Neil Gaiman set much of American Gods – which has sold more than a million copies – at a roadside attraction located in Spring Green. The House on the Rock is one of the strangest tourist traps in the country. And it’s just made a major television appearance, in the second season of the Starz adaptation of American Gods.
Here’s why you should visit:
1) Legend has it that the architect Alex Jordan decided to build in Spring Green because Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin homestead was a few miles away. Jordan supposedly showed Wright his designs only to be turned away in disgust by the older architect, who purportedly said, “I wouldn’t hire you to design a cheese crate or a chicken coop.” This meeting probably never took place. But it’s interesting to imagine the two harboring grudges.2) Inside you’ll find the world’s largest carousel, which features 269 animals but not a single horse. And hundreds of topless mannequins hang above it.
3) Jordan hired some of Wisconsin’s best-known outsider artists to help decorate the house with fake treasures, from music machines to ivory carvings. He displayed many of these alongside authentic antiques.
[alert type=white ]THE HOUSE ON THE ROCK
5754 State Road 23 Spring Green
Tickets $15-30[/alert]
