The Fillauer Lake House and Barn | Cleveland TN Wedding Venue

One of the wonderful things I love about living in Cleveland, Tennessee besides the charm of a small town, are all the lovely places to host an event or wedding. It used to be that you had to drive to Chattanooga for your wedding and reception because Cleveland didn’t have any locations from which to choose. However, there are now more places to get married here, host your reception, or hold an event.

So I am starting a blog post series on several locations in the Cleveland area where you can host your wedding or reception. This is the first one in many to come!

The longer I live in Cleveland, the more I discover the history of the town. At one point, my great-grandparents along with my grandfather and great aunt lived here before they moved farther down the Ocoee River. One of the locations I have had the pleasure of shooting a wedding is the Fillauer Lake House and Barn. I love anything vintage and there is a sweet Southern charm about the Fillauer Lake House and Barn. Nancy is such a pleasure to work with and she will do her very best to make sure you have the most special wedding day. When I was shooting a wedding there, I didn’t have chance to learn about the property. But this time around, Nancy showed me pictures of what the grounds looked like back in the 1920’s and 30’s. There used to be a large lake on the property where you could rent bathing suits for 10 cents and the local trolley would bring you to the site. They even have one of the old bathing suits framed in the house. Unfortunately, they had to close the lake since the owners didn’t have enough man power to keep it maintained and the men had been shipped off to fight in the war.

The house has a large front porch that reminds you of days gone by of sipping sweet tea and catching fireflies in the summer. On the inside, there is ground level area for the groom and his attendants to get ready and relax before the ceremony. On the first floor, there is a living room with a large baby grand piano and across the hall, an old study which makes for a great space for groomsmen portraits. After you walk up the large winding staircase from the black and white tiled floor, there is a door in front of you where you can walk out onto a balcony and you can see the entire front property (this is a great spot for bridal photos when it’s raining!) On the top floor, there is a bedroom with floral wallpaper where the bride can get ready and across the hall, another room where the bridesmaids can get ready. There is a even a large vanity and mirror along with floor length mirrors in each room. Along the walls, there are magazine articles of past weddings at the lake house and old pictures from the past hung in frames (vintage wedding photos are my fave!).

Outside around the grounds there are so many great locations to have your ceremony including a white arbor on the front lawn and a green area up some stones steps where there used to be a greenhouse. Afterwards, you can have your reception in the barn, decorated with old doors and windows on the inside walls and a big chandelier in the middle of the ceiling with strung lights and drapes.

Part of the original lake remains in the front of the property with an old boat house and ducks, and you can see all the original stone that was dug up on the property that makes up some of the walls and bridges . It’s such a lovely area for pictures, especially at dusk for the bride and groom. There are so many pretty spots around the property, and it makes for some beautiful wedding photos! I always love taking pictures, but it’s even more special when you shoot a wedding at a place that is an important piece of our local history.

If you are interested in booking this venue for your next event or wedding, visit their site at https://www.lakehouseandbarn.com or contact Nancy Sellers at (423) 618-2398. She will do everything to make your day special!