Tour landmark homes on Treasures of the Tri-Cities house walk
You can get a look inside some of the homes throughout the Tri-Cities that you’ve marveled at from the outside at this weekend’s seventh annual Treasures of the Tri-Cities tour and showcase of historic homes.
The tour, hosted by Preservation Partners of the Fox Valley, will give a look at the exterior and the interior of homes, and showcase their architectural significance for visitors, organizer and Preservation Partner Liz Safanda said.
“Unlike the various Christmas house walks, etc., we focus on the story beyond each house, and how it represents the design style — the outside and inside features that make it an Italianate house, for example,” Safanda said. “Besides getting a great peek at six elegant and charming homes, the visitor goes away with an education.
“This year, we will explain to each visitor what the Landmark designation for each house signifies,” she said.
The tour will be held from 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 6.
It will feature six homes with landmark designations in St. Charles, Geneva and Batavia, from a rustic stone cottage to a high-style Queen Anne.
On the tour, you’ll get to see the Zook House, circa 1935, at 317 Fulton Ave., St. Charles, which is Colonial Revival.
You’ll also get to see the Ferson/Satterlee House, circa 1854, at 304 N. Second St., St. Charles, which is a Greek Revival, and the Ferson/Satterlee Barn, circa 1883, at 214 Chestnut Ave., St. Charles, which is a Period Vernacular.
The fourth home on the tour is the Fargo Cottage, circa 1895, at 716 Shady Ave., Geneva, which is a Queen Anne. Another Queen Anne on the tour is the Davis House, c. 1892 at 1101 S. Batavia Ave., Geneva.
The sixth home is the Ferris/Patterson House, c. 163/1886, at 419 Union Ave., Batavia. It is an Italianate.
All of the homes in the tour are designated local or national landmarks for their architectural and historical significance.
You will get a chance to learn about their significance, and what cannot be altered in the homes because of their landmark designation, Safanda said.
Pat and Tom Pretz own one of the houses on the tour — the Evison-Ferson-Satterlee Home at 214 Chestnut Ave., St. Charles.
Their home is linked to the Greek Revival next door, which was once owned by George Ferson, whose family was one of the first to settle in St. Charles, Pat Pretz said.
The Pretz’s home originally was a barn owned by Civil War veteran Tom Evison. In the 1880s, George Ferson purchased the barn for I.C. Ferson & Co., a feed store and grain elevator that was located near Cedar and 9th Avenues, where the St. Charles train depot once stood.
A surviving family member of Ferson had the barn moved to one of the family lots on Chestnut Avenue after her father’s death, and began converting it into a house.
After Pretz moved in, she started to research the history of the home, and it became quite an adventure, she said.
She is excited to share it with the public.
She said the tour is a great experience for Fox Valley residents, as well as visitors to the area.
“Supporting this event and learning about the history of this area connects us to each other and our past,” Pretz said.
“Anyone attending this event will come away with a deeper appreciation for the significant architecture of the Tri-Cities. It is fascinating to learn about the people who built and/or lived in these structures,” she said. “This is not the typical house walk where the emphasis is on decoration — in fact many of these homes and buildings are not on any other tour or house walk. This weekend is about having a great time while you discover and learn about our community — the people, businesses, buildings and homes you may not know anything about while driving past them each day.”
The cost of the Sunday tour, which runs from 1 to 5 p.m., is $20 for tickets purchased ahead of time. Tickets are available at Blue Goose and Past Basket in Geneva through Saturday.
On the day of the event, tickets are $25 and available at Beith House, 8 Indiana St., St. Charles.
For information call (630) 377-6424.
If you go
What: Seventh annual Treasures of the Tri-Cities city showcase and house tour
When: 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 6
Where: Six historic houses with landmark designations in Batavia, St. Charles and Geneva
Tickets: $20 in advance, available at Blue Goose and Past Basket in Geneva through Saturday, Oct. 5. On the day of the event, tickets are $25 and available at Beith House, 8 Indiana St., St. Charles.
Details: (630) 377-6424; <a href="http://www.ppfv.org">www.ppfv.org</a>.