Ten Chimneys National Register of Historic Places Listing

Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne ruled American theater for decades. They were perfectionists. So, they built Ten Chimneys. They designed this Waukesha County estate in the 1930s and 40s not just as a getaway, but as a highly theatrical, Swedish-inspired sanctuary where they could escape the relentless grind of Broadway. It is a sprawling complex. The main house features hand-painted murals of biblical scenes and whimsical folk art painted directly onto the plaster by artist Claggett Wilson. Noel Coward slept here often. Actually, he wrote his scandalous 1933 play Design for Living specifically for himself and the Lunts while lounging by their pool. They practiced self-sufficiency. Alfred raised prize-winning chickens and grew his own vegetables, mixing farm dirt with high-society gossip.

This wasn't some quiet retirement home. It functioned as a boot camp for the stage. The Lunts made everyone work. If you visited, you ran lines. Laurence Olivier, Helen Hayes, and Vivien Leigh all stayed in the guest cottage, sweating through rehearsals under Alfred's obsessive eye. Katharine Hepburn reportedly arrived in a convertible, ready to absorb their legendary acting technique. The estate represents the absolute peak of mid-century American theater culture. But it was also deeply personal. Every room reflects their eccentricities, like the dining room table that Alfred rigged with a secret buzzer under the rug to summon the butler without interrupting his own stories.

After the couple died, the estate almost fell apart. Local preservationists saved it. They opened it to the public in 2003. It feels eerie today. Lynn's makeup brushes still sit on her vanity, untouched, as if she just stepped out for a cigarette. The federal government designated it a National Historic Landmark because of this unparalleled connection to stage history. It is not just a house. Instead, it stands as the physical remains of two lives entirely dedicated to theatrical illusion.