Ansel B. Cook Home
Tours
By Appointment: Private tours are available by appointment outside of regularly scheduled open house times. Give us a call at 224.514.7426 or shoot us an email at info@libertyvillehistory.org to schedule. A week's notice is appreciated. $5/person
Summer Open Houses
Sundays, June through August, 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Docent-led tours. No reservation required. $5/adult. Kids free!
Victorian Christmas Open Houses
After the tree lighting until 9pm (first floor).
First two Saturdays in December, 11am to 3pm (both floors)
$5/adult. Kids free!
Please note: Children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult.
About
Ansel B. Cook Home
1878-1921
Ansel B. Cook purchased land in the center of Libertyville in 1870 from his father-in-law, Dr. Jesse Haven Foster, one of Libertyville's earliest settlers. The house was built in 1878 for use as a summer or country home. Mr. Cook’s masonry business was in Chicago so he didn't live here full time until his retirement in the late 1880s. Mr. Cook died in 1898. His third-wife, Emily Barrows Cook, continued to live in the house until her death in 1919. After her death, the house and grounds were given to the Village of Libertyville for use as a library and park.
To make it look more like a library, the front porch was removed, a flat roof and big pillars added, and the stucco was applied to the exterior. Voila! Instant library! The house served as the library from 1921-1968 when the current library building was constructed.
Historical Society
1968-present
Following the completion of the present Cook Memorial Library, the Cook Home became the headquarters of the Libertyville Historical Society. Most rooms of the Cook Home have been furnished to represent the time when the Cooks inhabited the house – 1878-1919. The Museum Room on the second-level showcases unique items from Libertyville’s history. The lower-level houses the Society’s archives.