The crowd at the 2004 ribbon-cutting ceremony, opening the Edith Farnsworth House up to the public. Credit: Joan Hackett.
August 6, 2024
By Bonnie McDonald, President & CEO
(This article originally appeared in our June 2024 edition of our print newsletter, The Arch. Read The Arch here.)
On May 1, Landmarks Illinois and the National Trust for Historic Preservation marked 20 years since opening the Edith Farnsworth House in Plano to the public. Photos from the ribbon-cutting ceremony in 2004 are inspiring to see, even today. Considering the many challenges preservationists endure, it is rewarding to reflect on such an enormous success. May 1, 2004, was a pivotal moment for Landmarks Illinois and preservation across the U.S.
If you missed it, I recommend watching Landmarks Illinois’ Preservation Snapshots presentation from April featuring architect Joe Antunovich, who served as Chair of our Board of Directors during the effort to save this iconic house. You can find the presentation on Landmarks Illinois’ YouTube channel. Even those familiar with the Edith Farnsworth House preservation saga learned something new.
While undertaking Herculean preservation campaigns is not new to preservation, the story of the Edith Farnsworth House and its preservation is exceptional. The house is a seminal Miesian design that deeply influenced Modernist residential architecture. The fact that preservationists mobilized to raise $7 million to successfully purchase the house at an international auction makes this preservation effort legendary.
(A Chicago Sun-Times news clipping announcing the acquisition of the Farnsworth House in 2003.)
Saving the Edith Farnsworth House put Landmarks Illinois and the National Trust on an international stage, where we received considerable acclaim for a bold preservation move. Moreover, this experience gave us the courage and determination to always seek creative preservation solutions.
In my time with Landmarks Illinois, I have seen this characteristic time and time again: filing litigation to protect preservation laws and procedures; building our own charette development team to propose a reuse plan for Old Cook County Hospital, and, with partners, successfully saving both the James R. Thompson Center and the Johnson Publishing Company Ebony Test Kitchen.
This spirit of courage continues as we work to move preservation forward through our Guiding Principles, The Relevancy Project, our DEI Action Plan and, in the year ahead, transformational planning. We have challenges as large or larger than the Edith Farnsworth House ahead, so the bold and courageous standards set by this project will guide our way forward.
(Landmarks Illinois Regional Advocacy Manager Quinn Adamowski, Director of Reinvestment Suzanne Germann, Board Member Jean Follett, and President & CEO Bonnie McDonald at the renaming dedication ceremony at the Edith Farnsworth House in November 2021.)
The Edith Farnsworth House has continued its evolution in the 20 years since it opened to the public. In November 2021, to mark the house’s 70th year, the National Trust for Historic Preservation rededicated the historic site to honor the woman who built it: the Farnsworth House became the Edith Farnsworth House. With women in leadership positions at both the National Trust and Landmarks Illinois, we will continue our efforts to make preservation more inclusive, thereby influencing future generations of leaders.
Preservation successes on the scale of the Edith Farnsworth House require many hands. Landmarks Illinois thanks everyone involved in this preservation effort—past, present and future. This includes visionary board members, the hardworking staff at Landmarks Illinois and the National Trust, and the many donors whose contributions ranged from $10 to $1 million. Your advocacy and financial support make it possible for us to continue our courageous work to preserve places that matter.