Stacy's Tavern facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
|
|
Stacy's Tavern
|
|
 |
|
 Location in Illinois
|
|
| Location | Geneva Rd. and Main St., Glen Ellyn, Illinois |
|---|---|
| Area | 0.7 acres (0.28 ha) |
| Built | 1846 |
| Architect | Stacy, Moses |
| Architectural style | Greek Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 74002195 |
| Added to NRHP | October 29, 1974 |
Stacy's Tavern is an old, important building in Glen Ellyn, a village in DuPage County, Illinois. It used to be a special kind of hotel called a stagecoach inn. Travelers would stop here a long time ago. This historic place was added to the National Register of Historic Places on October 29, 1974. This means it's officially recognized as a very important historical site.
Contents
The Story of Stacy's Tavern
After the Black Hawk War in 1832, many families moved to northern Illinois. One of these families was Moses Stacy and his family. Moses Stacy often let travelers stay in his home. It was like a small hotel for people passing through.
Building the Inn
In 1846, Moses Stacy built a new, bigger home. He decided to open it as a proper inn. This type of inn was called a "wayside inn" because it was along a main road.
Many different people used Stacy's Tavern:
- People traveling by stagecoach between Chicago and Galena.
- Farmers from the area taking their goods to sell in Chicago.
- Settlers moving west to find new homes.
Life at the Inn
For just 50 cents, guests could stay the night. This price included two meals and enough hay for two horses. Inside the inn, guests could wash using water from a well. They could also get warm by a big cast-iron stove.
There were rules about how many people could sleep in one bed. Stacy's Tavern was only allowed to have five travelers per bed. The building itself was built in a style called Greek Revival. The wood for the inn came from a nearby sawmill called Gary's Mill. The bricks were made by hand.
The End of an Era
The arrival of the railroad changed everything for Stacy's Tavern. Trains became a much faster way to travel than stagecoaches. Because of this, fewer people needed to stay at wayside inns.
Even after the railroad came, Moses Stacy and his wife continued to live in the house. Moses Stacy passed away in 1870, and his wife died in 1899. They are buried in the Forest Hill Cemetery nearby.
Bringing Stacy's Tavern Back to Life
In 1968, the Village of Glen Ellyn bought Stacy's Tavern. They worked with the Glen Ellyn Historical Society to bring the old inn back to life. Their goal was to make it look just like a typical inn from the late 1840s.
How They Restored It
To restore the tavern, experts carefully studied old photos. They removed many layers of paint to find the original colors. They also looked closely at the building's parts to understand how it was first built.
The Historical Society collected old items to furnish the tavern. These items came from all over the United States. For example, the chairs in the Tap Room were made by an Illinois carpenter in the 1840s.
A Museum for Everyone
In 1974, Stacy's Tavern was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Illinois recognized it as the only tavern from its time still standing in its original spot.
In 1976, Glen Ellyn opened Stacy's Tavern to the public. It became a museum as part of the town's celebration of the American bicentennial. Today, visitors can step back in time and see what life was like at a stagecoach inn.
