My husband had to go to Chicago for work, so we made a long weekend of it. We stayed out by O’Hare because that worked best for most of what we ended up doing. Our flight on Friday was delayed because of torrential rain in Chicago, so we didn’t get to the hotel until about 6. We were hungry, so we went to Bob O’s–a pretty well known place for Italian Beef Sandwiches. (If you’re looking for a unique item that you can only get in Chicago, I recommend Italian Beef.)
The next day we went to Louie’s in Forest Park for breakfast. It was fantastic. Forest Park is right next to Oak Park and that is where we were headed to take in all the Frank Lloyd Wright architecture (though we didn’t get to see Unity Temple because all their tickets were sold out.) We did the walking tour first and then we went through his original house and his studio. Absolutely fantastic!
We were still super full from breakfast, so we headed to the Museum of Science and Industry just off Lakeshore Drive. This building was part of the Columbian Exposition back in the late 1800’s and this is the only surviving exhibit hall. It has been completely reworked from the original to make it strong enough for it’s current purpose. If you go, the Whispering Gallery; the YOU exhibit; and the Uboat are must see items.
On our way back to the hotel, we stopped at Maharaj and had great Indian food.
On Sunday, we spent time with our niece and her family.
On Monday, we met a friend who happened to also be in Chicago that weekend and had breakfast at Louie’s again, and then went to Kankakee, about 75 minutes south of Oak Park to visit another FLW house–The B. Harley Bradley House. This is the very first Prairie Style house ever built. The Bradley house became a museum in the last 15 years, after going though multiple owners and finally being restored by an architect and his wife.
It sits next door to another FLW home, that is still a private home–the Hickox house. The Hickox house was recently sold to someone after being owned by the same family for years. It has sat empty for about 10 years. The new owner plans to restore the home to the original look intended by FLW.
The Bradley house is about 9000 sf with a carriage house behind it–which is the gift shop and where tours begin.
Below are photos of the primary bedroom and dressing room. This is on the second floor. Even through all the owners, the woodwork wasn’t painted. Much of it had to be restored by the last private owners because a law firm owned the house and opened up many of the bedrooms.
Here are more interior shots:
This home sits right on the Kankakee river and the lot was completely undeveloped land when the Bradley family built the house–which was a requirement of FLW for many of his homes.
If you have the opportunity, this is an EASY drive from Chicago and we liked this home better than the FLW house.
Cathy At Home on the River 