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On The Village Free Press - Two Maywood Homes To Be Designated Local Landmarks (One Of Which May Become A Museum) by mromain

Wednesday, June 11, 2014 || By Michael Romain 

MAYWOOD--At a May 28, Legal, License, Ordinance and Committee (LLOC) meeting, the Maywood Board of Trustees voted unanimously to consider designating homes at 400 S. 18th Avenue and 216 S. 10th Avenue as Local Landmarks.  

The Maywood Historic Preservation Commission (MHPC) voted unanimously last year at an August 1, public hearing to recommend that Board designate the homes as Local Landmarks. According to a memo from Acting Village Manager David Myers, the land marking of the homes will not cost any money, outside of the fee for creating the landmark plaques. The public hearing facilitated by the MHPC was convened after citizens successfully submitted nominating petitions for both homes.

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According to the nominating report, the home at 400 S. 18th Avenue is historically named the James F. Skinner House after the businessman who built it. Skinner (1868-1917), was a close friend and collaborator of Richard W. Sears, the founder of Sears Roebuck & Co. In 1895, after Sears moved his direct response mail order house to Chicago, Skinner became a partner in the growing company. He purchased the house at 400 S. 18th on September 12, 1906, where he lived for four years before moving to Oak Park.

The Skinner home is a two-half story vernacular Queen Anne built on a limestone foundation. "Decorative details included ornamental iron works on the roof and decorative railings around the roof line above the wraparound porch. All the windows have been replaced with vinyl. The original front door is still attached," the report said.

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The home at 216 S. 10th Avenue is named the Gustav Gunzert House. It was built in 1882 and, according to Maywood Park District Commissioner Dawn Williams-Rone, has pre-historic significance. The home has been opened up to DePaul University archaeology staff and students for the last several years.

"DePaul found items that date back to the prehistoric era," Williams-Rone said. "This property has been in tact for 150 years and its a wonderful heritage to our community."

Williams-Rone said that the Park District, which took ownership of the home about a month ago, is seeking to turn it into a museum. She said that entities such as Triton College, the Art Institute and the Veterans Administration have interests in the home's historical value. Williams-Rone noted that the Park District would be looking to leverage those relationships while planning the museum.

"It will be a walk-through museum," she said, replete with historical reenactments, a gift shop and an outhouse restored to its original condition. The museum would be under the jurisdiction of the Maywood Park District.

Williams-Rone said that, once the landmark process is complete, the Park District will have a 6-8 month window "when we'll come before the board regarding permits and everything else, but it's premature to address those things tonight. Lennel Grace, a member of the MHPC, said that the Commission's desire is to establish an area called "Ebonyville" that is worthy of preservation.

"For those of you who grew up in the town, you understand that the areas bounded by 14th and 10th Avenues, from Oak Street to St. Charles [was restricted to black and Jewish settlement]," he said.

Grace also called for a more holistic understanding of preservation, which considers more than architecture.

"The goal of the Commission is to preserve the most representative elements that contributed to the fabric of the town," he said, noting that the preservation process evaluates three primary aspects of an area's or a property's existence: the period of interest, the architectural significance and the person of interest. He said that the Skinner home combined a compelling period of interest with a historically significant person of interest.

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