| Additional Information: | A 'site file' exists for this property. It contains additional information such as correspondence, newspaper clippings, or historical information. It is a public record and may be viewed in person at the Wisconsin Historical Society, State Historic Preservation Office.
DORMERS ADDED C. 1985.
"Circa 1885. Gurdon Montague House. Greek Revival Italianate addition 1867. The Greek Revival style is evident in the columns, enclosed gables and pediment returns. The Italianate additon has rounded-top brick-segmented windows with broad divided lights. Note the hip-styled roof with gentle slope.
The first part of the house was built by a retired framer of the area, Rosewell Burt. It was of red brick, very popular then. The brick came from kilns in St. Louis, Missouri vie barges on the Mississippi and Rock Rivers. In 1858 a wooden addition was constructed. The house passed through several hands, and in 1867, H. A. Mead added the main house to the existing building. The bricks used were cream colored, from either Milwaukee or Kenosha, Wisconsin. A unified appearance was achieved by painting the house one color.
In 1871 Gurdon Montague purchased the home, the same year he sold his 90-acre lakefront estate, "Maple Lawn", to Shelton Sturges. Mr. Montague was a millwright who built grist mills and sawmills in Lake Geneva, Lyons, Fontana, Wisconsin and Richmond, Illinois. He was President of Lake Geneva in 1873. John Vose Seymour purchased the house in 1899. He owner several properties around the lake, including sand and gravel pits. He was also known as "The Ice King" as he employed three hundred people to cut ice, and thousands of tons were shipped each winter to Chicago. There was an ice house on the lakefront to the west end of Library Park. Others were located at the railroad station. The Geneva Famly Practice stands on that site today. Mr. Seymour became County Superintendent and the first Lakeland Hospital was built under his supervision.
The property was inherited by his daughter, Eva, and her husband, John Lundahl, a local dentist. Mrs. Lundahl was a local historian, and wrote "Main Street, Lake Geneva" and "Lovely Lake Geneva". The property passed on through other families to its present owners." A Walking Tour of Olde Lake Geneva Towne by the Lake Geneva Plaque and Walking Tour Commission, Spring 1993. |
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