Swift, Louis F., House
Also known as: Westleigh; Gillette House
Why it's listed
Set on about 3.5 acres off Foster Place in Lake Forest, this 14-room brick house of roughly 10,500 square feet began in 1916 as a wing added to the country estate of meatpacker Louis F. Swift, known as "Westleigh." Architect Howard Van Doren Shaw designed it in the Italian Renaissance Revival style, with low hipped slate roofs, bracketed eaves and limestone trim. The design grows more formal from the informal front to the symmetrical rear, which has a two-story limestone loggia and a raised terrace with a fountain. Swift's original 1898 Colonial Revival mansion was demolished in the late 1940s, leaving the Shaw wing as the surviving core of the estate. In 1956 Stanley Anderson and Associates rehabilitated it, adding an entry hall, staircase and kitchen, and later designed the 1965 front portico and garage. Because these changes left the main facades and formal rooms largely untouched, the Shaw design remains well preserved. It illustrates the large country estates built by prominent Chicago families west of Green Bay Road.
Significance in brief: The house is a fireproof wing designed by prominent country house architect Howard Van Doren Shaw, and it survives from Swift's "Westleigh" estate after the original 1898 mansion was demolished in the late 1940s. It reflects the development of large country estates west of Green Bay Road in Lake Forest by wealthy Chicago families. The form states that the integrity of Shaw's design, as adapted by Stanley Anderson and Associates, is excellent.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 05001256, listed November 18, 2005. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 255 E. Foster Place, Lake Forest |
|---|---|
| County | Lake County |
| Listed | November 18, 2005 |
| Reference number | 05001256 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architect / builder | Howard Van Doren Shaw (1916 design); Stanley Anderson and Associates (1956 rehabilitation, 1965 porch and garage); William Carbys Zimmerman (original 1898 mansion) |
| Architectural style | Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals: Italian Renaissance |
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Currently used as a single-family dwelling; rehabilitated in 1956, with later additions in 1965 and 1971 and a kitchen and family room remodel in 1987. |
| Within district | Lake Forest Historic District |
| Coordinates | 42.23584, -87.84117 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
National Register listing is honorary for a privately owned home: it does not by itself restrict what an owner may do with their own money, and it does not require public access. Restrictions come from local landmark or historic-district ordinances, which are separate (how they differ).
Owner-occupied houses are not eligible for the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit, which applies to income-producing buildings, but many states offer credits for homeowners. Listing also opens the door to preservation easements and to buying a plaque. Start with what listing means for homeowners, renovating a listed house and selling one.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 05001256.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q96390911
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.