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Farnsworth House
14520
River Road, Plano (Kendall County)
One of the most significant
residential designs of the 20th century—architect Ludwig Mies van der
Rohe’s Farnsworth House—was saved in late-2003 through a joint effort by
Landmarks Illinois (LI), the National Trust for Historic Preservation (NTHP),
and the Friends of the Farnsworth House.
The iconic steel-and-glass house, which was completed in 1951, is
located on the banks of the Fox River, 60 miles southwest of Chicago. It
was built as a weekend retreat by Edith Farnsworth, who subsequently
sold it in 1972 to Peter Palumbo, a British arts patron who had restored
several other historic properties.
In 2003, Palumbo listed the building for sale at Sotheby’s auction house
in New York City. Several potential buyers inquired about dismantling
the structure and moving it to another state. Faced with this imminent
threat, LI and the NTHP each put up $1 million to try to help save the
building. Thanks to the support of several generous donors, the
organizations were able to secure an additional $5.5 million to purchase
the building at auction and open it to the public as a house museum.
LI staffed the historic site until 2010, when it turned over operations
to the NTHP. The rescue of the Farnsworth House was identified as one of
the 40 top preservation successes in Illinois over the last four decades
(see “40 Over 40”). For more information, see:
farnsworthhouse.org.
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