VIEW From 1908

Looking through old photos of Alma, Wisconsin I found this picture from 1908.  Can you spot the building that is now the Blue Door Inn?  Look for the long porches.

This view from the hillside above Alma also shows three of Alma's most iconic buildings.

• Lower edge middle is the Buffalo County Training School built in 1902.  This building is still standing and is now the Alma Area Museum.  Visit their website.
• Buffalo County Courthouse just above the School.  Building was demolished in the 1960s to make way for a new modern courthouse building. 
• Alma Area Public School is above the Courthouse.  Building was also demolished to make way for a parking lot and the Courthouse Annex.

Loss of such iconic buildings prompted the citizens of Alma to form the Alma Historical Society and in 1982 they applied for designation as a National Historic District.  They became Wisconsin's first historic district and today 300+ acres and over 220 buildings are protected from demolition and enjoyed by 1000s of visitors each year.

HOMAGE to the Tritsch Brothers Blacksmith Shop

The original owners of the Blue Door Inn's building were the Tritsch Brothers (Franz & Johann) from Baden, Germany.  They opened a blacksmith shop in Alma and later a hardware store. They were quite enterprising ending with an entire block of businesses known as Tritsch's Brick Block.

The front door of the Inn is now 30" above the sidewalk and the original front door (gone for almost 100 years) has been restored.  That's another story but let's just say that the step out the door is a big one!

I've been think about installing a Juliet balcony but then I found this great 19th century John Deere wooden spoke wheel with an iron rim and decided that it would make a great balcony rail and would pay homage to the roots of the building ... the blacksmith shop. 

MISTY DAY on the Mississippi

Misty day on the Mississippi ... the 2013 season at the Blue Door Inn has come to an end, we'll reopen on February 1, 2014 for Bald Eagle viewing in Alma, Wisconsin.  100s of eagles on the Mississippi River ice and in trees on the island across from the Blue Door Inn will be spectacular!

Check out our 2014 specials at www.bluedoorinnalma.com.  2014 lodging reservations made before May 1st will be honored at our 2013 rates.  2014 rates will take effect for reservations made after May 1st.