Building date: 1856
Original use: Private Residence
Corner structures: Stone quoins. See photograph file "2020-10-10 John B. Walkup House-3_0.jpg" below for one example of two structures in North America of the unique quoin construction. The other is the William T, McCracken House in the Town of Camillus, Onondaga County.
Mortar application and content:
Types and uses of stones: Lake washed cobblestones from Lake Michigan
Types and choice of windows: 6 over 6 windows and 3 paned transom windows
Structures with similar masonry details: Columbus Wallace House, though grander
Masons who worked on building: Andrew Jackson Simons
Unique features: Cobblestone structure and foundation, stone lintels, more elaborate stone details and designs in quoins and throughout the façade such as circular designs surrounding a larger stone and a horseshoe design in the gable. Greek Revival Style
Map views courtesy View 1, View 2. Address is Google Earth confirmed; 42°15'11.16"N 88°19'17.99"W. Current owner of record, Roth as of the 2019 Tax Roll.
Township of Nunda and McHenry County Maps
The Greek Revival-style John B. Walkup house, 5215 Walkup Road, Crystal Lake, Ill., was built in 1856 by mason Andrew Jackson Simons, of lake washed stones from Lake Michigan. It has "6 over 6" windows and three-paned transom windows and is similar in design (but grander) to the Columbus Wallace house. Simons was born in LeRoy, N.Y. and served in the 36th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, during the Civil War. Richard Palmer blog.
Plaque installed by the Polly Crandall Questers #772 and the McHenry County Historic Preservation Commission which is part of a certified local government and has the power of protection.
Built in 1856, the two-story pitched roof structure has the general configuration of the Greek Revival, complete with large windows. The walls are built of finely scaled cobblestones with large stones for the basement and foundations and graduated, smaller stones up the walls. Strength is added to this rare form of construction by adding large, carefully dressed stones above and below the windows, in the front on the level of the first floor, and at the corners where they are called quoins. Additional ornament is added by placing large cobblestones, surrounded by rings of small ones, between the first and second floor windows. Projecting to the left is a one-and-one-half-story wing which is part of the original construction although the porch is new as is the cornice of the taller structure. This form of construction was imported to northern Illinois from upstate New York. Courtesy "A Guide to Chicago's Historic Suburbs" On Wheels & On Foot, by Ira J. Bach, assisted by Susan Wolfson, Swallow Press, 1981, page 211.
Christopher Walkup Cobblestone House in Crystal Lake, Ill.
Walkup Avenue is named for the Christopher Walkup family. Christopher Walkup was born in 1785 in Greenbriar County, Virginia (now West Virginia). In the spring of 1835, Christopher led one of the first settling parties into McHenry County. This was just a few months after the arrival of the county's first inhabitants, and prior to Beman Crandall's settling in Crystal Lake. Walkup's group included James Dufield, John McClure, Christopher McClure, William Hartman, John L. Gibson and John Gillian. The area where they settled became known as the "Virginia Settlement" because so many of the settlers were from Virginia. This settlement was located in Dorr Township near today's town of Ridgefield.
"The Historical, Biographical and Statistical Directory of McHenry County, Illinois," dated 1877 provides the following description of the settlers: "These men were the real pioneers of the county, and for that reason deserve more than a passing notice; but it is chiefly on account of their true Southern hospitality to all new comers, to whom their latch-string always hung out, and who were always welcome to all assistance they could render through money, men and teams, that they are gratefully remembered by those who had occasion to claim their aid or hospitality."
Christopher Walkup was the first sheriff of McHenry County, serving from 1840-1843. He was also Justice of the Peace and the first postmaster in Ridgefield. One of the first regular church services in the county were held in Christopher Walkup's home. The Presbyterian Church of Ridgefield, which he helped establish in 1839, was built on his home site.
Christopher Walkup surveyed the streets for the towns of Crystal Lake and Nunda. He named the street which passed along the eastern edge of his property "Walkup Avenue." It was the main North/South street in the town of Nunda. 130 acres of that Walkup family property is now known as Veteran Acres Park (formerly called Walkup Woods).
Christopher Walkup and his wife Sabrina had six children, John B., Margaret, Josiah, William, Janet and Sarah.
Two of Christopher's sons, John B. and Josiah, settled in Nunda Township, and built houses on the west side of Walkup Avenue.
In 1856, John B. Walkup built his home across from what is now Veteran Acres Park. The foundation and walls of this Greek Revival house are made of over 70,000 cobblestones which were picked up on the shores of Lake Michigan and hauled back to McHenry County by oxen. John B. died shortly after the construction was complete. The home is still standing and is once again owned by a member of the Walkup family. This home was the second building designated as a county historic landmark under the McHenry County Historic Preservation Ordinance of 1991.
