Sylvester Millard House facts for kids
The Sylvester Millard House is a special old log house in Highland Park, Illinois. It was built in 1893 for a lawyer named Sylvester Millard. A famous architect, William W. Boyington, designed it. The house stayed with the Millard family for about 100 years!
Quick facts for kids |
|
|
Sylvester Millard House
|
|
 |
|
 Location in Illinois
Location in the United States
|
|
| Location | 1623 Sylvester Pl., Highland Park, Illinois |
|---|---|
| Area | 5 acres (2.0 ha) |
| Built | 1893 |
| Architect | William W. Boyington |
| Architectural style | Log house |
| MPS | Highland Park MRA |
| NRHP reference No. | 82002572 |
| Added to NRHP | September 29, 1982 |
Contents
The Story of the Millard House
Sylvester M. Millard grew up on a farm in Michigan. He went to school and then studied law. In 1867, he became a lawyer. The next year, he moved to Chicago. He became a very important lawyer there.
Mr. Millard in Highland Park
In 1878, Mr. Millard moved to Highland Park, Illinois. He quickly became involved in the community. He was elected as an alderman, which is like a city council member, in 1879. He served in this role until 1891.
Illinois Governor Shelby Moore Cullom also asked Mr. Millard to be a trustee for the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. A trustee helps manage and guide a university. He served there for twelve years, even leading the board for six years. From 1885 to 1891, he was also on the Highland Park Board of Trustees.
Building "The Log House"
In 1893, Mr. Millard asked a famous architect, William W. Boyington, to design his new home. Mr. Boyington had designed many important buildings. Mr. Millard wanted a house that looked like a log cabin.
The house was built using elm logs. Mr. Millard called it "Ravine Lodge," but people later started calling it "The Log House." It stayed in the Millard family for about 100 years. Mr. Millard passed away in 1905.
On September 29, 1982, the house was officially recognized as a historic place. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places by the National Park Service. This means it's an important part of history!
How the House Changed Over Time
The Millard house was one of the first homes on the east side of Highland Park. Its first address was on Sycamore Lane. Later, its driveway became a public road called Sylvester Place.
The Log House was first built as a summer home. It had many screened porches where people could relax. Over the years, these porches were closed in or removed. This helped turn the house into a place where people could live all year round.
In 1918, a special wing was added for a housekeeper. In 1929, a porch on the first floor was enclosed to make the dining area bigger. More changes happened in 1949 when second-story porches were removed. This helped open up the first-floor porch on the east side. Windows were also added upstairs to let in more light.
Later Years and the Park
In 1977, a fire damaged the attic of the house. But the top floor was rebuilt with only small changes. The Millard family sold "The Log House" in 1998. After that, the new owners did a lot of remodeling. They even added a big stone stairway on the west side.
The Log House property used to be much larger, about 11 acres. It even included a beach and a bluff next to Lake Michigan. But over time, most of the land was sold off. In the 1970s, the bluff and beach area became part of a public park. This park is now called Millard Park.
