There are many myths looming over Milwaukee's boathouse (3138 N. Cambridge). Some say it once crested the waters of Lake Michigan, others believe it was built in a shipyard with every intention of going afloat but never did. Accordingly to boathouse owner, Dr. William Kortsch, none of these tales are true.

With the help of a few skilled laborers, Edmund B. Gustdorf, a traveling salesman, built the boathouse on the Cambridge Street lot in the 1920s. (Kortsch claims it was 1927, whereas the city's property assessment says 1926 and The Heritage Guidebook prints 1924.) Gustdorf's father was a Finnish Merchant Marine, which Kortsch believes was Gustdorf's motivation for building the nautical abode.

"It may have been just a fancy, but I think he had the sea in him (like his father)," says Kortsch, whose own grandfather poured the cement for the basement.

The boathouse points toward the Milwaukee River and is modeled after a 1910 gasoline motor launch. It is 72 feet long and 18 feet wide (at its broadest point), with a 16-foot beam. It also sports seafaring embellishments like round windows and a lighthouse made of wood blocks. Originally the boathouse was surrounded by a fence cut with a wave-pattern top and was wood-sided instead of aluminum.

The 500-square-foot boathouse has a multi-leveled layout including a main floor with a salon, dining area, kitchen and two staircases leading below. One of the staircases is in the bow (front of the boat) and leads to the bedroom, bathroom and storage room. The other flight is in the middle of the boat and leads to what would be the engine room, but instead is a large area with a fireplace. There is also a furnace, laundry area and full bathroom on this level. Hardwood floors and maps on the walls make the interior feel even more "boaty."