Reflections
On Jimmerson Lake Pontoon Tour
3 Lake Cottages & Store
South Cottage Ca. 1925; Middle Cottage Ca. 1915; North Cottage Ca, 1920 & Store Ca. 1925. All four buildings were owned by the same family, the larger structure was the main cottage, and the other two were rentals. The larger cottage was built as a replacement for an original cottage (Ca.1915) that burnt down soon after it was built. The store had a soda fountain and sold general goods and sundries. The store being there indicates that there were other cottages around in that era, but the only ones remaining are the one we will view on today's trip. None of these 4 buildings have been winterized. The Store is used as a storage shed.
Meyers Cottage
Ca. 1916 - was built by same builders who constructed the hotel next door. They ran a boat livery that rented boats to the hotel guest. The structure has been slightly modified and is winterized.
Millikan Hotel
Ca. 1915 - Built as a fishermen's hotel, it had 6 rooms and tavern; it was a popular speakeasy during Prohibition. Was in business until the early 1940s when it was converted into a tri-plex that was used as full-time rentals up into the 1990s. Then, the current owner converted it to a single-family cottage earlier this decade.
the Little Island
This small patch of aquatic plants is the last remnants of an island that used to be several acres in size. Through the years between the effects of the wave action from boat traffic in the summer and the freezing of the lake in the winter followed by sometimes fairly violent ice break up in spring have eroded the island to its final few yards.
Hanson Cottage
Ca. 1915 - Was the first cottage on the east shore. If any other cottages were around it in that era, they have either been drastically altered or are no longer standing. The structure has not changed much and has never been winterized.
Bruns Cottage
Ca. 1925 - Either 3rd or 4th cottage built on north side. Appears the exterior has not been altered much if at all since it was built, the cottage was never winterized.
Perrey Cottage
Ca. 1920 - Second Cottage built on the north shore. The original owner bought the 2.5-acre plat to build a hunting camp with the current cottage as the main lodge. There were to be cabins built for rent. When the plan fell to the wayside, he sold half the property to his brother-in-law Esmark Bolt. The cottage's roof was raised and dormers added in the '30s, it was winterized in 1969.
Bolt Cottage
Ca. 1924 - Either 3rd or 4th cottage built on the north shore. Was purchased from his brother-law, Edward Perry, the next cottage to the east. Originally the cottage was built on six pilings, with a root cellar in the north east corner. Several years later, a basement was dug and closed in so a coal-burning furnace could be installed. The root cellar's original hickory-log center beam is still there. When the garage was built in the '30s, a room on the side was added that had a diesel-powered generator for electricity that was used until REMC brought power lines to this side of the lake. The cottage was renovated and winterized in 1989, with the only outdoor modification being the adding of the deck.
Close Cottage
Ca. 1915 - It was the first cottage built on the north shore. Joseph Close bought this entire portion of the lake shore (from the channel to where lane 340) from Earnest Neutz. The road originally was down closer by the lake, instead of behind the cottages as it is today. He built the house himself except for the stone work; which he paid $300.00 to have done. When he passed away he split the property between his 5 children, with only 2 of them building cottages (Ca. 1940s), the last one by the channel and the red one.
the Pontoon Tour of Jimmerson Lake