MILWAUKEE — Known locally as “The Wells Street Red Castle," the historic Schuster Mansion in the Concordia District is up for auction.
Beth Rose Real Estate and Auctions will handle the sale with a deadline for online bids at 12 p.m. CST on Dec. 17.
The mansion, now operating as a bed-and-breakfast and is on the state Register of Historic Places, was built by tobacco industrialist George Schuster in 1891. It was built in the German Renaissance style, with red sandstone, red brick and rich red terracotta accents.
Current owners Laura Sue and Rick Mosier spent around $1 million restoring the mansion. They replaced all 110 windows, fixed details in the hand-stenciled wallpaper and incorporated a Victorian-themed garden.
“When we bought the mansion 15 years ago, we were determined to preserve the style and details of this property for future generations and it has been our passion to do so,’ said Laura Sue. “Now it is time to hand over the keys to this piece of history to a new innkeeper. We are offering our unique bed-and-breakfast as a turnkey business, including the mansion’s furnishings, fixtures, equipment and recipes.”
The bed-and-breakfast had become a popular destination for high tea. Laura Sue would wear 1890s clothing, teach table etiquette and include history lessons while serving scones and other savories. In Dec. 2021, there were more than 700 reservations for tea.
“The Mosiers’ attention to detail has created a property that is not only captivating, but also offers the opportunity to generate an impressive income through the bed-and-breakfast bookings, weddings, events, plus the extremely popular high teas,” Beth Rose said. “This is the opportunity of a lifetime for anyone with a dream of owning a bed-and-breakfast, and in this case, a magnificent mansion, too.”
The property has seven guest rooms, some of the suites, and each room is individually decorated with period details and preserved architectural features. For example, Molly's Suite has artifacts from Schuster's second wife, Molly, such as her wedding vows, guest book and personal photos. All of it was donated by a Schuster family relative.
The first floor contains a Ladies' Parlor, formal dining room, a library, sunlit conservatory and a Gentlemans' Parlor, which is now the gift shop. There's also 1,200-square-feet of private quarters for the innkeeper.
Laura Sue said people from all over the world come to the mansion. In one month alone, she said she counted guests from 18 different countries. She said the mansion attracts guests of a variety of interests, including history buffs, murder mystery enthusiasts, overseas guests in search of a traditional Thanksgiving, and plenty of baseball fans due to the close proximity to American Family Field.
Schuster Mansion has been featured in an award-winning short film called “The Wheel" on PBS programming and on local TV news channels, and used for photo shoots, music videos and film projects.
For more details on the auction, click here.