THE BRIGHT SIDE
The most expensive home for sale in Wisconsin is right here in Lake Geneva.
The 20,000 square foot Aloha Lodge is one of Lake Geneva’s most recognized mansions and could be yours for $35 million. The name was inspired by the estate’s sunset view, which reminded the Drakes of their visits to Hawaii. The estate was originally built in 1900 for Tracy Drake, founder of the Drake and Blackstone hotels in Chicago. Tracy Drake inherited much of his wealth from his father, John Burroughs Drake, a hotelier who made a name for himself as proprietor of Chicago’s Tremont House. His patrons included Abraham Lincoln and Ulysses S. Grant. When the Great Chicago Fire destroyed the building in 1871, John Drake started two new hotels.
Tracy and his brother, John Jr., were the benefactors of their father’s success. However, the elder John Drake did not spoil them. He took pride in training his sons “from the ground up,” teaching them about all aspects of the hotel industry. The move to Geneva Lake preceded the founding of Chicago’s Drake Hotel, and likely was funded by inheritance from John B. Drake, who passed away in 1895. Construction on Aloha Lodge began in 1900, and the family moved in during the spring of 1901. Architect Howard Van Doren Shaw designed the house in true colonial style.
The 8 bedroom, 11 full-bathroom, 5-half bathroom home was the first of several lakeside mansions designed by Chicago architect Howard Van Doren Shaw. Aloha Lodge sits on more than 360 feet of shoreline with many of the original elements of the 123-year-old home remaining including several intricate stained-glass windows, the front door, and multiple custom “Aloha Lodge” brand plates. Are eight bedrooms and eleven bathrooms not enough? Another three bedrooms can be found in the 2,000 square foot Captain’s House, aka guest house, along with its 2.5 bathrooms. The property also has a “train house” which is an 1,800 square foot building built in 2001 to accommodate the owner’s train set. A full interior and exterior renovation in 2011 tripled the home’s original size, extending its footprint to add two wings off the original structure, built with period details to look as if they were always part of the home. The outdoor portions of the 12-acre parcel are all designed with lake life in mind. Shoreline-facing porches are found throughout the property, and on multiple levels.
There’s a swimming pool and hot tub that offer an alternative way to enjoy the water because of the often-chilly lake waters. The estate even comes with a large pier that comes with five boat slips for all the floating water toys; and a shoreside gazebo offers a shaded spot to get lost in the Geneva Lake views. This and more can be all yours for a mere $35 million.
