pleasant home

A great way to spend a few hours in Oak Park. Pleasant Home is just lovely - from the grand architecture to the tiniest detail. We were lucky enough to visit on a sunny day which accentuated the beautiful stained-glass windows. So much to see and learn. Highly recommended!

We stopped in here when in Oak Park to see Wright's works. Pleasant home is early Prairie style, but fairly ornate. Very good tour, lower level has some incredible woodwork. Upper level is Oak Park historical society. Worth going there just to see the player piano/ player violin (yes, a real violin!) combination in action. Astounding!

The Farson-Mills mansion, built in 1897, is a house museum set in Mills Park. The Pleasant Home Foundation works to preserve it and presents year-round tours and educational and cultural programming. The 30-room house and park are also available for conferences, receptions, and weddings.We visited for the last of this summer’s Friday night silent movies, joining dozens on the packed porch for a showing of Harold Lloyd’s 1923 “Safety Last.” The film’s famed stunts – like Lloyd hanging from a skyscraper clock and swinging from a flagpole rope - were wonderfully heightened by an original piano score that Thomas Holmes lyrically, jauntily, and dramatically played through the whole seventy minutes of the show.

This is a fantastic venue best wedding I have ever been too! Décor is amazing, grounds are beautiful and the staff was excellent!

Of all the wonderful buildings designed by noted Prairie School architect, George Maher, this is his masterpiece and the only one open to the public on a regular basis. It is definitely worth a trip, especially now to see the recently restored Summer Dining Porch. You will be able to experience the radical impact of early Prairie School design philosophy, a development of the Arts and Crafts movement in America. The building's interiors are exquisitely preserved and reflect the lifestyles of the two important families who occupied this house from its construction in 1897 up until 1929. You will also get to see and hear one of the few restored "Violana Virtuosos," an amazing mechanical music machine devised by the house's second Owner, Herbert Mills. This interesting historic instrument is perfectly paired in Maher's house which he designed for investment banker John Farson, who was also a music lover and patron.

This is a truly lovely property designed by noted Prairie School architect George W. Maher. The interiors are richly decorated, with custom furnishings and lighting designed by Maher himself, following his "Motif rhythm" theory. Set in newly landscaped Mills Park, this is a must see for architecture buffs who venture to Oak Park.

This is a new tour, we understand and it was lovely! The fireplace was lit, a pianist was playing wonderful background music, the staff was warm and welcoming! The tour began with a wine, cheese and other yummy snacks and we had ample time to visit with the staff and other guests before we were escorted through the main floor. Different docents gave details of various rooms and that was fun as well. We received a nice history of the house and the main two families who inhabited it. We were given a very nice booklet at the completion of the tour which has many photos and additional information. We thought it a delightful two hour tour and are looking forward to returning in warmer weather and during daylight so we can fully appreciate the grounds and see the art glass with the sun upon it. It was really a fun evening and I've recommended it to friends already. I got the tickets through Groupon - a major deal!

Worth an hour of your leisure time to see the inside of this house in a residental area and have a tour from the staff. The grounds are small but border a lovely park so rest on a bench when done inside the house. Be aware of the opening times which are specific to certain days. Reserve the free pass at the Oak Park Library.

Fairly interesting history. Architecture is somewhat interesting but not a wow. Home to the OP Historical Society and hosts some good programs. Grounds/MIlls Park are newly refurbished and very nice. Irises in front of the home can be very beautiful in the spring.

The first floor is the main floor of the house, and the docent does a wonderful job of taking you through it. But when done, he brings you up to the 2nd floor, where the bedrooms are, and turns you over to an Oak Park Historical Society guide. The person from the Society then leads you through those rooms, which are no longer looking like bedrooms. Instead, they are exhibit rooms, and the exhibits are strange, to say the least. It looks like any famous person whomever stopped in Oak Park for a night gets a place on one of their many bulletin board halls of fame. The 2nd floor is quite lame!