Know a Wilmette Home that Deserves an Award?

Nominate a home for a Wilmette Historic Preservation Recognition Award by Aug. 24.

The Village of Wilmette is now seeking nominations for a Historic Preservation Recognition Award, according to the village’s website. Wilmette residents can nominate buildings, gardens or landscapes that enhance the historic character of the village for the award by Aug. 24.  The village is looking to present awards in the following categories:  Forms are available at the Village Hall, 1200 Wilmette Ave., or at www.wilmette.com.   The awards will be presented at Wilmette Historical Museum on Nov. 4.  For more information, contact Erika Fabisch: (847) 853-7522 or FabischE@wilmette.com. Stay up to date on the latest news in Wilmette and Kenilworth! Sign up for our newsletter and "like" us on Facebook!

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Can a Wilmette Home with Ties to Frank Lloyd Wright be Saved?

The house on 1318 Isabella Street is on the market for $599,000.

A developer who said he would consider demolishing a Wilmette home with ties to Frank Lloyd Wright if it didn’t sell by end of August, may have had a change of heart, according to ChicagoMag.com.  Schaumburg-based developer George Hausen told ChicagoMag.com that he “could give [the house] a little more time, probably,” if it didn’t sell by late August.  Hausen purchased the house and an adjoining cottage at 1320 and 1318 Isabella Street.  He originally planned to demolish the properties until he learned the significance of the structures.  In April, Wilmette village trustees approved variations for the lots on 1318 and 1320 Isabella Street to help preserve the two historic structures that are currently there.  On 1320 Isabella Street sits …

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Wilmette Business Restores Mid-Century Neon Sign

Gold Medal Cleaners restored one of the area's oldest and largest neon sign in April.

Since Gold Medal Cleaners’ sign debuted in the 1950s, it has stood as a beacon of commerce in downtown Wilmette. In April, the vintage neon sign was restored to its former glory.  “It is now one of the very few mid century neon signs left on the North Shore,” Wilmette historian Bill Wallace said. "Over the years, downtown businesses have come and gone, but the sign has remained glowing night after night.”  Wallace says similar neon signs have disappeared because either the businesses moved, closed or the location required different sized signs or sign types.  Restore Rather than Replace Jeff Fishman, owner of Gold Medal Cleaners, spent several thousand dollars to have the sign restored.  “I like [the sign]. It definitely stands out. So it …

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Photos: Downtown Wilmette Historic Stroller Tour

Wilmette Historical Museum hosted the tour for families Saturday.

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Wilmette Historical Museum Hosts Downtown Stroller Tour

The tour will feature the commercial area around the intersection of Wilmette and Central Avenues, and will provide detailed historical and architectural context.

Wilmette Grants Landmark Status to House Designed by Harry Weese

The Robert and Suzanne Drucker House, 2801 Iroquois Road, is an early example of Weese's work.

A Wilmette home by Harry Weese, the architect who designed Washington DC's metro rail system, recently received a local landmark status. Wilmette trustees granted the structure at 2801 Iroquois Road a local landmark status during the May 8 Village Board meeting. “The Robert and Suzanne Drucker Residence is architecturally important as an early work by Harry Weese, designed in 1952 and completed in 1954,” according to village documents. The house, designed based on geometric relationships, is one of more than 80 houses Weese designed during his lifetime. “The house is an example of a modern house built during a time in Chicago when only the most forward-thinking architects were designing homes that incorporated Modernist principles,” …

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Historic Lake Front Homes Featured on Housewalk

Wilmette Historical Society will host its 25th annual Spring Housewalk on May 20 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Information provided by Wilmette Historical Society. The Wilmette Historical Society is pleased to announce its 25th annual Spring Housewalk on Sunday, May 20, 2012, from 1:00-5:00 p.m.  This year’s housewalk complements the Museum’s current exhibit of the same name, “Cooler by the Lake,” by showcasing three magnificent lakefront mansions and the remarkable Baha’i Temple. These homes were designed by three very significant architects for prominent Wilmette families in the 1920s and 1930s and have been lovingly restored by today’s homeowners. The “Cooler by the Lake” housewalk celebrates the amazing history and architecture of these homes and the Baha’i Temple. Architects include Richard Powers, who also designed the Evanston Art Center; …

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Wilmette Cottage with Frank Lloyd Wright Ties to Move North

Preservationists are seeking a buyer for the other historic building on 1318 Isabella Street.

An Oak Brook contractor plans to move a Wilmette cottage with Frank Lloyd Wright ties to Wauconda. Joe Catrambone plans to relocate the cottage at 1320 Isabella St., to his Wauconda lakefront property, according to Wilmette Life. In April, Wilmette village trustees approved variations for the lots on 1318 and 1320 Isabella Street to help preserve the two historic structures that are currently there. Want to follow similar articles? Sign up for our newsletter and "like" us on Facebook! Schaumburg-based developer George Hausen owns the land at 1318 and 1320 Isabella Street and was planning to demolition the buildings until he learned the significance of the structures. On 1320 Isabella Street sits a structure designed by Rudolph Schindler, …

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Wilmette Celebrates 100th Anniversary of Linden “L”

Community members are invited to celebrate the anniversary on April 28, 11 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. at the Corner of 4th Street and Linden Avenue. Information provided by Wilmette Historical Museum.

When the “L” came to Wilmette, 100 years ago, it arrived in a way that nobody in town had anticipated. In 1908, a north side train line from downtown Chicago to Evanston was created, with plans to extend it to Wilmette a few years later. The proposed extension was opposed by Wilmette Village Board of Trustees, who believed a cheap train from Chicago would bring in Sunday picnickers and other disreputable sorts of people. In response, “L” service to Wilmette stole into town in the dead of night on April Fool’s Day, 1912. After many months of unproductive wrangling with the Village of Wilmette, “L” officials decided that they were through with negotiations. Without permission, workmen extended the track and built a 40-foot platform and …

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The Great Depression Doomed Wilmette's Most Eccentric Mansion

Built by Chicago architect Benjamin Marshall, the palatial home features a retractable roof, tropical garden and Chinese temple.

A packed crowd at the Wilmette Historical Museum took a trip to the Roaring Twenties to tour, via slide show, perhaps the most opulent mansion ever built on the North Shore. Photos from the three-decade existence of prominent architect Benjamin Marshall’s palatial home at the entrance of Wilmette Harbor wowed some 100 history buffs. They could scarcely believe a Xanadu-like structure, reminding some of Charles Foster Kane’s grand estate in Citizen Kane, could have been first built and then torn down in the span of a little more than a generation. Earlier: A Walk Through North Shore History Acting as their tour guide was speaker Steven Monz of the Benjamin Marshall Society, a Chicago-based organization. Marshall designed classic Chicago …

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