{"nrhp_refnum":"01000867","name":"Cook Memorial Library","other_names":["Ansel B. Cook Home","Victorian Museum"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"413 N. Milwakee Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Libertyville","county":"Lake County","state":"IL","lat":42.28729201700003,"lon":-87.95535818699994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2001-08-16","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Education"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story stuccoed house at 413 North Milwaukee Avenue in Libertyville, Lake County, Illinois, built in 1878 as the country residence of Ansel B. Cook and later converted into a village library and museum.","why_significant":"The house was built for Ansel B. Cook, a stonemason, contractor and Chicago alderman, and is thought to have been designed by architect William W. Boyington. Cook willed it to the village as a library and memorial hall, and it opened as the Cook Memorial Library in 1921. The 1921 stucco and Classical Revival portico, together with original details such as fireplaces, stairway and trim, are described as retaining its integrity despite the non-contributing 1968 addition.","narrative":"Built in 1878 at 413 North Milwaukee Avenue in Libertyville, this house began as the country residence of Ansel B. Cook, a Connecticut-born stonemason who became a contractor, state legislator and Chicago alderman. Chicago architect William W. Boyington is thought to have designed it. Original features include a limestone basement, seven marble fireplaces, octagonal bays with angled windows, a Stick Style front stairway and Queen Anne entry doors. Cook's will directed that his home become a library and memorial hall. After his widow's death, the village opened it as the Cook Memorial Library in 1921, when the wood siding was covered with stucco and a four-column Classical Revival portico replaced the original porch. Plans in 1939 and 1963 that would have altered or overshadowed the house were not carried out. A 1968 addition stands to the west, set back and joined by a link. Today the building serves as a museum, and the chimneys, roof and siding were restored in 1998.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"William W. Boyington is thought to have been the architect; Ansel B. Cook built the property as his residence.","architectural_style":"Classical Revival","criteria":[],"status_note":"Now used as a museum (Ansel B. Cook Victorian Museum). A 1968 library addition to the west is non-contributing, and the chimneys, roof and siding were restored in 1998.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:37.269712-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/78/8933/28893378/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/01000867.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/01000867/f255537992-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/01000867/f255537992-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"McGhiever","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ansel_B._Cook_House.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">McGhiever</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ansel_B._Cook_House.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"100011737","name":"Libertyville Downtown Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/illinois/libertyville-downtown-historic-district-100011737/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28893378","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cook_Memorial_Library_(Libertyville,_Illinois)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5166987"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/lake-county/cook-memorial-library-01000867/"}