A five-bedroom, 9,666-square-foot vintage mansion in Geneva that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places was placed on the market on July 19 for $2.3 million.
Known as Elizabeth Place and made of limestone, the Mission Revival-style house was built in 1899 for Henry Bond Fargo, who became Geneva’s mayor in 1903 and later served in the Illinois House of Representatives. Fargo named the home after his late wife, Annie Elizabeth Fargo, who died in 1899.
Set on a 1.6-acre property very close to Geneva’s Metra station, the house has 6-1/2 bathrooms, three fireplaces, millwork, coffered ceilings, hardwood floors and a kitchen with a BlueStar range and double oven, soapstone countertops and a butler’s pantry. Other features include a 1,400-square-foot recreation area on the third floor with a full bar and stone fireplace, a primary bedroom suite with a fireplace and walk-in closet and a lower level with a second kitchen, an exercise area, a second laundry room and a workroom.
Outside on the property are a carriage house with a bedroom, a full kitchen and 1-1/2 bathrooms.
“The best part is that it’s right there in downtown Geneva, which is flourishing,” listing agent Roger Erikson of Coldwell Banker told Elite Street. “You can walk to downtown, you can walk to the train, and the property has acreage as well. And, it’s federally registered as a historic house.”
Erikson noted that the mansion itself has 10-foot pocket doors and other woodwork, and he highlighted the large recreation area on the third floor, which Fargo originally had used as a dance floor.
The house was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2008. The current owners bought the mansion in August 2021 for $1.995 million.
The mansion had a $10,241 property tax bill in the 2023 tax year.
Goldsborough is a freelance reporter.