Wisconsin Governor's Mansion

The Executive Residence, known better as the Governor's Mansion, is located at 99 Cambridge Road in the Village of Maple Bluff, Wisconsin, on the eastern shore of Lake Mendota. It is only one of four official state governor's residences in the country that is not located within its state's capital (the others being Drumthwacket, located in Princeton, New Jersey, instead of Trenton, Ohio Governor's Mansion, located in the suburb of Bexley instead of Columbus, and Tennessee Governor's Mansion, located in Oak Hill instead of Nashville, Tennessee). Construction was started during 1920 for Madison industrialist Carl A. Johnson as a home. Twelve years later, it was purchased by Thomas R. Hefty, a Madison banker, who sold it to the State during 1949 for $47,500. Governors of Wisconsin, and their families, have resided in the residence ever since. Architect Frank Riley of Madison, Wisconsin, designed the mansion in the southern Classical Revival style. The Residence sits on 3.7 acres (15,000 m2) along Lake Mendota. Although it was renovated extensively during the 1960s, the Residence now is much as Johnson planned originally. The more than 16,000 square feet (1,500 m2) of living space include 34 rooms, 13 bathrooms and 7 bedrooms and fireplaces. Several items of Wisconsin historical interest may be found throughout the Executive Residence. The wrought-iron fence on the street side of the property originally surrounded the old State Capitol Building. The mansion is wood framed structure with painted stucco over sandstone and hollow clay tile face. It is three stories high and has a basement level for a total of 20,777 gross square feet. There are 7 major garden areas, including a screened-in gazebo and winding walkways that lead to the lake shore.