Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Vicinity of Milwaukee
TEN CHIMNEYS
A mere 15-minute drive west of downtown Milwaukee, close to Waukesha, brings you to
“Broadway's Retreat” in the Midwest: Ten Chimneys (S43 W31575 Depot Rd., Genesee
Depot, 262/968-4161, www.tenchimneys.org ), the former home of the Great White Way's
legendary Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontaine. From its creation as a haven for artists in the
1920s, it welcomed legions of actors, writers, singers, and film stars, all seeking spiritu-
al rejuvenation in a bucolic retreat. Having fallen into disrepair, it was nearly razed before
an extraordinary renovation effort saved it. Inside, the exquisite detailing and furnishings
are almost an afterthought, so caught up are visitors by mementos sent to Fontaine and
Lunt from Helen Hayes, Noel Coward, and Charlie Chaplin, among others. The sublime
18-room main house sits perched above 60 acres of rolling moraine topography; nearby are
a “quaint” eight-room cottage and Swedish-style log cabin, as well as a dozen other build-
ings.Notsimplyamemorialtoabygoneera,TenChimneysisalivingartists'retreatagain.
It sponsors workshops, collaborations, teacher-training programs, and public classes.
Tours are available, but don't count on an impromptu visit; officially it's open to the
public10am-4pmTuesday-SaturdayMay-October,butifaspecialeventistakingplaceyou
may not get in. The place is also pricey: $35 for a full estate tour, $30 for a main house tour
only.
MM CEDARBURG
What candy-facade original-13-colony spots such as Williamsburg are to the East Coast,
Cedarburg is to Old World Wisconsin. It's been seemingly preserved in a time vacuum,
thanks to local residents who successfully fought off wholesale architectural devastation
from an invasion of Milwaukeeans looking for an easy commute. About a half-hour north
of downtown Milwaukee, Cedarburg was originally populated by German (and a few Brit-
ish) immigrants, who hacked a community out of a forest and built numerous mills along
Cedar Creek, which bisects the tiny community, including the only worsted wool mill and
factory in what was then considered the West. Those mills, and more than 100 other origin-
al Cream City-brick buildings, have been painstakingly restored into the state's most con-
centrated stretch of antiques dealers, shops, galleries, bed-and-breakfasts, and proper little
restaurants.
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