Committed
 to Preserving
 the Historic
 Visual Character
 of Lake Forest, IL

 
 
 


 
 

Recommended Books

“The Seven Lamps of Architecture,” by John Ruskin
(London, 1849). A compilation of lectures on architecture.
Later printings and editions were widely held in local
private libraries, including that of Howard Shaw. Available
from the Lake Forest Bookstore. Quote from chapter “The
Lamp of Memory:”
“…[I]t is…no question of expediency or feeling whether we
shall preserve the buildings of past times or not. We have no
right whatever to touch them. They are not ours. They belong
to all the generations of mankind who are to follow us. The
dead have still their right in them: that which they laboured
for, the praise of achievement or the expression of religious
feeling, or whatever else it might be which in those buildings
they intended to be permanent, we have no right to obliterate.
What we ourselves built, we are at liberty to throw down; but
what other [persons] gave their strength and wealth and life
to accomplish, their right over does not pass away with their
death…
Neither does any building whatever belong to those mobs who
do violence to it. For a mob it is, and must be always: it matters
not whether enraged, or in deliberate folly; whether countless,
or sitting in committees: the people who destroy anything
causelessly are a mob, and Architecture is always destroyed
causelessly. “

“A Building History of Northern New England,” by James
L. Garvin. Hanover and London: University Press of New
England, 2001. Don’t be misled by the title. This book
will appeal to homeowners in any region, particularly
those beginning the restoration process. Included are
in-depth discussions of materials and guidelines on how
to date them. It offers answers to questions that most
perplex architects and preservationists and is generously
illustrated. From the book:
“Whether you love or merely tolerate your old house, it is well
to approach the building with one truth firmly in mind. Human
life is short. The life of a house is potentially limitless. Even
in the youthful United States, we have houses that have been
sheltering families for three hundred years or more. Barring
disaster or imprudent neglect, your house is destined to
outlive you. You are but one in a long line of custodians of the
property—a line that extends backward through the decades or
centuries and forward to an indefinite future.
That being the case, let the changes you make to your property
be additive rather than subtractive in nature. If you need a
new kitchen or bathroom or furnace, install it. But wherever
possible, install it in such a way as to preserve the original
features or fabric…Try to make your work add to the legacy of
the past so that you can pass on a dwelling of even greater value
and comfort to the future. Remember that the number of old
houses is finite, and diminishes each year. It is a privilege and
responsibility to own a piece of the past.”




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400 East Illinois Road, Lake Forest, Illinois, 60045 • Phone: 847-234-1230 • Fax: 847-234-9250 • Email
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