Glessner House Museum
Glessner House Museum
4.5
11:30 AM - 3:30 PM
Wednesday
11:30 AM - 3:30 PM
Thursday
11:30 AM - 3:30 PM
Friday
11:30 AM - 3:30 PM
Saturday
11:30 AM - 3:30 PM
Sunday
11:30 AM - 3:30 PM
About
A National Historic Landmark, Glessner House was designed by noted American architect Henry Hobson Richardson and completed in 1887. It remains an internationally-known architectural treasure in Chicago. A radical departure from traditional Victorian architecture, the structure served as an inspiration to architects such as Louis Sullivan, Mies van der Rohe, and the young Frank Lloyd Wright and helped redefine domestic architecture.
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The area
Address
Neighborhood: South Loop
This downtown neighborhood offers a variety of activities ranging from cultural to sporting. If you happen to visit during football season, you may bump into a boisterous few fans on their way to a Bears game on the southernmost tip of South Loop. On the flip side, Museum Campus offers cultural and educational experiences in its planetarium, museum and aquarium, all situated along the lakefront. Grant Park is one of Chicago’s premier locations for green space and recreation with views of Lake Michigan and the Chicago skyline. Take a stroll down memory lane in the historic Prairie District where you can enjoy views of old historic homes. Restaurants, theaters, and clubs are spread throughout the neighborhood along with a collection of burger joints along Michigan Avenue just across from the park.
How to get there
- Cermak–McCormick Place • 9 min walk
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Contribute
Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.5
101 reviews
Excellent
69
Very good
19
Average
8
Poor
1
Terrible
4
Kevin
6 contributions
Jan 2020 • Friends
Had friends visiting over the holidays and we went on a group tour, lasted about 1 1/2 hours. The house has many of the original family furnishings. Beautiful. The tour guide had a lot of knowledge about the home and the family. Very interesting but few places to sit, a long time to stand.
Written January 9, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lisa G
Aurora, IN589 contributions
Mar 2022
I had read about Frances Glessner Lee and became interested in visiting her family's home. The house its architecturally very interesting and one of the few examples of a mansion form this time period still standing. The interior design is very unique. The tour guides were very informative, interesting and friendly. They keep the tour group small so you can see and hear very well. The area it is located in is very interesting and worth a visit as well. We had to park a coupe of blocks away but it wasn't hard to find a spot.
Written April 17, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Taylor B
Chicago, IL8,479 contributions
May 2021
My wife and I are longtime financial supporters of Glessner House. And of the Jack Simmerling Room, which is a part of the Glessner Museum. Simmerling, like us, was born and raised in south suburban Blue Island. An accomplished artist, he founded a gallery on 115th Street in Beverly and was noted for his paintings of Chicago. We have another of his best works, the Ruins of Windsor, a reflection of a famous Civil War plantation house in near Port Gibson, Mississippi, hanging in our library. Located at 1800 South Prairie Avenue on Chicago's near South Side, in the Prairie Avenue Historic District, Glessner House is an architecturally important 19th century residence that was designed in 1885-1886 by architect Henry Hobson Richardson and completed in late 1887. It was designated a Chicago Landmark and listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1970 and acclaimed a National Historic Landmark in 1976. Constructed in what is known as the Richardsonian Romanesque style, the building took elements of European Romanesque architecture from buildings constructed in the 11th and 12th centuries and adapted them to American idioms. The innovative floor plan and interior design, which allows for a spacious courtyard within, was distinctly different from other mansions on Prairie Avenue. The house was opened for public tours in 1971. Many of the rooms have been restored to their original appearance and the collection of decorative objects and furnishings is especially significant.
Written August 24, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Pia M
San Diego, CA91 contributions
Aug 2022
Love love this place! Learn the history of Chicago's South Loop most oldest home. Stuart our guide, knew so much about the family and the city. It is really remarkable to walk through the house and see the "modern" improvements they already had built at the end of the 19th century. If you are in the area, do visit. It's quiet and quaint.
Written August 30, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Wanda H
Mascoutah, IL437 contributions
Feb 2024 • Friends
This house was AWESOME along with the furniture and decorations! Different than a normal house from the same period. Such a jewel to still have and be able to view! The docent we had wasn't the greatest for our interest (more about the house and family and less about other people). The difficult part of this tour is that some carpets are not supposed to be walked on, and some rooms are not to be entered. But there is no roping off of these places. Just the docent correcting you very sternly as you happen to venture onto or into one of these places. It would be SO easy for them to mark these areas, leaving less room for misunderstanding.
Written February 4, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ShicksCreative
Chicago, IL5 contributions
Apr 2012 • Solo
what the inside looks like based on the outside! You HAVE to take this tour! This house is so large and looming on the outside, yet cozy and warm on the inside. The courtyard is gorgeous! The docent's stories about the family and the lives they lived here is very heartwarming. I highly recommend this tour!
Written April 21, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
204IreneS
Woodford, VT33 contributions
Nov 2018 • Couples
A visit to this museum and a guided tour through the house gave us so much interesting and important information about Chicago and the Prairie Avenue Historic District. We highly recommend it to anyone with any interest at all in architecture and Chicago’s history.
Written November 16, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
dot52015
Oak Park, IL49 contributions
Jul 2015 • Friends
This home, designed by Henry Hobson Richardson, has been beautifully restored and most of the extraordinary furniture and decorative arts are original. The one hour tour can be taken for a nominal rate along with the historical Clarke House, a half-block away. The neighborhood is also worth a stroll as the home of Marshall Field is down the block as are other beautiful homes.
Written July 26, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Raleigh198
Rockford, IL15 contributions
Apr 2019 • Family
Upon entering at 10am on a Saturday my family and I were greeted with a curse “may I help you?” As though we were trespassing.
Tourist be sure to fully review the times and requirements before entering as the “greeter” will piss you off.
My desire to return has been muted.
Tourist be sure to fully review the times and requirements before entering as the “greeter” will piss you off.
My desire to return has been muted.
Written April 20, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Nick H H
Chicago, IL3 contributions
Sep 2015 • Friends
I was just able to get a tour of this magnificent building. My jaw dropped. As a fan of Downton Abbey, I felt as though I was stepping back in time. The house is meticulously maintained and they take great pains to ensure it is exactly as the original owners kept it. The furnishings are actually the ones used by the original owners. All of the sconces, wallpaper, curtains and rugs are identical to the ones the original owners had. Not to be missed!
Written September 11, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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