Stevenson home back to his liking
Former U.S. presidential candidate Adlai Stevenson built this house in Mettawa in 1938. The Lake County Forest Preserve District just completed a $2.1 million restoration and the facility is seeing its first public use today.
The Art Deco influence is evident in the master bathroom of the Stevenson Home. Guests at the home of the former U.N. ambassador included Eleanor Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy.
Five panels outlining the life and times of former Illinois governor and noted statesman Adlai Stevenson will be installed in the next several weeks outside his home on St. Mary's Road south of Route 60, marking the official opening of the site.
The home near the Des Plaines River is not the fancy mansion you might think a famous statesman would build.
Instead, Adlai E. Stevenson II, one of the most respected political figures of the last century, favored clean lines and a modern style. He relished what became known as "The Farm" -- his home off St. Mary's Road in Mettawa -- as a getaway to reflect on weighty issues.
Today, about two dozen social studies teachers will meet in Stevenson's element, as a $2.1 million restoration of the buildings and grounds is complete.
"This is a special place," said Katherine Hamilton-Smith, director of cultural resources for the Lake County Forest Preserve District.
The teacher training workshop, dealing with the serious matter of genocide, marks the first public event at what the district envisions will be a center of scholarly activities.
"Stevenson was an idealist in many ways. Being a history teacher, I'm intrigued with the Stevenson home," said Ron Levitsky, an eighth-grade teacher in Northfield. He helped coordinate the event with the Genocide Education Network of Illinois and the Pontian-Greek Society of Chicago.
The 60-acre property was donated to the district more than 30 years ago, but it wasn't until about four years ago that state grant money became available to restore the buildings and grounds of a world-renowned leader.
Stevenson was a former Illinois governor and twice was the Democratic nominee for U.S. president. He served as ambassador to the United Nations and was a central figure in the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Upon his death in 1965, Stevenson was pictured on the cover of Life magazine. It's a photo taken in 1952, a few weeks before the Democratic national convention. He's smiling, straddling a fence at his longtime home, a serene fall scene the backdrop.
"It is an inspiring place. He was an inspiring person," Hamilton-Smith said.
Stevenson's legacy is one of education -- trying to instill in the public a sense of how the world worked and how the United States fit. He also was on target with predictions of a faster-paced, better connected world.
"A lot of what he said would happen in the world has happened," Hamilton-Smith said. "The world is smaller."
There still is a great appreciation for Stevenson, according to Hamilton-Smith. She said she receives about a phone call a week about the status of the project, and has fielded questions from curious passers-by.
One was Levitsky. One thing led to another and the workshop was arranged. Today's conference is a typical rental, though the Stevenson site is unlike any other forest preserve facility.
"Certainly, it's different and it is unusual," said Tom Hahn, executive director. "What we're trying to do with the site is interpret Adlai Stevenson the man and his contribution to world society coming from Lake County."
Within a month, five large informational panels will be installed on the grounds, and the site will officially open to the public.
Only the home's library will be furnished with Stevenson's items. It is not intended to be a museum.
District officials continue to work with colleges and universities to find a partner to establish a scholar-in-residence or institute-type use. Public access will be a condition of any such pact.