Robert Allerton Park
Encyclopedia
The Robert Allerton Park is a 1,517 acre (6.0 km²) park
, nature center, and conference center located near Monticello, Illinois
on the upper Sangamon River
. The park and manor house, The Farms, were laid out and built by industrialist heir, artist, art collector, and garden designer Robert Allerton
and his adopted son John Gregg Allerton, who gave the complex to the University of Illinois
in 1946. The Allerton Natural Area within the park is a National Natural Landmark
. As of 2007, the park was used by approximately 100,000 visitors per year. It has been described as "a vast prairie turned into a personal fantasy land of neoclassical statues, Far Eastern art, and huge European-syle gardens surrounding a Georgian-Revival mansion" .
The section of the park north of the winding Sangamon River
includes Allerton's 40-room (30,000 sq. ft.) stately home, The Farms (1900), a 1/4-mile-long (0.4 km) formal garden, and a 1-mile-long (2 km) sculpture walk extending westward from the end of the formal garden. The sculpture walk concludes with The Sun Singer, an Art Moderne bronze
sculpted by Carl Milles
in 1929, one of more than 100 sculptures in the gardens on the grounds. The Sun Singer underwent a $39,000 restoration in June–July 2007 to remove vandal graffiti and restore the patina
of the 16 feet (5 m), 2300 lb (1,043.3 kg; 164.3 st) sculpture.
during the Allerton's era. It now contains a network of nature trails sloping down from parking areas toward the Sangamon River. Several of the trails have signs describing the floodplain
river ecology of central Illinois. The southern section also contains a 55 acre (0.2 km²) restored prairie
, one of the oldest prairie restorations in Illinois, begun in 1955 and now approaching maturity. The southern section of the park and adjacent Sangamon River bottomland, a parcel of 1,000 acres (4.0 km²), was designated as the Allerton Natural Area, a U.S. National Natural Landmark, in 1971.
. Robert Allerton and his adopted son, John Gregg Allerton (1899–1986), transformed their country house, The Farms, into a central Illinois showplace estate, with activity climaxing in the 1920s and early 1930s.
Allerton also pursued ties with the University of Illinois. In 1919 while Allerton lived at "The Farms", he was asked by the University to serve on the Campus Plan Commission. This association continued until the completion of the 1923 Master Plan of the area south of the Auditorium. In 1926, Allerton established the Allerton Scholarships in American architecture. Annually, he invited graduating students in architecture and landscape architecture to "The Farms."
After the Great Depression, World War II, and U.S. federal income taxes made it more difficult to staff and operate stately homes like The Farms, the Allertons moved to Allerton Garden
, Kaua'i, Hawaii, in 1946.
Allerton was a philanthropist for most of his life. Today, both Robert Allerton Park and Allerton Garden are open to the public. Allerton also made significant gifts and bequests to the Honolulu Academy of Art and the Art Institute of Chicago
.
Park
A park is a protected area, in its natural or semi-natural state, or planted, and set aside for human recreation and enjoyment, or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. It may consist of rocks, soil, water, flora and fauna and grass areas. Many parks are legally protected by...
, nature center, and conference center located near Monticello, Illinois
Monticello, Illinois
Monticello is a city in Piatt County, Illinois, United States. The population was 5,138 at the 2000 census, and 5,374 at a 2009 estimate. It is the county seat of Piatt County.-Geography:Monticello is located at ....
on the upper Sangamon River
Sangamon River
The Sangamon River is a principal tributary of the Illinois River, approximately long, in central Illinois in the United States. It drains a mostly rural agricultural area between Peoria and Springfield...
. The park and manor house, The Farms, were laid out and built by industrialist heir, artist, art collector, and garden designer Robert Allerton
Robert Allerton
Robert Henry Allerton , born in Chicago, Illinois, United States, was the son and heir of First National Bank of Chicago founder Samuel Allerton...
and his adopted son John Gregg Allerton, who gave the complex to the University of Illinois
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
in 1946. The Allerton Natural Area within the park is a National Natural Landmark
National Natural Landmark
The National Natural Landmark program recognizes and encourages the conservation of outstanding examples of the natural history of the United States. It is the only natural areas program of national scope that identifies and recognizes the best examples of biological and geological features in...
