Since its construction in 1912, the French chateau-looking mansion at 3266 N Lake Drive in Milwaukee has been home to a cement distributor, a leather tanning executive and several orders of nuns.
Now, after $1.6 million in upgrades and some modernization efforts, the current owner has listed the lakefront home for its highest price yet at $4.2 million, making it the second-most expensive residence currently for sale in the city.
The seven-bedroom, four-and-a-half-bath home — called the Orrin W. Robertson House for its original owner — was designed by Alexander C. Eschweiler, one of the most regarded Milwaukee architects.
He’s noted for designing several large homes for the city’s elite across Bradford Avenue, Newberry Boulevard and Lake Drive. But it’s Lake Drive where only Milwaukee’s most prominent architects would design homes for the wealthiest residents.
This portion of the city was flagged in the late 1800s to become the newest “Gold Coast” of Milwaukee, home to stately homes by notable architects and for businesspeople such as Robertson, a limestone cement supplier. The area and its homes are now designated as the North Lake Drive Estates Historic District.
According to a city historic preservation study, Robertson and his wife, Harriet T. Holton, lived in 3266 N Lake Drive from 1921 to 1928.
Though Eschweiler typically designed neo-Georgian homes, the Robertson House has a French chateau style per Holton’s request. She had visited France’s Chateau d’Azay-le-Rideau, a 16th-century castle in the Loire Valley seen as an icon of Renaissance architecture. Holton wanted a home mimicking the style, according to the study.
Milwaukee’s most expensive home for sale, 3432 N Lake Drive, listed for $4.9 million, is also in the North Lake Drive Estates area. That home was relocated from the city’s lower east side to Lake Drive in the 1920s.
The historic preservation study said that after the Robertsons moved, the family of a leather tanning executive, David B. Eisendrath of B.D. Eisendrath Tanning Co. and Griess-Pfleger Tanning Co., moved in.
It then became home to Catholic nuns in 1964, Episcopal nuns in 1971, and another batch of Catholic nuns before new owners converted it back to a single-family home in 1981.
The home last sold for $1.35 million in 2020, according to Homes.com data, after an initial 2018 listing price of $1.8 million. It retains a time-appropriate design with hanging chandeliers and ornate millwork with modern-day design choices.
The current owner maintained much of the original design but swapped some light-colored walls for dramatic black Venetian plaster-style wall paint in the entryway and monochromatic black painted millwork in what’s called the “Cathedral room" for its vaulted ceiling.
In the parlor, a blue confidante sofa will remain with the home as part of its history, though listing agent Lisa Ashley of Sotheby’s International Realty is unsure when the piece was first brought into the house.
The most significant changes were made outside, according to Ashley. The seller spent more than $1 million to build a back patio with limestone and iron columns, heated concrete, a fire pit, and a fountain, while maintaining the historical design.
Part of the $1 million upgrades outside included adding a long driveway leading to a new two-car garage below the extended back patio. Previously, homeowners parked in a separate three-car garage and walked to the residence, which adds another parking option.
The home also has a guest house with one bedroom and one bathroom, sitting areas in each of its rounded, towering turrets and four fireplaces.