Josiah Walkup built his home in 1846 at the southwest corner of today's intersection of Walkup Avenue and Route 176. Sadly, the house was demolished a few years ago. Josiah served as a trainman for the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad during the mid 1800's. For many years, the terminus of that line was at "Walkup's Crossing" on his property. Josiah was also a partner in the Crystal Lake Pickling & Preserving Works, which was located just south of the railroad tracks near today's intersection of Walkup Avenue and Woodstock Street. Richard Palmer blog.
Cobblestone Sites Built on Historic Foundation, by Dave Barnes, Chicago Tribune, 2 July 1996.
I did a quick investigation of the cobblestone mason of Crystal Lake, Illinois. I was surprised by a reference online that he may have come from Vermont. Not surprisingly, the name Andrew Jackson Simons isn't unique for that time period, but I found what I thought I would, or what I hoped I would: He was from New York.
On findagrave.com I found an Andrew Jackson Simons born in LeRoy, NY in 1827. This is likely where he became familiar with cobblestone masonry. The gravestone was issued by the government in honor of his service to the Union in the 36th regiment, Illinois Infantry during the Civil War, 1861-1864. He is buried in Crystal Lake with a death date in 1892.
In the 1850 census he is in Algonquin, McHenry County, Illinois, listed as a mason, age 21, born in NY. The birth date on the grave stone is of slight suspect, as in the 1870 census he is living in Crystal Lake and listing himself as a stone mason at the age of 40. In the 1880 census, he is living in Crystal Lake and describes himself as a stone and brick mason at the age of 50, having been born in NY. But this age difference is not enough to be surprising and the other information is too consistent to be mere coincidence. He was 5 foot, 11 inches tall - a large man for the time - useful in the masonry business.
This supports our theory that the cobblestone buildings in the western states were primarily made by masons from western NY. Erin Anheier email 9/28/2020.
"Walkup House Crystal Lake Landmark", 10/01/1975, author and publication not given, from the files of the McHenry Historical Society, Grace Moline, Historic Sites Chairperson.
"Cobblestone Homes Adorn Crystal Lake", The Sunday Courier News, 10/12/1975, from the files of the McHenry Historical Society, Grace Moline, Historic Sites Chairperson.
"Guide to Chicago's Historic Suburbs on Wheels and on Foot" (Lake, McHenry, Kane, Dupage, Will and Cook Counties), 7/1/1981, by Ira J. Bach (author) and Susan Wolfson (contributor), Pages 211-212 Walkup House, and 214 Wallace House.
"Cobblestone home back in the family", by Marles Humphrey, Chicago Tribune 12/11/1999 from the files of the McHenry Historical Society, Grace Moline, Historic Sites Chairperson.
"Restoring the Walkup House". by Jeff Ruetsche and photography by Robin Pendergrast, McHenry County Living, Winter 2011, pages 54-56. Article provided by McHenry Historical Society, Grace Moline, Historic Sites Chairperson. Reprinted with permission granted by McHenry County Living magazine.
Local Resister of Historic Places, McHenry County Historic Preservation Commission
Madoli Farms: "...built in 1856 out of cobblestones that were hauled in oxcarts, from the shores of Lake Michigan over 40 miles away. The farm itself dates from 1835 which is one of the oldest in the county..."
Walkup Avenue, Crystal Lake Historical Society
Walkup Heritage Farm, Visit McHenry County
McHenry County Landmarks Plaqued by the McHenry County Historic Preservation Commission: John B. Walkup House - Nunda Township, Erected in 1856 by John B. Walkup, one of the first settlers of McHenry County, this cobblestone Greek Revival house is built of stones brought from Lake Michigan and is one of the few remaining cobblestone houses in the county.
WalkupHouse-ca1920.jpg Circa 1920 ¹
2018.010.0016.jpg ¹
Walkup House Wall.jpg ¹
2020-10-10 John B. Walkup House-1_0.jpg ² October 2020
2020-10-10 John B. Walkup House-2_0.jpg ² October 2020
2020-10-10 John B. Walkup House-3_0.jpg ² October 2020
2020-10-10 John B. Walkup House-4_0.jpg ² October 2020
2020-10-10 John B. Walkup House-5_0.jpg ² October 2020
2020-10-10 John B. Walkup House-6_0.jpg ² October 2020
2020-10-10 John B. Walkup House-7_0.jpg ² October 2020
2020-10-10 John B. Walkup House-8_0.jpg ² October 2020
2020-10-10 John B. Walkup House-9_0.jpg ² October 2020
2020-10-10 John B. Walkup House-10_0.jpg ² October 2020
2020-10-10 John B. Walkup House-11_0.jpg ² , ³ October 2020
2020-10-10 John B. Walkup House-12_0.jpg ² October 2020
2020-10-10 John B. Walkup House-13_0.jpg ² October 10 2020
¹ Image courtesy Crystal Lake Historical Society. Diana Kenney
² Photography courtesy Grace Moline, Historic Sites Chairperson for the McHenry County Historical Society.
³ Polly Crandall Questers #772