Mineral Point Hotel ~ Hôtel de la fleur de fer

The Historic District in Mineral Point Wisconsin, is just one of many places found throughout the Driftless Area that has kept a nostalgic look with European flair.

Mineral Point was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971, making it first on this list in Wisconsin. Many of the buildings and homes pre date the Civil War.

In the 1830’s, the discovery of lead started an influx of Cornish and Italian immigrants who were drawn by the mining industry. Though the architecture clearly has a Cornish flair.

The William Lanyon building, constructed in 1857, serves as one of the iconic landmarks in the city. Originally built to house a steam powered flour mill, the Lanyon building has housed Tom Collin's grocery; Collins & Kane, grocers; Peter's Grocery; the Mineral point Steam Laundry; Staber's Appliance; Rupp's Appliance; Russell Dairy; Knudson Motor Service; and Walrack Motors.

Today, the Mineral Point Hotel occupies the building. Owners John and Lisa Spady have put a tremendous amount of work into giving the hotel European and Edwardian Gothic accents certainly setting it apart from any other accommodations available in the city.

The Spadys, not originally from Southwest Wisconsin, met in New York City over twenty years ago. John is from the New York City and New Jersey suburban areas, and Lisa is from Waukesha, Wisconsin.

“We were married out here in Wisconsin and always visited her family quite a bit. That's when I was exposed to the Driftless Area, visiting Lisa’s mother who lived in Baraboo. We would go on day trips around the Driftless Area. That was in 2010-2012.”

It was in the summer of 2012 that the Spadys visited Mineral Point for their first time. “I was really impressed. It reminded me of a New England town, which is something I'm more familiar with,” John said.

He recalled walking past the Lanyon building with his youngest son in a stroller, seeing the hotel cafe open for guests, thinking it looked like a little piece of Europe. “I couldn't believe that, you know, out here in what I considered then the cornfields of Wisconsin, seeing such an incredible example of a European cafe, really made an impression on me.”

Little did the Spadys know at the time, that six years later they would own the place.

“So, a couple twists and turns in our life back in New York, and we decided to make a change. We reviewed a lot of the towns we liked in Wisconsin. We knew we'd go back to my wife's home state, and we wanted to do something different, something out of the norm, and eventually settled on Mineral Point. We thought we'd give it a try,” John shared.

Lisa made the move first, getting a job in the Dodgeville School District. A bit later, John left his job as a photographer and location scout for the film and television industry in New York City; his career spanning nearly 18 years.

Eventually, the Spadys had heard about a little hotel for sale from a friend and went to check it out. “When we saw it, we liked it a lot. I thought it had so much potential. The idea was already there, a little hotel with some French influences you might say, at least I saw them,” said John.

“The hotel industry in general originates from France. I just continued with what the original owners Laura and Gary Jenkins wanted to do. I think they were on the same track that I am, I'm just carrying it even further. I always say, I want to make up a big hotel in a small building.”

In the spring of 2016, they bought the hotel and hit the ground running with the busiest seasons of summer and fall rapidly approaching.

During John’s career in New York City, he became known as a period piece guy, working on the period shows Madmen, Boardwalk Empire, and Mildred Pierce among others. “These types of shows and their settings in a different era gave me sort of the aesthetic that you see here at the hotel. We’ve redecorated the lobby and are moving into all the different rooms doing the same. More of that turn of the century aesthetic, but with a modern twist in a subtle way.”

John admits he’s always loved the 1890’s, 1910’s and 1920s. “That whole era from the Edwardian era moving into the jazz era, that's always been a point of interest for me.”

John and Lisa said they want their guests to experience a turn of the century hotel, yet still have modern amenities.

Part of that experience is a custom designed sign on the front of the hotel. Designed by the Spadys, the sign depicts a sleepy flower that features “Mineral Point Hotel” lit up in the center. The sign John mentioned lends a French sub name of ‘Hôtel de la fleur de fer’ or Iron Flower Hotel.

Liking the business so much, John and Lisa expanded and bought a second building, the Jail Alley Inn, located two blocks from the hotel. Having a different feel, the Inn was built in 1836 by General James Smith who emigrated from Ireland. General Smith, who had a lot of southern sympathies, would end up fighting in the Civil War for the South. A military man for most of his life, he ran his establishment as a boarding house, and was listed as such on the 1850 census. Jail Alley, where the building is situated on, got its name due to the old jail across the street.

The building was listed on the National Register on July 30th, 1971, and the State Register on January 1st, 1989.

John noted the Jail Alley Inn has a lot of southern influences in its architecture. In front is a double gallery porch that he rebuilt and repainted in black and white, extending the color scheme of the hotel. John said, “It's a good color combination, and speaks to that sort of French Cafe thing. It also conveniently goes along with the Cornish flag that’s black and white.”

The Spadys look to their sons, Oliver, 13 and Spencer 11, to carry on a legacy. They are probably going to carry on the business in some shape or form, so there will be a Spady owning this place for a very long time.

Not finished yet, John stressed, “I hope we can expand the cafe. That's the biggest thing. We want to move the laundry room downstairs into the basement and turn the rest of the laundry room back into a commercial kitchen so we can operate a full-fledged café.”

The Mineral Point Hotel was a recipient of Tripadvisor’s 2019 Certificate of Excellence, and is the 2020 and 2021 recipient of the Travelers Choice Award (TCA). The TCA is given to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travelers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.

For a video tour , enjoy the video below the photo gallery.

Visit Mineral Point Hotel on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mineralpointhotel/

the web: https://www.mineralpointhotel.com/

or Instagram: instagram.com/hotelmineralpoint/

L to R, Spencer, Oliver, John and Lisa Spady

Photo design by John Spady

Photo design by John Spady

Photo design by John Spady

Photo design by John Spady