There are a number of preservation resources online. The following
list is a sampling of informative sites that we think that you may be interested in. Please note that all links open in a new browser window, to return
to the Landmarks site, close the new window.
The purpose of the Historic Homes of Illinois
Coalition is to encourage people to visit the interesting and varied
historic homes within Illinois. The group includes museum/homes, B&B’s, and
state owned sites.
The Coalition determined that working together would
benefit all by promoting tourism in Illinois. To that end, all the
participating sites work together to send visitors to other historic
homes. Suggested tours have also been developed to help visitors plan trips
including as many homes as possible.
Tinker Swiss Cottage Museum
Rockford, IL
The Coalition was the brainchild of Rolf
Achilles, art historian, who is a professor at the School of the Art
Institute of Chicago and the curator of the Smith Museum of Stained Glass at
Navy Pier. The first meeting of the Coalition was held in February 2006 at
the Hegeler Carus Mansion in La Salle. At the first meeting, it was decided
to begin working together by sharing brochures with one another, and to work
on developing a website that would include all of the participating homes.
Alan Langguth, owner of Homestead B&B in Plano, generously donated the web
address to the group.
Weber House and Garden
Streator, IL
Since that first meeting, the group has enjoyed
visiting other sites around the state for meetings. We have met at Ellwood
House in DeKalb; the David Davis Mansion and Vrooman Home in Bloomington;
the Lovejoy Homestead in Princeton; and the Zinser House and Doctor’s Office
and Ruppman Home in Washington. Participants enjoy visiting each other’s
sites as well as comparing policies and management challenges.
Carl Sandburg Historic Site
Galesburg, IL
The Coalition is rather informal and has no
officers. Fees for the website are split uniformly among the participants
and, while the meetings are hosted, everyone is responsible for his/her
travel and meals. Guidelines for the group are available for review by
opening the link to the right.
Additional information
on the Coalition and photos and maps of historic homes in Illinois can be
viewed at the
Historic Homes
of Illinois website.
[VISIT SITE]
Citizens for Glen Ellyn Preservation
We are a group of citizens who
want to safeguard the distinctive character,
history and architectural integrity of the Glen Ellyn community through
historic preservation, planning and sensible growth.
The members of
Citizens
for Glen Ellyn Preservation came together because
of their concern about the number of teardowns in the Village of Glen Ellyn,
the types of buildings targeted for teardowns and the size of the structures
replacing those buildings. [VISIT SITE]
Illinois Historic Sites
The Historic Sites Division of
the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency oversees a remarkable array of
historically significant places.
They range from the earthen-mound remnants
of a prehistoric Native American city at Cahokia Mounds to Springfield’s
Dana-Thomas House, a twentieth-century masterpiece designed by architect
Frank Lloyd Wright. Several sites celebrate Abraham Lincoln’s life and
legacy, while others recognize the Illinois roots of such literary figures
such as Carl Sandburg and Vachel Lindsay. [VISIT SITE]
The Farnsworth House, built by
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe in 1951 and located near Plano, Illinois, is one of
the most famous examples of modernist domestic architecture;
considered unprecedented in its day.
Visit this masterpiece of
steel-and-glass design on the banks of the Fox River. Mies’ temple-like
pavilion both invites and challenges visitors – its unsurpassed views
through transparent walls will cause you to consider anew how a man-made
object best relates to nature. It’s not like any house you have ever been
in!
[VISIT SITE]
Landmarks Illinois
Suite 1315
53 W. Jackson Blvd.
Chicago, IL 60604
tel. 312-922-1742
fax 312-922-8112
