My friend and I had an errand out in this area and decided to see what else there was to see while…read morewe were here. This museum (the home of the Hegeler and Carus families, who were involved in a local zinc company and also a publishing house, Open Court Press) is a national historic landmark and is unique because it was owned by the same family the whole time, & they never made any fundamental updates to the house so it's largely as it was when designed by WW Boyington (who also designed Chicago's Water Tower and the old Joliet prison) in the 1870s. Several rooms have been restored, but you can see in areas where it hasn't where time is taking its toll (for example, the main hall was painted with egg tempera paint, and that organic element [the egg] is now degrading after 150 years). Still, the parquet floors are amazing, and details like pocket doors, carved wooden decorations and historical elements like the speaker tube system in the walls for speaking through the house are unusual! The house also contains the only German-style turnhalle (gymnasium) in a historic home in the US. Other interesting details include an ornate butsudan (buddhist cabinet shrine) due to Hegeler's interest in Eastern religions. We just took the general tour ($15), but you can do half house (upper or lower half for $50 each) or whole house tours ($100). The longest one is apparently 3.5 hours with two breaks and children are discouraged since it is long. You must register for the tours as they max out at 6 people. Despite it saying "masks are required" and our temperatures taken at the door, our guide was initially trying to take his mask off to talk and the other couple on the tour followed suit. When my friend and I left ours on, they all put them back on at some point. The rooms do have 6 foot markers on the floors, but since some of the rooms aren't big, if you had a full tour group this would be an issue. There is an elevator so the Mansion is handicap accessible. Overall, this seems to be one of the bigger attractions in LaSalle, so take a tour if you're in town.

This mansion is beautiful and a amazing historic site to see!! The house tour is incredible! I…read morehighly recommend going here and learning about this incredible family!

It's quirky, creative, a bit creepy, and oddly moving. Worth a detour through scenic backroads…read more A visit to nearby Norway, Illinois is also worth your while. Never seem to get there in-season to see the museum, but the general store does sell some lovely Scandahoovian kitsch, and about the widest selection of locally sourced preserves as I've seen.

The Agricultural Crash Monument is a hysterical historical site!…read more You'll find it along Route 71 a few miles south of the village of Norway, IL. It's a local monument that dramatically illustrates the fatal crash of American agriculture in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Be prepared! When you're zipping along Rte 71 and come upon the monument, your first thought will be, "QUICK! CALL 9-1-1!"

Poop Fountain was everything we expected and more! A special highlight for us was talking to the…read morewonderful lady next door. She was so neighborly, and we spoke for a solid thirty minutes about the artist who made the Fountain, her neighborhood, and other pieces of public art. She made us feel right at home and is a wonderful lady. It seems like some of the other reviews criticizing her behavior may not be telling the whole story. As I understand it, some visitors were disrespecting the public space by coming at odd hours and making large amounts of noise, or posing with the fountain in obscene ways. Calling her a Karen is a total misnomer-- everyone deserves peace and quiet, even if they live next to Shit Fountain. Come here for serenity, come for excellent and warm conversations, come with your heart open.

Exactly what you'd expect: a statue that looks like poop. There was also a super friendly outdoor…read moreorange cat nearby named Mister that made my entire day. He was so cute and so worth the visit to the Shit Fountain. It's also near Kasama, so you can definitely make a trip out of this or take a quick detour if you're in the area.

We love this State Park that is located on the bank of the Rock River…read more This park offers good hiking trails and is very popular with kayaker's. One of the highlights is climbing the staircase to the top of the sandstone bluff for great views of the Rock River There is a small parking lot on site .

Pretty trails. I highly recommend downloading the all trails app when hiking here. The trails were…read morenot marked that well. Plenty of parking and various picnic tables around as well.

I learned so much today! The mansion history was very interesting and the history about Ottawa was…read morefascinating too. The tour was ten dollars and was well worth it. I was told Christmas is a really great time to visit. I didn't even know about this mansion until a few days ago. I searched for other things around Starved Rock and foind the mansion. It was the best part of the day.

Beautiful turn of the century home. The docent was very knowledgeable (maybe a bit too…read moreknowledgeable). She shared the history of the home, it's pervious uses and work being done to restore it to the time of the Reddick family's occupancy. We stopped as an activity during a road trip but had to leave a before the end of the tour to get back on the road. The home had beautiful plaster detail, original wood work, windows, doors, and fireplaces. Definitely worth visiting to appreciate the architecture of days gone by.

