The History of Plum Grove
We truly believe that our home has a soul. I know…it sounds a little creepy and weird…but it’s true! Let us prove it to you ;)
The Converse Family
Our home, which we lovingly refer to as “Plum Grove” (we’ll get to how she got this name in a minute….), was built in 1885 by the Converse family. No, these are NOT the shoe people, although that would be pretty cool! These Converses, Zilpha & Edwin, ran a Dairy Farm on the outskirts of Palatine after they got hitched in 1880. Five years later they made the big move into town and built this gorgeous Queen Anne Victorian.
Zilpha and Edwin had 3 children - Rose, Joseph, & Guy Converse. (pretty unusual to have JUST 3 children back then…right?) One Saturday, we made a visit to see the Converse family at the historic Hillside Cemetery just a couple blocks away from Plum Grove. When looking at the tombstones, we noticed that Guy Converse passed away at the age of 14 and we were so curious as to why. SO, naturally, we made a trip to the Palatine Historical Society and found Guy’s obituary - we discovered that Guy died of typhoid fever. His obituary stated that “the case was considered dangerous and everything possible was done to stop the fever but to no avail as the fever went to the brain after which the patient sank rapidly until his death” (Yikes - I guess they didn’t hold anything back in 1896…!)
While at the Historical Society, we also dug up this picture of Rose Converse with her students! Rose held a private Kindergarten Class in the home and we believe this picture was taken on our home’s South Lawn off of Colfax - how fun! Our sweet friend, Carol, pointed out to us that one of the girls in the picture was her Great Aunt Mildred who lived in the adorable white farmhouse kitty cornered to us - she literally walked to our home each day for school, which we think is absolutely precious.
In this next picture we discovered, you can see Zilpha (on the right) and Rose (left) standing beside the porch. Standing on the porch is Margaret Godknecht, daughter of Henry Godknecht who owned the cigar shop just down the street at Wood and Plum Grove. The side porch shown is no longer here but you can still see the turret window in the background - talk about a blast from the past!
We love to look at this picture and contemplate what these lovely ladies were doing. We ask ourselves…why was Margaret visiting Plum Grove? Why were they taking this picture? Who took the picture? And why is Margaret not standing with them in front of the porch? Maybe Margaret and Rose were BFFs and were gossipping about the cute boys (or girls…) in the neighborhood! Who knows?!
Plum Grove
I absolutely LOVE thinking about when this home was being built back in 1885. It was a Big Deal - the neighborhood had to be buzzing! I wonder who the architect was, what inspired this style, the stories of the craftsmans who hand-carved the gorgeous banister (crazy talent!), how long did it take…can you tell we really get into all this history stuff? It’s just absolutely fascinating thinking about all the unknowns…
Okay. Back to why our home is referred to as “Plum Grove” :) Once upon a time, Plum Grove was the first settlement 2 miles south of present-day downtown Palatine. This little area was highly wooded and occupied by pioneers from Stockbridge, Vermont, who by-passed the “congested” city of Chicago, to settle in the beautiful plains NW of the bustling city! When you look at the map above, you can see that Plum Grove Avenue runs straight through the original Plum Grove Settlement - so cool and TMI, sorry not sorry. We just adore the name “Plum Grove” and to us it is a symbol of a quaint, rural and loving community - you know we love us some Palatine!
The Tower (not a turret!)
We LOVE old homes because they tell a story with their unique characteristics - Plum Grove is no exception. We are ALL about the fun details - the bay windows, roof lines, fish-scale shingles, decorative trim, and of course The Tower! This tower speaks to people and gives them all the feels…and because of that, Plum Grove has been referred to as a doll-house, castle, Disney house - WE think it can be perfectly described as Magical :)
The Tower makes our home distinct - people don’t forget it and recognize it immediately by saying…”OH, you are the gays on the corner!” Yes, that’s us! The gays in the Disney House!
Okay…in full transparency, we have called the tower a “turret” for years NOT realizing the significant difference between the 2. Did you know there was a difference? Let us explain…
Turrets and Towers go way back to medieval times. Towers were usually used to lock people in while Turrets were used for archers to shoot at the enemies - the more you know! A turret is simply a small, circular tower attached to a larger structure, usually on a corner or angle. The biggest distinction between a turret and an actual tower is that turrets typically don't start at the ground level and, rather, cantilever out from another upper level while a tower starts from the ground up!
So there you have it folks - we have a tower and not a turret!
