Adlai E Stevenson Historic Home

Libertyville, Illinois

Adlai E Stevenson II, Democratic governor of Illinois between 1949 and 1953 and presidential candidate in 1952 and 1956, built this 7800sf residence (designed by Perkins, Wheeler & Will, 1938) on his 74-acre property in an area of gentleman's farms north of Chicago. The Home is centered around Stevenson's wood-paneled study, where he wrote speeches, hosted dignitaries, and studied world events. After his death in 1965, the house suffered forty years of neglect, eventually being donated to the Lake County Forest Preserve District. The renovation restored the exterior, the interior, and many of its furnishings to the condition that existed during the era of Stevenson's presidential candidacies. The Home is open to the public for guided tours and its outbuildings contain exhibitions about his life and career. It is an Illinois Historic Site and, in 2014, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.