Treasurer of Wisconsin museum charged with $70,000 theft

The former treasurer of Wisconsin’s Hearthstone Historic House Museum has been charged with felony theft for stealing $70,000 from the institution, court records show.

Steven E. Jahnke, 67, was charged February 11 in Outagamie County Circuit Court with one count of theft in a business setting exceeding $10,000 but less than $100,000, a Class G felony under Wisconsin law, according to court records reviewed by Urgent Matter.

Jahnke is scheduled to make his initial appearance at 1 p.m. March 17 at the Outagamie County courthouse.

In a criminal complaint obtained by local radio station WTAQ, prosecutors said that Jahnke admitted to stealing about $70,000 from the museum between 2019 and 2025.

The museum is housed in a Queen Anne–style Victorian home that was the first private residence in the United States to be powered by electricity from a central hydroelectric plant using Thomas Edison’s system.

Board members of the museum reportedly became suspicious of transactions on its books, like for cruise vacations and car repair, that were not related to its operations. Investigators later found that funds were also spent on Jahnke’s personal property taxes and for Amazon orders.

The complaint also alleges that certain accounts managed through a community foundation were drawn down even though they were classified as restricted funds, which are typically earmarked for specific uses such as preservation or programming.

“I did embezzle funds to pay for my own expenses,” Jahnke told prosecutors, according to the complaint. Prosecutors also said he intended to make restitution to the museum.

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