Fond du Lac · Downtown Fond du Lac
Hotel Retlaw
Walter Schroeder's eight-story 1922–23 hotel in downtown Fond du Lac, named with his first name spelled backward.
- Built
- 1922Built 1922-23 (original section 1922, 1923 east wing) with a 1927 coffee-shop addition; reopened after a renovation by Frantz Community Investors.
- Style
- Neoclassical
- Architect
- Herbert W. Tullgren
- Type
- Boutique hotel
- Area
- Downtown Fond du Lac
- Credentials
- Listed on the National Register of Historic Places
The story
Milwaukee hotel magnate Walter Schroeder built the Retlaw (his first name spelled backward) in 1922-23 as the second hotel of his Wisconsin chain, to designs by Herbert W. Tullgren. The eight-story building opened with 235 rooms, part of its 1923 wing originally holding apartments, and a 1927 coffee shop was added between its wings. Frantz Community Investors of Iowa bought the hotel at an online auction and renovated it (reported at about $25 million), and it now operates in Wyndham’s Trademark Collection.
Good to know
- Address: 1 North Main Street, Fond du Lac, WI 54935
Sources (3)
Last verified October 2026. Details change; confirm with the inn before you book.