When you see the Fabyan Villa Museum and Japanese Gardens and learn about the Fabyan family, the…read morenext thing that you need to visit is the Fabyan Windmill. The windmill is located across the Fox River from the museum, and gardens. You can get there by walking across a bridge or driving to the other side. This windmill was used in the past by the Fabyan family but is no longer operable. It makes for some good pictures. There is also a forest preserve to explore. I highly recommend Fabyan Windmill.

The Fabyan Windmill is a restored historic Dutch windmill that is located across the Fox River at…read morethe Fabyan Forest Preserve. I believe the inside is open every Sunday during the summer months. We happened to visit on a Sunday and were able to go inside on all 3 floors that are open. It's free to enter and is a self-guided tour with a pamphlet or you can read the signs on the wall explaining what everything is. There were some volunteers there that were really friendly and helpful in explaining a few things! If the inside isn't open, there is informational signs on the outside that you can read.

They were closed when we stopped by on our travel down Route 66. Even though we only got to see it…read morefrom the outside and for a quick drive around, I'm good with giving 'em a 5. It's every bit like you'd expect from an 'old prison'. It was built in the 1800's and, of course, when checking out the gate where Elwood picked up Jake in the movie Blues Brothers it looked exactly as expected. Even from the outside there's some good photo ops. Probably won't ever be in the area again, but am sure glad we had the opportunity to see it.

Everything about the staff--helpfulness, knowledge, and professionalism--just shines! I chose the…read moreself-guided tour and enjoyed exploring the grounds and buildings all by myself. Parking was plentiful and the East Gate entrance (the ONLY entrance to the grounds) was fairly easy to find. The gift shop, on the other hand, is completely hidden and if not for a helpful staff member, I would have never seen it! Please, museum crew, improve the signage near the gift shop so you aren't losing money. This museum is a delight and I hope all Blues Brothers fans and others can enjoy it for years to come.

Blast from the past. It's a must see for a family pic! If…read moreyou are ever in Winetka stop by.

Such a fun Chicago tourist spot to come and see the Home Alone House! The house itself is owned and…read moreoccupied but currently going through renovations. The inside seemed to be completed in 2025 but the landscaping is currently being worked on. I loved the sign out front still nodding to the movie but this was such a fun and easy stop to make when exploring the Northshore.

Went to visit the mini Leaning Tower. A Historic place. Went early Saturday morning and no one was…read morethere. Glad to have gone during the summer. As the water was filled, grass was green, and green trees/bushes. Area was clean. Very small area. Lots of seating though facing the tower. We walked the area and took pictures 5-10min. Parking is at the wholesale warehouse or the Aldi parking lost next to the Tower.

It was so cool to see the Leaning Tower of Pisa replica right here in Niles! The entire area was…read morevery clean and nice to walk around. We visited at a time when there were no other people there, which made it a very peaceful experience. They have nice seating options and a water fountain on-site if you want to sit and take it in. The only minor issue was parking. There is currently some construction going on around the site, so it wasn't completely clear where we were supposed to park. Once we figured that out, it was a great quick stop. Definitely worth checking out for a fun photo op and a bit of unique local history!

Huge property well kept historical landmark buildings. Barn type hall great for large receptions…read more Wonderful place to get married!

From the owner: The Kendall County Historical Society was chartered in 1970 to preserve the history of Kendall…read moreCounty and to provide historical education for the county's residents. The Kendall County Historical Society has no paid staff, nor does it depend on support from any governmental agency. Operating income is derived from memberships, regular and memorial donations, events held at the Lyon Farm, fees for providing research material, the sale of books and other miscellaneous items. The everyday business of the organization is handled entirely by volunteers. Kendall County is located in the north central part of Illinois and was established in 1841. The Lyon Farm is the home of, and also the pride and joy of the Kendall County Historical Society. In 1974, Mrs. Frances Lyon donated 39 acres of her farm to serve as a home for the society and its artifacts. A large bequest by Mrs. Mae Dunbar along with the support and contributions of the many members and friends of the society have made it possible to restore many of the old farm buildings to their original outward appearance, and to establish display areas within. There are several buildings of historical interest that have been moved to the farm, and are displayed on turn of the century Dunbar Lane.