Historical Photo Guessing Game: John G. Shedd Bought This Lake Forest House as a Wedding Gift

This Lake Forest home was purchased by John G. Shedd as a gift to his daughter, Laura, and son-in-law, Charles Schweppe.

Shedd was head of Marshall Field & Co., at the time.

The house was also called Blair Lodge, which was built on the site of the burned Lake Forest Hotel. This wintry photo of Blair Lodge ran in the Chicago Daily News in 1913, and is courtesy of the Chicago History Museum. In 1870, the site was owned by the Lake Forest Hotel and Manufacturing Company.

Shedd eventually had Blair Lodge torn down and replaced by the Mayflower Place. The 27-room mansion was completed in 1915. Designed by Frederick Wainwright Perkins, who had built homes for the elder Shedd and a few other people in Chicago’s Kenwood neighborhood, the Tudor home sat on the last five acres of what was once a far larger estate.

Thanks, Gail, for your answer and background for everyone to enjoy.

Thank you, readers, for your continued participation and feedback. We'll be back with anoter historical photo posting next Sunday.