. As of 2007, the park was used by approximately 100,000 visitors per year. It has been described as "a vast prairie turned into a personal fantasy land of neoclassical statues, Far Eastern art, and huge European-syle gardens surrounding a Georgian-Revival mansion" .
Northern Gardens and sculpture
Sangamon River
The Sangamon River is a principal tributary of the Illinois River, approximately long, in central Illinois in the United States. It drains a mostly rural agricultural area between Peoria and Springfield...
includes Allerton's 40-room (30,000 sq. ft.) stately home, The Farms (1900), a 1/4-mile-long (0.4 km) formal garden, and a 1-mile-long (2 km) sculpture walk extending westward from the end of the formal garden. The sculpture walk concludes with The Sun Singer, an Art Moderne bronze
Bronze
Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...
sculpted by Carl Milles
Carl Milles
Carl Milles was a Swedish sculptor, best known for his fountains. He was married to artist Olga Milles and brother to Ruth Milles and half brother to the architect Evert Milles...
in 1929, one of more than 100 sculptures in the gardens on the grounds. The Sun Singer underwent a $39,000 restoration in June–July 2007 to remove vandal graffiti and restore the patina
Patina
Patina is a tarnish that forms on the surface of bronze and similar metals ; a sheen on wooden furniture produced by age, wear, and polishing; or any such acquired change of a surface through age and exposure...
of the 16 feet (5 m), 2300 lb (1,043.3 kg; 164.3 st) sculpture.
Southern Open space preserve
The section of the park south of the Sangamon River was left almost entirely natural open space preserveOpen space reserve
Open space reserve, open space preserve, and open space reservation, are planning and conservation ethics terms used to describe areas of protected or conserved land or water on which development is indefinitely set aside...
during the Allerton's era. It now contains a network of nature trails sloping down from parking areas toward the Sangamon River. Several of the trails have signs describing the floodplain
Floodplain
A floodplain, or flood plain, is a flat or nearly flat land adjacent a stream or river that stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls and experiences flooding during periods of high discharge...
river ecology of central Illinois. The southern section also contains a 55 acre (0.2 km²) restored prairie
Prairie
Prairies are considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the dominant vegetation type...
, one of the oldest prairie restorations in Illinois, begun in 1955 and now approaching maturity. The southern section of the park and adjacent Sangamon River bottomland, a parcel of 1,000 acres (4.0 km²), was designated as the Allerton Natural Area, a U.S. National Natural Landmark, in 1971.
Robert Allerton
Robert Allerton (1873–1964) was heir to a Chicago banking and stockyard fortune created by his father, Samuel Allerton (1828–1914), one of the founders of Chicago's Union Stock YardsUnion Stock Yards
The Union Stock Yard & Transit Co., or The Yards, was the meat packing district in Chicago for over a century starting in 1865. The district was operated by a group of railroad companies that acquired swampland, and turned it to a centralized processing area...
. Robert Allerton and his adopted son, John Gregg Allerton (1899–1986), transformed their country house, The Farms, into a central Illinois showplace estate, with activity climaxing in the 1920s and early 1930s.
Allerton also pursued ties with the University of Illinois. In 1919 while Allerton lived at "The Farms", he was asked by the University to serve on the Campus Plan Commission. This association continued until the completion of the 1923 Master Plan of the area south of the Auditorium. In 1926, Allerton established the Allerton Scholarships in American architecture. Annually, he invited graduating students in architecture and landscape architecture to "The Farms."
After the Great Depression, World War II, and U.S. federal income taxes made it more difficult to staff and operate stately homes like The Farms, the Allertons moved to Allerton Garden
Allerton Garden
Allerton Garden , also known as Lāwai-kai, is a botanical garden, originally created by Robert Allerton and John Gregg Allerton, located on the south shore of Kauai, Hawaii. The garden covers an area and is situated beside the Lāwai Bay, in a valley transected by the Lāwai Stream...
, Kaua'i, Hawaii, in 1946.
Allerton was a philanthropist for most of his life. Today, both Robert Allerton Park and Allerton Garden are open to the public. Allerton also made significant gifts and bequests to the Honolulu Academy of Art and the Art Institute of Chicago
Art Institute of Chicago
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago is one of America's largest accredited independent schools of art and design, located in the Loop in Chicago, Illinois. It is associated with the museum of the same name, and "The Art Institute of Chicago" or "Chicago Art Institute" often refers to either...
.