A Home to Many
Zilpha & Edwin Converse were not the only ones to live at Plum Grove - When their daughter Rose married Rufus Starck in 1908, the young couple purchased the home, but they did not live there very long. In 1929, the house was occupied by John and Emma Stempl. During the 1950s, a nursing home was operated here. Harry Benstein had an insurance agency here from the 1970s until the late 1990s. In 2002, a law firm owned the property until they were shut down for illegal activity - oopsie daisy! The home was then purchased from a realtor, flipped, sat empty for a few years, and then purchased by us!
Okay…a few things to expand on…
The nursing home. So many folks have let us know that they had a mother or grandmother live in our home (and even died!) when it was a nursing home in the ‘50s. We were sitting at Gianni’s bar one evening (our favorite local Italian joint) and a sweet couple came up to us with zero introduction and said “our grandmother died in your house!” and we were like “Hi! We’re Philip and Nathan!” We have also heard a story about an older woman who would sit in a chair in one of the tower windows and stare as people walked/drove by - the story teller explained that they were a child, at the time, and their school bus would pass the home and she would always see her up there looking down at her…creepy!
Harry Benstein. This guy is seriously THE SWEETEST - just don’t make them like they used to… So one summer we were working in the back yard (I know…shocker) and the cutest man came up to the arbor holding a picture frame in his hands. He went on to explain how he owned the home in the ‘70s & ‘80s and ran an insurance agency here. Apparently his secretary was also a member of the Palatine Historical Society and discovered an old picture of our home - she copied the picture, blew it up, and had it framed in the exact frame Harry was holding. It hung in the home for decades and he of course took it with him when he left. That day, Harry drove over to our home because he wanted us to have the picture now that the “Home was being loved once again.” It was seriously one of the most heart-warming experiences EVER and thank god I made Philip take a picture with him. You’re welcome.
Gays at Plum Grove
WHAAAAAAT?! I mean, think about this. I don’t think anyone back in 1885 would have ever thought that a legally-married openly gay couple would be living in Plum Grove.
But maybe one of the Converses was gay or maybe someone who lived here when it was a nursing home? I like to think that these queer spirits are still hanging-out around here to witness how far we’ve come…yet I feel guilt about this (wishing that they could have lived how we currently live) BUT that’s why, friends, it’s SO important for us to live our lives Authentically - Out Loud & Proud - for those who were not so lucky.
I think it’s pretty ground-breaking and worth mentioning on this blog.
Just Sayin.
CLEARLY, we love us some Palatine, y’all.
So we were living in the Chicago neighborhood of Wicker Park - Nathan was a school teacher and Philip was working (still is) in Human Resources. This is relevant to this conversation because his office was WAY OUT in the northwest suburbs and he had been doing this reverse commute for years - this commute IS as painful as you could imagine. Well, we're “going pretty heavy” at this point (as my mother would say if we were a straight couple -HA!) and were going to bed at 8pm every night and not necessarily utilizing all that the city has to offer. We really felt like Philip was spending more time in the car and not enough time with Nathan at home. SO…the tale as old as time…we started our search for a home in the burbs.
Of course, Nathan was on top of this! He immediately discovered our home online and was a smitten kitten - we had to go see it ASAP. Also…where is Palatine?!
So Plum Grove was literally the first home we ever saw, which was seriously a mistake, because every house after this one just didn’t cut it.
There we were. Sitting in the driveway and waiting for the realtor to see the house for the first time. Philip looks at Nathan and says “you need to have a poker face!” And if you know Nathan…he doesn’t have a poker face. So we came through the back door (insert gay joke) and Nathan was doing pretty good…and THEN we rounded the corner to the foyer and Nathan saw the Banister. He literally lost it and screamed like a girl. There was no turning back from that point on. Serendipity.
You have to love where you live, people. Not just your home, but the village or city in which you live. A part of loving your town is embracing and supporting the local businesses and organizations that make your town feel like your Home - Support Local, friends!
And go out there and help make your town a better place! Maybe this is done by volunteering at the library OR joining a Community organization OR by simply putting out some fun fall decor for the trick-or-treaters…it all matters.
Grateful
How lucky are we? We GET to be the caretakers of this beautiful home and have the privilege to share ALL of her history.. That’s why writing this is SO important - for others to appreciate her stories and details and charm. Plum Grove is not just a house, she is a home. Thank You for loving her as much as we do!
xoxo, Nathan
