Entry No. 67 — the Chicago file — filed under: art
House on the Rock
Alex Jordan's house perched atop a chimney of rock unfolds into one of the strangest attractions in America: an indoor street recreated from the 19th century, a 200-foot sea creature, self-playing automated orchestras, and a 269-animal carousel so dense with lights and chandeliers that no one is allowed to ride it. The signature Infinity Room juts 218 feet into open air with no supports and a glass floor to peer through. The whole place defies summary, accreting collections that range from genuine to gleefully fake.
The story
In 1945, Alex Jordan Jr. started hauling stone and timber up a 60-foot sandstone pillar called Deer Shelter Rock. Local gossip long claimed he built it out of pure spite after neighbor Frank Lloyd Wright reportedly told him he couldn't design a cheese crate, though whether Wright actually uttered the insult remains Wisconsin folklore. What is undeniable is that Jordan became consumed by the build, spending decades extending low-ceilinged stone corridors through the trees while continuing to live in a modest Madison apartment. He reportedly only slept in the actual house four nights in his entire life. When curious drivers began pulling over to peek at his ridge retreat in the 1950s, he started charging 50 cents a head, immediately funneling the cash into buying up whatever bizarre collection caught his eye.
He wasn't curating a standard museum; he was constructing a sensory maze. Jordan collected without rules, mixing genuine antiques with gleefully fake fabrications, self-playing mechanical orchestras, and a 200-foot fiberglass sea creature battling a giant squid. In 1985, he pushed the architecture to its extreme with the Infinity Room, a narrow hall cantilevered 218 feet out into thin air over the Wyoming Valley with no exterior supports underneath. Walk out to the far tip, look through the glass floor panel, and you will feel the subtle sway of steel suspended over 150 feet above the forest floor.
The climax of the complex is the carousel room: a colossal, rotating centerpiece carrying 269 custom-carved beasts—and not a single traditional horse among them—drenched in 20,000 lights, 182 chandeliers, and hundreds of mannequin angels hanging overhead. You aren't allowed to ride it, and you wouldn't want to if you saw the sheer density of glass and gearwork spinning beside you. Jordan sold the complex to associate Art Donaldson in 1988 and died a year later, requesting his ashes be scattered over the rock. Today, Donaldson's family keeps the doors open, preserving an unvarnished cathedral of unchecked obsession.
What it's like
Visiting feels less like a standard museum walkthrough and more like a slow, three-hour descent into someone else's fever dream. You will navigate miles of dimly lit, red-carpeted ramps winding through cavernous spaces where the air gets noticeably musty and humid—if you have dust allergies or asthma, take a preventative puff or pack a mask. Bring cash to buy the brass tokens scattered throughout the route; feeding them into the self-playing organ consoles and automated calliopes to hear them blare in the dark is half the fun. Don't rush through the initial rooms to get to the giant carousel; part of the experience is letting the overwhelming scale and weirdly detailed restrooms—men's rooms decorated with model trains, women's with glass art—gradually wear down your sensory baseline.
The move: Walk out to the end of the cantilevered Infinity Room and look straight down through the glass floor, then get lost together among the automated orchestras and the riderless carousel.
📍 Before you go Open March through December, not year-round; check dates and the multi-section ticket options. Roughly 175 miles northwest of Chicago, a long but doable day trip if you leave early.
- 📍 Spring Green, WI
- 💸 $
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Indoors
Where: 5754 State Rd 23, Spring Green, WI 53588
Hours: Added 2026-06-23 — confirm current hours before you go.
⚠ Seasonal or scheduled — always check before you go.
Pair it with
- Forevertron / World of Dr. Evermor — Located 23 miles northeast, this 300-ton scrap-metal sculpture park built by an eccentric demolition expert provides an outdoor industrial counterpart to Jordan's indoor maze.
- Dickeyville Grotto — Sitting 40 miles southwest, Father Wernerus's churchyard encrusted in broken glass and perfume bottle caps offers a sacred take on obsessive Wisconsin folk-art accumulation.
- Sanfilippo Place de la Musique — Positioned along the drive back toward Chicago, Sanfilippo's collection of orchestrions makes an immaculate, highly restored contrast to Jordan's darker music halls.
- Volo Museum — Further east on the return journey, this 35-acre sprawling complex mirrors House on the Rock's sheer sensory-overload philosophy of relentless collecting.
Good to know
How far is House on the Rock from Chicago, and can it be done in a day?
It is roughly 175 miles northwest of Chicago, which takes about 3 to 3.5 hours of driving each way. While a day trip is doable if you hit the road early, many visitors stay overnight in Spring Green or nearby Madison to avoid spending seven hours driving on top of three-plus hours of walking.
How long does it take to tour the entire complex?
Walking through all three official tour sections takes anywhere from 3 to 4.5 hours. The self-guided route covers several miles of continuous indoor ramps and stairways, so wear comfortable shoes.
Can you actually ride the giant carousel?
No, visitors are not permitted on the carousel. With 269 carved animals, 182 chandeliers, and over 20,000 lights, it functions purely as an enormous, glowing sculptural installation.
Is House on the Rock open year-round?
No. The regular season typically runs from March through December, with modified schedules and holiday-themed tours in late autumn and winter. Check current operational dates before planning your trip.
How do the automated music machines play?
You can purchase brass tokens from token machines stationed along the walk. Inserting tokens triggers the automated mechanical orchestras, orchestrions, and pipe organs to play short musical pieces.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: Wikipedia · Official site · travelwisconsin.com · Reddit
last checked: 2026-06-23