Hey all. I asked a question on Facebook a few weeks ago about everyone’s favorite museum. One response was the non-traditional House on the Rock in Wisconsin. It’s not the first time I heard about this place. And, since I happened to be in Wisconsin recently, I decided to check it out. It’s a wild place to put it mildly. But also completely fascinating. Here’s a bit about the experience.

House on the Rock History

Since this blog has history in its name, let’s start with a little of that. The House on the Rock’s site was discovered in 1940 by Alex Jordan. He would have small picnics on the chimney-like Deer Shelter Rock and occasionally camp out there. He eventually bought the 240 acres of property the rock was on and started building as he pleased.

As Jordan began construction, curiosity was peaked in the surrounding community. He saw the opportunity and admitted people to tour his home for a fee. In 1960, Jordan opened the House on the Rock to the public. Four extensions connect throughout the property, with each room and building filled with a hodgepodge of stuff.

I think we can call Alex Jordan an eccentric collector. He’d buy all sorts of things with no plan for what to do with them. Where did it all go? On display in the House on the Rock of course! Before we get into these collections, let’s talk about three key features of the house.

The Infinity Room

How can a room go on for infinity? Well, it can’t. But it can be built to look like it! The hallway-like room narrows to a point giving the illusion of it extending on and on. The room features over 3,000 windows providing a beautiful view of the Wisconsin Valley. What’s truly amazing is the Infinity Room extends 218 feet out from the house with no support. I am not afraid of heights, but knowing the room isn’t supported by anything did give me a bit of an unsettling feeling when walking through.

World’s Largest Carousel

This thing is huge. It features 20,000 lights, 182 chandeliers, and 289 animals. Interestingly, the one animal you most associate with a carousel, the horse, isn’t present. You do get the music you expect though. Here is a short clip of it.

Japanese Garden

The House on the Rock also boasts a Japanese Garden. I just really like Japanese Gardens. They are so peaceful and serene. It would be great to have one in my backyard. With a koi pond and some ducks. A guy can dream.

Unfortunately, it was raining pretty heavily on our visit so I didn’t get to enjoy it thoroughly. On the bright side, most of the stuff is inside so let’s talk about some of Alex Jordan’s collections.

Self-Playing Instruments

The thing my family talked most about was the multitudes of self-playing instruments throughout the house. My son figured each room had a self-playing piano. We are not talking just single instruments though. Some of these displays contain whole groups!

Did I forget to mention there are animatronics too? There are several of these and different cultures are represented. It’s fun because the show is started by using these in-house coins. There were so many people when we were there though I ended up taking one home since the music was always playing.

Creepy Dolls

I’m not gonna lie. Dolls freak me out a little. And there are a whole of them at House on the Rock. This one gave me the Jeebies the most though.

Now that is something straight out of a horror flick.

Random Not Random

When going through the house, it felt like everything was so random. Looking back, there was a theme for each room. You just never knew what the next room holds. It would go from creepy dolls and dollhouses to a circus theme. Then you would happen upon a room full of armor. Or maybe it will be a collection of guns or zippo lighters. Part of the fun became guessing what you’ll next encounter.

Through the different collections, there is definitely history. You can also walk down a recreation of a 19th-century street. The red-bricked avenue has a variety of storefronts, such as a barber shop, a carriage house, and other antiques.

There is a quite a bit more to see. It’s not far from the Wisconsin Dells so check it out if you are in the area. It’s for all ages though some of the areas are not accessible for wheelchairs, strollers, etc.

The Verdict

8 out of 10. House on the Rock is an experience. There is literally tons of stuff in there. The randomness keeps you on your toes. It contains a lot of history too. I wish there was a little more explanation into the stuff though. I left House on the Rock feeling like a saw a whole bunch, but didn’t know much about it. Still, it ranks high on entertainment value and I would definitely be up for another visit. It’s a hard pass on that next visit being overnight though. Way too much creepiness for that. Speaking of, I’ll leave you with this.