Stone chimneys and the foundation of a mansion stand along the shore of northern Wisconsin’s West Bay Lake near the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. It is the remains of a large cottage known as Summerwind. It was built in the early 1900s as a fishing lodge and then purchased by Robert Patterson Lamont. He was United States secretary of commerce during the administration of Herbert Hoover. Legend has it that Lamont fired a pistol at a ghost one night and was so frightened that he and his family abandoned the house.
In the late 60s Ginger Hinshaw purchased the old house with intentions of renovating it after it had sat abandoned for decades. Experiencing strange phenomena her father wrote a book called Carver Effect: A Paranormal Experience in which he claimed the mansion was haunted by 18th century explorer Jonathan Carver. A 1980 Life magazine photo essay including Summerwind among “Terrifying Tales of Nine Haunted Houses”.
Once again the family abandoned the house and in 1988 it was struck by lighting and burned to the ground. The stonework and foundation is all that remains. The story of the haunting was told in a Discovery Channel’s 2005 episode of A Haunting. You can watch the full episode on Youtube.
I am not sure how true the stories are but it was a peaceful place when I visited. I did not see any no trespassing signs when I was there but I did not poke around since I figured it was private property. I took some pics from the driveway and left.
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