eric Johnson
Black Point Estate Tower with Blue Sky
Built by Chicago beer baron Conrad Seipp at a cost of $20,000 in 1887-1888. Queen Anne-styled Black Point Estate today is one of a handful of surviving Victorian mansions that once ringed Geneva Lake. The 8,000-square-foot summer home, handed down through four generations of the Seipp family before it was gifted to the Wisconsin Historical Society in 2005, includes a distinctive four-story corner tower that offers sweeping, breezy views of Geneva Lake and Yerkes Observatory in Williams Bay. The 12-acre estate includes a variety of picturesque garden plantings.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: View from Second Story Wrap-Around Veranda
The second floor wrap-around veranda at Black Point Estate offers a pictureque view of Geneva Lake and the 12-acre estate grounds. The home’s cool, breezy verandas augmented the 17-room summer home’s 8,000 square feet of living space.
Eric Johnson
Black Point: Wardrobe
When the Seipp family turned ownership of Black Point Estate over to the Wisconsin Historical Society in 2005, an estimated 95% of its contents were left behind, including artwork, furniture, decor, knick-knacks and personal items, including the contents of this wardrobe.
Eric Johnson
Conrad Seipp Brewing Co. ad 2
Chicago-based Seipp Brewing Co. was once a dominant player in the Chicago and U.S. beer market, producing over 250,000 barrels annually at its height and briefly ranking as the nation’s largest brewer between 1872-1874. Beer baron Conrad Seipp, who built a Wisconsin summer home on Geneva Lake in the Town of Linn, was a pioneer of modern brewing with innovations including new techniques in refrigeration, distribution and marketing. Seipp died in 1890 and members of his family continued to run the company until its 1930 demise, shortly before the 1933 end of Prohibition. The company and several of its historic pre-Prohibition brews were revived by Seipp’s great-great-great-granddaughter, Laurin Mack, in collaboration with Chicago craft brewer Metropolitan Brewing.
Conrad Seipp Brewing Co. ad 1
German immigrant Conrad Seipp started making beer in Chicago in 1854. Brewers of beers touted as “just a little better than the kind you thought was best,” the Conrad Seipp Brewing Co. was among hundreds of U.S. breweries that failed to survive Prohibition (1919-1933). The company and several of its historic pre-Prohibition brews were revived in 2020 by Seipp’s great-great-great-granddaughter, Laurin Mack. Tourists at Black Point Estate, the family’s 1888-2005 Geneva Lake summer home in the Town of Linn, have the opportunity to purchase and quaff a cold Seipp brew at the end of their tour. The revived Seipp brews are made in collaboration with Metropolitan Brewing, a Chicago craft brewer.
Artist’s view of Chicago’s Conrad Seipp Brewing Co. facility
Chicago’s Conrad Seipp Brewing Co. briefly ranked as the nation’s largest brewer between 1872-1874 before being eclipsed by Milwaukee-based brewers Schlitz and Pabst, among others. At its height, Seipp Brewing produced a quarter million barrels of beer annually. Brewery namesake Seipp built a Wisconsin summer estate, Black Point, on the cool, breezy shores of Geneva Lake in the Town of Linn in 1888. Black Point Estate & Gardens is today owned and operated by the Wisconsin Historical Society as a house museum.