AT A GLANCE
Why go?
On a ten-acre green island in the middle of DeKalb, Illinois, the Ellwood House Museum preserves the gilded-age mansion of Isaac Ellwood, the barbed wire entrepreneur who helped fence in the American West. Built in 1879, the grand Victorian home was passed down through three generations of one family until 1965, and today docent-led tours open its original furnishings, art and architecture to the public alongside a Tudor Revival house, formal gardens and a free visitor center.↗↗
A top historic destination for visitors across Northern Illinois and Southern Wisconsin, the site pairs a polished mansion tour with grounds you can wander free at any hour—ideal for a relaxed half-day of history, architecture and garden strolling.↗
Good to know
- Museum
- Opening hoursVaries by day
- Under 1 kmfrom DeKalb center
- Wheelchair accessentrance
- Parking
- Restroom
- 4.8 / 5296 reviews
- DeKalb
The barbed wire fortune behind the house
The story at the heart of the estate is that of Isaac Ellwood, whose barbed wire business made him one of the most influential men of his region and era. He built the 1879 mansion as his family home, and from then until 1965 it sheltered three generations of Ellwoods who helped shape both DeKalb and the nation. In 1965, Mrs. May Ellwood and her three children gave the mansion to the DeKalb Park District, and in 2011 Mrs. Shirley Nehring donated the 1900 Ellcourt House to the non-profit Ellwood House Association. Today the Association and the Park District jointly run the whole campus as a museum.
