Ragdale facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Ragdale
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
The main house at Ragdale
Location in Illinois Show map of Illinois Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Location	1230 N. Green Bay Rd., Lake Forest, Illinois
Area	33 acres (13 ha)
Built	1897
Architect	Howard Van Doren Shaw
Architectural style	Arts and Crafts
NRHP reference No.	76000717
Added to NRHP	June 3, 1976

Ragdale is a historic house in Lake Forest, Illinois, that was once the summer home of architect Howard Van Doren Shaw. Today, it is home to the Ragdale Foundation. This foundation runs a special program where artists can live and work. It welcomes writers, painters, musicians, and other creative people.

A Historic House and Theater

Howard Van Doren Shaw built the house and a barn in 1897. He designed them in the Arts and Crafts style, which was popular at the time. This style focused on simple, well-made buildings that fit in with nature.

Howard Shaw named his new country house 'Ragdale' after an old Tudor house in Leicestershire, England, more because he liked the name itself than because the house was one of his favorites. To him, Ragdale meant meadows and woods and hollow apple trees and country vistas. The raggedy look of the shrubbery, the low hanging branches of trees, and the invasion of the lawn by violets were all deliberate effects. He was aiming for informal country surroundings for his house, not a well-groomed estate.

—Alice Hayes and Susan Moon, Ragdale: A History and Guide.

In 1912, a beautiful outdoor theater called the Ragdale Ring was added to the property. Shaw's family and friends often put on plays there for the community. The theater had benches for more than 200 people.

Home of the Bird Girl Statue

Ragdale was also where the famous sculptor Sylvia Shaw Judson worked. She was Howard Shaw's daughter. In 1943, a special workshop called the Meadow Studio was built for her on the property.

It was in this studio that Sylvia created her famous Bird Girl statue. A picture of this statue is on the cover of the popular book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. She also made many other well-known sculptures at Ragdale.

A Creative Haven for Artists

In 1976, Howard Shaw's granddaughter, a poet named Alice Judson Hayes, started The Ragdale Foundation. She wanted to create a peaceful place where artists of all kinds could come to focus on their work.

I am grateful to my mother, Sylvia Shaw Judson, who gave me the house... to all the artists and writers who by their creativity have validated the idea of the Ragdale Foundation, and to the many people who have helped make the Foundation work. Finally, I am grateful to the house itself for its smell and taste and texture and for the views out of its windows and for its nurturing spirit.

—Alice Hayes, Preface to Ragdale: A History and Guide.

When she first started, Alice did almost everything herself. She took care of the gardens, cooked the meals, and managed the buildings.

Growing the Foundation

In 1980, the Ragdale Foundation got the Ragdale Barnhouse. The barn had been sold but was now part of Ragdale again. Today, it holds the foundation's offices.

To make sure Ragdale would be protected forever, Alice donated the buildings and some of the land to the City of Lake Forest in 1986. This helped preserve the historic property and the nature around it.

More workspaces were added over the years. In 1991, the Friends' Studio was built. It gave artists like dancers, painters, and composers a new place to create. In 2008, Sylvia Shaw Judson's old Meadow Studio was rebuilt to be more modern and eco-friendly.

Famous Artists at Ragdale

Over the years, many talented and famous artists have spent time working at Ragdale. Here are just a few of them: