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Property Location
Property Features
Additions: 1860s-1870s: Greek Revival porch added to front entry.
1940s-1950s: Storage shed added near driveway.
Removals: "L" on house originally used as Turner meeting hall/Post Office removed/destroyed in 1920s-1930s.
Brewery between summer kitchen and barn removed/destroyed in 1990-92.
Replacements: Some doors and windows replaced over many years.
Remodeling: Bathrooms, second kitchen, bedrooms added over many years.
Generations of Klessigs have passed down stories of the Saxonia House as a hub of social, athletic, musical and intellectual activities, where German settlers could stay while building their own residences or traveling west. Immigrants and other visitors stayed at the house for days or weeks, breaking bread with the Klessig family, playing and singing German music, discussing books and politics, drinking beer brewed at the Klessigs' Farmington Brewery, and joining in other Saxonia House activities, Turn-Verein (Turner) meetings, dances, and community get toegethers. The Saxonia House also housed the local Post Office for several years.
In addition to the house and other buildings, the property includes a remarkably engineered beer-storage cave with arched ceilings similar to the arched ceilings of the basements under the Saxonia House.
National And State Register Of Historic Places Listings
Architecture & History Inventory
The Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory (AHI) is a digital source of information on historic buildings, structures, and objects that have been surveyed by the State Historic Preservation Office in Wisconsin. Each property has a digital record providing basic information about the property and images.
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