Built in the early 1930s, Chateau Hutter was originally envisioned as a European-style resort and winery overlooking Sturgeon Bay in Door County, Wisconsin. The stone building, designed with locally quarried limestone and heavy timber framing, has long been abandoned but still stands as a striking relic of pre-war leisure architecture. Its location on a bluff above Lake Michigan and its craftsmanship make it one of the region’s most enigmatic remnants of early tourism development.

The Ephraim Moravian Church, located in the heart of Ephraim, Wisconsin, dates back to the mid-19th century and reflects the town’s deep Moravian heritage. Founded in 1853 by Norwegian settlers under the leadership of Reverend Andreas Iverson, the congregation built this white clapboard church overlooking Eagle Harbor as both a house of worship and a symbol of unity for the early Door County community. The building’s steeple, traditional in form yet understated in design, continues to define Ephraim’s skyline, linking the village’s modern charm with its Scandinavian and religious roots.

The historic Ephraim Volunteer Fire Department Museum, housed in a stone building with classic red doors, stands as a reminder of small-town service and heritage in Ephraim, Wisconsin.

The Gus Klenke Garage, what was formerly a Standard Oil garage where Gus was known for helping farmers repair broken equipment from scrap metal. The Klenke’s were well known in the area for owning cottages and selling pounds of honey each year from the bees he raised.

The garage stands in the place of what was once a cheese factory.

At Al Johnson’s Swedish Restaurant in Sister Bay, Wisconsin, goats graze atop the restaurant’s sod-covered roof—a long-running local tradition that began in the 1970s. The family-owned establishment, inspired by Scandinavian architecture, features a living roof that not only nods to Swedish design but also became a tourism icon in Door County. Each summer, the goats climb onto the roof via a wooden ramp, drawing visitors from around the Midwest who come as much for the novelty as for the restaurant’s traditional Swedish pancakes and lingonberries.

Dippy's Ice Cream in Fish Creek during Halloween in Door County, WI.

Sunset over Lake Michigan in Door County, Wisconsin.