We have never done this before, but this week, we completely rewrote an episode.

Initially, this episode was going to be about the structure of The Seemann Chateau -- as a way of telling us about the families there and why this incredibly house draws so much fascination for locals.

But then we started talking to some of the people who have called this place home: Debbie Parks and Dave Foxhoven. We realized the story of the Seemann Chateau really lives with those families, the stewards of this house.

We dug into the land records. We read books about the Civil War, Des Moines, and Angus beef. And a lot of genealogical mapping. It was not easy. How many ways can you spell "Seemann"? Seaman, Seamann, Seeman, Semann. We could go on.

But let's start at the top of the story. The first photo is the magnificent home of M.J. Smith with shots of the Des Moines Beach property he divided into "Okoboji Park." (Sure. Why can't there be two [Blank] Parks in the Iowa Great Lakes?)

The namesake of Givens Point, Judge Josiah Givens, is pictured below with his family at his Pillsbury Point home. We also have photos of the early paths around Des Moines Beach her forged with the neighbors.

Then, we have Mr. W.A. McHenry, his famous Angus cattle, and his precious "Merrymac" speed boat. Can you imagine that boat flying down the lake today?!

Of course, we have the iconic Neta Dunn, pictured lounging in the Seemann Chateau and posing with her restaurant staff, both from A History of Des Moines Beach. Maybe we should do a future episodes about famous women in the Iowa Great Lakes? There are far too many to count.

We also dug up the ad from Joseph Floyd's iconic pitch to advertisers. Who wouldn't want to be at a BBQ with that guy?

We also want to thank Debbie Parks for sharing photos of her home with us today.

If you have lore to spill on The Seemann Chateau, we want to hear from you! Send us your stories, your memories, and your ghost sightings.

As locals, this is a place we've heard about our whole lives, and breaking into the true and tall tales about this iconic house was incredibly special. We hope you enjoy it.