December 2004: A visit to the Boorman House

Benjamin Boorman, the owner of a number of mills, built this house in Mauston, WI in 1877. The Boorman family lived in the house until Benjamin Boorman died of TB in 1886. The house changed hands through the years, until it was purchased by the Juneau County Historical Society 1987. It now serves as an historical museum, and is open to the public much of the year.

A blast of winter weather helped add to the frost on the windows of this room – the previous night, the temperature dipped to -15F.

The house features a wide variety of antiques and artifacts from bygone days. Everything from simple household items like furniture, toiletries and period clothing, to a 38-star American flag are on display.

Restoration of the house is a never-ending process. Among other things, A widow’s walk on the top of the house was recently re-constructed by volunteers.

This upstairs bedroom is decorated much like it would have been a hundred years ago. However, the old book on the dresser was probably in better shape back then!

The Boorman House is generally open during summer weekends from 1pm to 4pm, and at other times for special events. You can see and learn more about the Boorman House here.