Geneva Lake

Black Point is an estate on the south shore of Geneva Lake in Wisconsin, United States, built in 1888 as a summer home by Conrad Seipp, a beer tycoon from Chicago. It has also been known as Conrad and Catherine Seipp Summer House and as Die LoreleyThe Queen Anne style mansion features a nautical-themed, four-story, "crow's nest" observation tower, which can be seen from many points on the lake; the property also features post-civil war-era furniture. It was designed by Adolph Cudell. It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1994.The state of Wisconsin owns the property and leases it to the Black Point Historic Preserve, a nonprofit organization which manages the property for public tours, which began in June 2007.The estate and its grounds, including 620 feet of shoreline, are protected from future development by a conservation easement co-held by the Geneva Lake Conservancy, a local not-for-profit conservation organization, and the Preserve.

Linn is a town in Walworth County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 2,687 at the 2020 census. The unincorporated communities of Linton and Zenda are located within the town.

Northwestern Military Academy (founded 1888) was a high school in Linn, Wisconsin which was founded by Harlan Page Davidson. Originally located in Highland Park, Illinois, the school was relocated to the town of Linn, Wisconsin on the south shore of Geneva Lake near the city of Lake Geneva in 1915 and was renamed Northwestern Military and Naval Academy (NMNA) before merging with SJNMA. During the academy's century of operation at this location , its primary goal was to mold young men, grades 7–12, into outstanding citizens, eager and ready for higher levels of education. The institution adhered to the visions and principles of Davidson which adopted military structure and religious principles into an exceptionally sound educational program. The results were a capstone curriculum which ranked the academy as one of the most prestigious schools within the nation. Within the later years of its operation the institution decided to expand upon its enrollment spectrum and began accepting students from the 7th and 8th grade level. Two large 60" x 336" murals of John Kinzie and party first encounters with the Potawatomi Indians around 1841 were painted by Chicago artist Louis Grell. The first mural was a gift of the class of 1939 and the second a gift by the class of 1940. The large murals hung in the grand west and east wings of Davidson Hall for many decades until St. John's acquired and merged with the Academy in 1995. The murals are now in a controlled storage vault on the campus in Delafield, WI.In 1995, the institution merged with rival school St John's Military Academy to form St. John's Northwestern Military Academy. The Lake Geneva property was abandoned for a few years, which fell victim to vandalism and became the late night choice of neighboring kids. Before the beginning of the 21st century, the property was sold to a developing company. The several acres of NMNA land have been transformed into an affluent community peppered with expensive homes. The Davidson Building in Lake Geneva no longer exists, but in its place is a piece of stone from the school with a plaque of remembrance. Scenes of the building interior were used for filming of Damien: Omen II.

Williams Bay is a village in Walworth County, Wisconsin, United States. It is one of three municipalities on Geneva Lake. The population was 2,953 at the 2020 census.

Como is a census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Geneva, Walworth County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 2,356 at the 2020 census.

Geneva is a town in Walworth County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 5,390 at the 2020 census. The census-designated place of Como is located in the town. The unincorporated community of Lake Como is also located in the town.

The Belfry Music Theatre, formerly known as the Belfry Theater and The Belfry Players, is a theater facility and acting company in the town of Delavan, adjacent to the village of Williams Bay, Wisconsin. Established in a former church building, the Belfry was the first summer stock theater in Wisconsin. The theater operated as a stock company from 1935 until 1969, providing early professional experience to thespians like Paul Newman, Del Close, Gary Burghoff and Harrison Ford. The venue continued operating for local productions for many years, for a short time as an adjunct to Cleveland's Dobama Theater. In 2016, The Belfry Music Theatre was renovated, and opened to the public as a music concert and event venue. Located on Bailey Road south of the intersection of highways 50 and 67, on what was once called Delap Corners, the Belfry produced seasonal productions from the early 1930s through the 1970s and sporadically thereafter. The non-profit company was a rural "straw hat" repertory troupe. The land was owned by the Delap family. They came from Chicago and settled in the Delavan area. It was housed in a converted church of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. The church was erected in 1888 and adapted for theatrical purposes in the 1930s. The producing group called the Belfry Players first leased the building in 1934, then purchased it in 1938. A large shed was later added to the theater to provide space for scenic construction and storage. Nearby Crane Hall, more recently named Belfry House, served as a dormitory for resident company members. In the late 1960s, the Belfry Theater was imperiled by a highway widening project. Although the theater building was moved and its existence saved, the company's debts forced it to suspend production between 1969 and 1976. Barry E. Silverman, a director of the Dobama Theater of Cleveland, assumed proprietorship of the Belfry in 1976, dubbed his operating company "Dobama West," and revived producing for three years, closing after the 1979 season. After regular annual productions ceased, "occasional revivals and performances were booked at the Belfry into the 1990s," as, for example, when showman Eddie Cash presented musical tributes to popular singers. The Belfry was still producing as late as 1990. The theater buildings were purchased in November 2013 by Transformative Arts, Inc., a Christian theatrical production company.

