Take a Cruise to the Victorian Summer Retreat of a Chicago Beer Baron
Black Point Estate was built for Chicago Beer Baron, Conrad Seipp, in 1888 as a retreat, and in that spirit the home remains a place to relax, refresh, and explore. Just like the Victorian VIPs who established the estate, you’ll arrive in style and enjoy stunning Geneva Lake views on your cruise to this magnificent summer home, considered one of the finest examples of period architecture and furniture in the Midwest, and one of the oldest homes in Lake Geneva.
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Black Point Estate and Gardens
Step into Gilded Age elegance at the 1888 Summer home of Chicago beer baron, Conrad Seipp. Guests enjoy a narrated boat ride to the property via the Lake Geneva Cruise Line, a guided tour of the mansion, & time to relax and sip Seipp beer on the veranda.
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2026 is the 250th anniversary of the United States of America. Over the next 250 days we will be highlighting historic people, places or things from around Walworth County.
Up next is the Driehaus Family Fountain.
The fountain outside the Riviera was donated to the City of Lake Geneva by Richard Driehaus—who owned Wadsworth Hall on the North Shore.
The fountain is a smaller replica of a fountain at Bethesda Terrace in New York’s Central Park where the original commemorates New York’s first (1837) fresh water aqueduct—the Croton River Aqueduct bringing fresh water to Manhattan.
At the top of the Fountain is the sculpture Angel of the Waters. The four figures below represent Peace, Health, Purity and Temperance.
Richard was an avid preservationist, and restored Wadsworth Hall in 1998 over 16 months, with up to 160 workers on site seven days a week.
Walworth@250 #82
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The city council wanted it placed by City Hall and Driehaus told them it was either going in front of the Riviera or it was going on his property ...that ended that.
2026 is the 250th anniversary of the United States of America. Over the next 250 days we will be highlighting historic people, places or things from around Walworth County.
Up next is Jenny, the Lake Geneva Sea Monster.
The Potawatomi knew three spirits…earth, sky and water spirits. They also knew to stay off the water if Jenny was near and threatening.
In 1892, two boys fishing (according to the Chicago Tribune) saw Jenny and described her with fierce looking eyes, sharp hooked teeth with a head that was about 10 feet out of the water. Scales on the fish/reptile were glistening in the sun. When she jumped, the boys (near Reverend Swing’s residence on the south shore), could see her whole body—100 feet long and three feet in diameter.
The boys said she was last seen swimming west towards Kaye’s Park. There was another sighting later in 1892 according to the same newspaper.
Have you seen her?
Walworth@250 #81
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With close to 6k boats on a 5400 acre lake I'm pretty sure the serpent has been driven from the depths ... especially with wake boarding.