A Landmark Status and a Landmark Figure

It's official, and there's a plaque now to show it.

A piece of the legacy of one of the most prominent political figures from a notable family with strong ties to Illinois is now a National Historic Landmark.  The man was Adlai Stevenson II, and the landmark is his home in Mettawa, in Lake County, IL, which was designated a landmark last April, and the official plaque presentation ceremony was October 12.

I'm always on the look out for the kinds of sites that are not as well noted, but tell significant stories.  And that's what piqued my interest when I saw a story on Chicago Tonight that Mr. Stevenson's home attained landmark status.

Looking for an opportunity to go on an outing somewhere, and seeing this as something of note, it was back on August 24 last that my Dad and I headed up from Oak Park to see it.  It was a lovely drive up the Des Plaines River corridor, following Des Plaines River Road, into central Lake County, passing through suburbs such as Des Plaines, Wheeling, and Buffalo Grove.  Upon reaching Townline Road/IL Route 60, we headed east, and then south into country land, where we finally reached the road to the home.

It is a sizable estate--Mr. Stevenson had 70 acres there.  The Lake County Forest Preserve District now administers the property, which is 40 acres containing the house and the stables.  Upon parking, we were directed into the stables where the tour began with some words about the property, and a brief video about Mr. Stevenson.  (His maternal great-grandfather, Jesse Fell, was a friend of Abraham Lincoln.  His grandfather, Adlai Stevenson I, was Vice President of the United States.)

Then, we went to the house.

Despite being in such a sizable piece of land, the house is on the small side and with a plain exterior look.  As it turns out, while the Stevenson family was moving in, some rags spontaneously combusted in the basement because they came in contact with some chemicals, and set the house on fire.  The walls were made of a material that was supposed to protect it from fires that could break out in the nearby natural areas, but helped the house function as an oven in the case of the spontaneous combustion.  The present house on the site was built after that fire.

After a few words about the house outside by the front door, upon entering, we went straight to the study (see pictures below).  It was made to look like it did when Mr. Stevenson used it, with many of the objects in it having been there during his lifetime.

Some of the books on the shelves were in the house where he grew up in Bloomington, IL.  The items I found most notable are a key given to him during a trip to Alaska during the 1950's (just to the left of the white Illinois flag draped near the window), a silver cigarette box (given as a gift from his cabinet members when his term as Illinois governor ended, which is just to the left of the key), and a register, like a roll-a-dex (at the opposite end of the desk from the cigarette box).  (Katherine Hamilton-Smith, Director of Cultural Resources, says that the chair was the one he used when he served in the Presidential Cabinet as Ambassador to the United Nations.  And while I seem to remember the tour guide saying the key was that of the City of Anchorage, Ms. Hamilton-Smith can't seem to verify that, even upon having contacted Adlai Stevenson III.  The only thing known for sure is that the key was part of an effort to get Mr. Stevenson's endorsement of Alaska statehood.)

Many famous dignitaries came to visit Mr. Stevenson II at this house, including Richard J. Daley, Eleanor Roosevelt, and John F. Kennedy, who sought Mr. Stevenson's enorsement for the Democratic nomination for president in 196.  Mr. Stevenson wasn't willing to endorse him, because, it seems, Mr. Kennedy was too young and unready.  The lack of an endorsement appears to be the reason why, upon entering office, President Kennedy appointed Mr. Stevenson to the role of Ambassador to the UN, rather than Secretary of State, for which he was more qualified.

We then looked around in the other rooms of the house, including the dining room, the servant areas, and the upstairs bedrooms, which were pretty much empty of any furnishings.  The windows in the house provided great views out on the huge field to the west.  Of note in the master bathroom upstairs were marks in the floor, which the tour guide pointed out were from Mrs. Stevenson's high heels.  There was a deck (see second picture below) right off the master bedroom (see directly below), with great views of the huge lawn stretching from the house to the nearby woods along the Des Plaines River.

We finished up the tour back in the stables (see directly below).

Upon ending, we looked around at the exhibits, with panels featuring some of his quotes, which I felt had spoke eloquent ideas:

From reading these quotes, I could tell that Adlai Stevenson II was a man of principles, and used his capacity as a public servant to make them known as part of his efforts to make the world a better place, where people conduct themselves honorably, decently, and respectfully.  I think that's why President Johnson said he would be remembered for his ideas rather than the positions he held (see the quote on the picture of this panel below):

Unlike the people in my grandparents' generation, I never experienced Adlai Stevenson II while he was in the prime of his public service career.  So I was glad to have this opportunity to visit his home and learn more about this important figure.  And it's good that this site has been preserved and now been given a significant recognition for its part in the narrative of United States history.

(And it was to my grandma right off I-94 whom we paid a very nice visit while on the way back home.)

P.S. If you weren't aware, this is the 100th post on this blog.

Fiery Idea

So the one story being talked about these past few days in Chicago is the bust of a show that was supposed to be a Spectacle of Fire on the Chicago River as part of the Great Chicago Fire Festival.

While it was disappointing for many of the 30000 spectators that the houses didn't go ablaze as intended, as one of those spectators, the more disappointing part for me was having so much trouble just finding a suitable spot to see what was going on.

I showed up at the Chicago River around 8:15, and it seemed it was just starting, perhaps running a bit behind schedule, as the announcer, who sounded to me like NBC 5 Chicago news anchor Rob Elgas, was speaking about the cauldrons being lit by the dignitaries.  (By the way, the sound system for the show worked well, and it was all set to wonderful music.)

The crowds lined every inch of space along the river, the stairs leading down to the river walk, and the Michigan Avenue bridge--which was so thickly lined with people even standing on a ledge at the edge of the sidewalk of the bridge that I couldn't cross to the other side.  (Areas where the crowds weren't present were blocked off, like the lower level of the Michigan Avenue bridge.)

Eventually, I went down a stairwell by the Hyatt Regency, and made my way across Lower Wacker to a spot where I could at least see more of the action on the river, which, by the time I got there, including the boats carrying flames of fire, including the steamship, which I thought was a train at first, with its "choo-choo" sound.

As time passed, people began leaving, including my next door neighbors who I encountered right before they went home to get their children to bed.  I made it down to the path right by the river level, and then eventually all the way up to the fence along the river as even more people left.

Indeed, I had been so focused on getting a good spot that it really didn't occur to me that the show was malfunctioning when the houses weren't burning up completely (see directly below).  (At first, I thought when the fire started, it was on the other side of the houses which I couldn't see and would make its way around to where I could see it.)

So, despite the letdown, I'm still glad I went.  I certainly like the idea behind the show and the festival.  From what I gathered, the festival celebrates the grit, resilience, and determination of a city that was once devastated by fire, and rose again to become the great, bustling city that it is today, where I am proud to have been born.  Furthermore, people from all parts of the city come together, contributing in their own unique ways, to make Chicago the great place that it is.  Indeed, there was quite a collaborative effort in putting the fire spectacle together.  The cauldrons were made by participants in the After School Matters program, and images of people involved in the making were displayed on screens mounted on boats that floated down the river at the show's conclusion.

I look forward to seeing how this great idea manifests itself in the show and festival in years to come.  For now, I can at least say that the fireworks part of the spectacle was pretty amazing, and somehow, not being highly skilled at photography, I managed to get this shot (see right below).  Even a woman standing behind me who saw me get it immediately told me it was a great shot.

And an encore picture for the finale...

I guess it's all a matter of bust and boom.