Fabyan Villa facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Fabyan Villa
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 Location in Illinois
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| Location | Geneva, Illinois |
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| Built | 1907 |
| Architect | Frank Lloyd Wright |
| Architectural style | Prairie School |
| NRHP reference No. | 84001128 |
| Added to NRHP | February 9, 1984 |
The Fabyan Villa was the home of a wealthy couple, George and Nelle Fabyan. They lived here from about 1908 to 1939. This house is special because it was redesigned in 1907 by the famous architect Frank Lloyd Wright.
The Villa was the main building on their large country estate, which they called Riverbank. In 1939, the Kane County Forest Preserve District bought most of the Fabyan estate. They opened the Fabyans' home as a museum starting in 1940. Since 1995, a group called Preservation Partners of the Fox Valley has managed the Fabyan Villa Museum. Here, visitors can see photos, personal items belonging to the Fabyans, and some of their original furniture. You can also learn all about the Riverbank estate.
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The Fabyan Estate: Riverbank
George Fabyan was a rich businessman who loved to learn new things. He inherited money from his father's textile company, which helped him and his wife, Nelle, create their amazing estate. Riverbank was their home along the Fox River in Geneva, Illinois. It covered about 300 acres (1.2 square kilometers).
The estate had many cool features, including:
- A Japanese Garden
- A private zoo
- A swimming pool built in the Roman style
- Greenhouses and beautiful gardens
- Hidden grottoes
- A lighthouse
- A Dutch-style windmill
- A country club
- A small farm
- A special scientific laboratory complex
The Fabyans bought an old farmhouse in 1905 and called it The Villa. In 1907, Frank Lloyd Wright completely changed the farmhouse. He added a new section to the south, three covered porches (verandas), and large roof overhangs. This made the house look like a simple version of his "Prairie-style" homes. Wright's unique style can be seen in the Villa's geometric windows, "light screens" (bands of windows), and open rooms.
The Japanese Garden
In 1910, the Fabyans hired Taro Otsuka to design a Japanese-style garden below the Villa. This one-acre garden took several years to build. From 1918 on, a Japanese gardener named Susumu Kobayashi took care of it. Japanese gardens were very popular among wealthy people back then. The Fabyan Japanese Garden was a famous attraction in the 1920s and 1930s.
After the Fabyans left, the garden was not cared for well for many years. But in 1974, work began to fix it up. Today, the Fabyan Japanese Garden has been restored. It includes a pond, a waterfall, a moon bridge, a large lantern, and a teahouse.
The Fabyan Windmill
In 1914, the Fabyans bought a windmill from a farm near what is now Elmhurst, Illinois. They moved it across the Fox River from their Villa. The Fabyan Windmill is special because it has a bakery inside! People say it was used to bake bread for the Fabyans' pet bears.
During wartime when food was rationed, the Windmill helped the local community. It was used to grind grain for everyone. This important act was later honored with a special U.S. postal stamp.
Riverbank Laboratories: A Place for Secret Codes
Between 1912 and 1922, George Fabyan created Riverbank Laboratories. This was the first private research center in the United States. The National Security Agency (NSA) has even called Riverbank Laboratories the birthplace of cryptology. Cryptology is the study of secret codes. The NSA has honored Fabyan for his important work helping the U.S. government.
During World War I, almost all American military secret codes were worked on at Fabyan's laboratories. Here, a team led by Elizabeth Wells Gallup, including Elizebeth Friedman and William F. Friedman, spent years improving their code-breaking skills. They were trying to find proof that Sir Francis Bacon wrote Shakespeare's plays using Bacon's own secret codes.
The Riverbank Laboratories also held George and Nelle's private library and museum. In 1918, Fabyan built the first special sound room (reverberation chamber) in the U.S. This was for Harvard scientist Wallace Clement Sabine, who was a pioneer in studying how sound works in buildings. This sound lab is still used today for testing.
See also
- List of Frank Lloyd Wright works
