What happened to the gravity-defying Wonder Spot at the Wisconsin Dells?

What happened to the Wonder Spot? That’s what one reader asked What the Wisconsin? — where reporters take on questions about our state, our communities and the people in them.

Every state has its distinctive hidden treasures and forgotten folklore. In Wisconsin, one of these evergreen oddities might just be the long-lost “Wonder Spot.”

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What was the Wonder Spot?

In 1952, Louis Dauterman, of Fond du Lac, opened the doors to a single-cabin attraction where the laws of natural gravity seemed to be repealed.

Visitors to the Wisconsin Dells were given the chance to “get a new slant on life,” in the words of an old attraction flyer.

It seemed that no one inside the cabin could stand upright. Visitors also often noted feeling “not quite right” while being at the Wonder Spot.

Water flowed backwards. Chairs could be balanced on two legs.

Wonder Spot employees would perform demonstrations using props such as chairs or batons that enhanced the illusion that they were collectively defying gravity. This drew in a crowd and simultaneously turned some visitors away as they felt unsettled by the dark magic of it all − or just felt sick.

Amber Guiden, a visitor of the Wonder Spot, recalls feeling lucky to be there.

"I have so many fond memories of going to the Dells growing up," Guiden said. "We went every year and it was so magical."

This annual tradition became a family favorite and Guiden noted that the Wonder Spot is missed.

"It was my favorite spot to vacation. Wonder Spot was part of the 'vintage Dells,'" Guiden laughed. "The older I got, I was able to recite the tour word for word."

In 1988, William Carney took over as owner of the Wonder Spot after working there for several years. By then, the Spot’s original cabin and props had been replaced and revamped with new equipment.

During the mid '90s, the attraction drew roughly 50,000 visitors each summer. The cabin was built perpendicular to a vast hillside which made it a surreal kind of beautiful.

What caused the strange happenings inside the Wonder Spot?

According to guides at the attraction, the “lack of gravity” was a result of strange rock formations in the area, though there is little research on whether these claims are true.

Despite the eerie undertones, the Wisconsin Historical Society and other entities offer a more simple explanation: it was all an illusion.

The Wonder Spot cabin was constructed on the same steep angle as the hillside on which it sat, causing the floors and walls to be slanted. This caused tourists accustomed to flat floors and vertical walls to feel confused and disoriented while inside the cabin.

Where was the Wonder Spot located?

The Wonder Spot was just off U.S. Highway 12 – the main drag between Lake Delton and Wisconsin Dells. It was easy to spot the large black-and-white sign that led travelers into the depths of the Lake Delton forest.

What happened to the Wonder Spot?

A mass influx of waterparks and roller coasters upstaged the once-noteworthy Wonder Spot. By the early 2000s, the number of people coming back each summer decreased and business started to sink.

Owner Bill Carney sold the property for $300,000 when Lake Delton began expanding roadways and needed the area where the Wonder Spot sat.

The Wonder Spot was closed in 2006 and later bulldozed to make room for a new road in 2007.

But its memory lingers. Relics and photographs from the attraction can be seen at the Wisconsin Historical Society in Madison.

This site will be remembered as “easy to find, hard to understand and fun to be there" — just as its flyer described it.

Sources: Journal Sentinel archives; Wisconsin Historical Society; Only In Your State "Do You Remember Wisconsin's Quirky Gravity-Defying Cabin, The Wonder Spot?" by Daniella DiRienzo.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: What happened to the Wonder Spot at the Wisconsin Dells?