Yerkes Observatory ( YUR-keez) is an astronomical observatory located in Williams Bay, Wisconsin, United States. The observatory was operated by the University of Chicago Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics from its founding in 1897 to 2018. Ownership was transferred to the non-profit Yerkes Future Foundation (YFF) in May 2020, which began restoration and renovation of the historic building and grounds. Re-opening for public tours and programming began May 27, 2022.The observatory, often called "the birthplace of modern astrophysics," was founded in 1892 by astronomer George Ellery Hale and financed by businessman Charles T. Yerkes. It represented a shift in the thinking about observatories, from their being mere housing for telescopes and observers, to the early-20th-century concept of observation equipment integrated with laboratory space for physics and chemistry analysis. The observatory's main dome houses a 40 in-diameter (102 cm) doublet lens refracting telescope, the largest refractor ever successfully used for astronomy. Two smaller domes house 40-inch (102 cm) and 24-inch (61 cm) reflecting telescopes. There are several smaller telescopes – some permanently mounted – that are primarily used for educational purposes. The observatory also holds a collection of over 170,000 photographic plates.The Yerkes 40-inch was the largest refracting-type telescope in the world when it was dedicated in 1897, although there had been several larger reflecting telescopes. During this time, there were many questions about the merits of the various materials used to construct and design telescopes. Another large telescope of this period was the Great Melbourne Telescope, which was a reflector. In the United States, the Lick refractor had just a few years earlier come online in 1888 in California with a 91 cm lens. Prior to its installation, the telescope on its enormous German equatorial mount was shown at the World's Columbian Exhibition in Chicago during the time the observatory was under construction. The observatory was a center for serious astronomical research for more than 100 years. By the 21st century, however, it had reached the end of its research life. The University of Chicago closed the observatory to the public in October 2018. In November 2019, "an agreement in principle" was announced that the university would transfer Yerkes Observatory to the non-profit Yerkes Future Foundation (YFF). The transfer of ownership took place on May 1, 2020.

Holiday Home Camp is an overnight children's camp on Geneva Lake in Williams Bay, Wisconsin. It is a non-profit organization which provides an outdoor experience for low-income youth from the surrounding areas, including Milwaukee, Madison, and Chicago. The program consists of eight day sessions for children ages seven through thirteen. There is also a year-round leadership program, called the ELITE Teens, that is for teens ages thirteen through eighteen. Holiday Home Camp has been accredited by the American Camp Association. Holiday Home Camp is one of the oldest camps in the United States. It was founded in 1887 by the Lake Geneva Fresh Air Association. The first campers arrived in July 1888.

Zenda is an unincorporated community in the Town of Linn, Walworth County, Wisconsin, United States. It is located south of Geneva Lake and just north of the Illinois border. Its ZIP code is 53195.

Lake Geneva station was an Amtrak intercity rail station in Zenda, Wisconsin. Commuter service to Zenda was operated by the Milwaukee Road from 1900 to 1982. Lake Geneva station was added as an infill station on the Lake Country Limited on June 15, 2000, to serve the Lake Geneva resort area. The Lake Country Limited was never successful, and service ended on September 23, 2001. Commuter service with a stop near Zenda was studied in 2001, but found to only be marginally feasible.

Williams Bay High School is a 4-year public high school located in Williams Bay, Wisconsin. School enrollment is approximately 181 students. The school district serves the village of Williams Bay, and the towns of Delavan, Linn, Walworth, and Geneva.