Marbold Farmstead holds Antique Show and Farm Fest
It had been a long while since I had been to Marbold Farmstead. This historic farmstead is run by a group of dedicated volunteers. Their goal is to create a living history farm.
Yesterday Keith and I traveled north to the Greenview, Illinois area. We attended the Marbold Farmstead Antique Show and Farm Fest. The estate is actually located south of Greenview. When the farmstead was built the town of Greenview did not exist. This was our first time at this fun event that included antique tractors, and a fun selection of antiques. The antiques were for sale and placed inside of the house giving it a very cool décor. A couple of years ago, I visited the home that the foundation is restoring. I did an interview and wrote an article for Senior News & Times.
The History!
The historic home is progressing. When it was built, the home was ahead of its time. Marbold Farmstead was an agricultural Mecca with a boiler and gasification plant. The steam heated the house and the gas lit the home and farm. There were stockyards for the cattle and there remains of an ice house on site and footings of a huge barn. The Marbold home was quite a place back when and it is still quite lovely.
The story of the home begins when John H. Marbold immigrated to the States from Bad Bergen Germany in 1846 with his three children. He purchased land in Sweetwater, Illinois. He and his son Henry Harmon, known as H.H. partnered to create Marbold Farms. The farm started with 200 acres and grew to an amazing 4,000!
Tour
We took a very cool historic tour of Marbold Farmstead during the festival where our guide explained that the farm had been self-sufficient. They had sheep, doves, turkey, chickens, cows, quality cattle, dairy cows, a garden, orchard, fruit gardens and more. They started a banking business and sponsored many German families to come to the area. These families then worked on the farm and in the house. During the tour we learned that the house was built back in 1850 and hasn’t been lived in since the 1970’s.
Today
The home has been in the hands of the preservation group since 2012 and they hold events to raise funds to keep the restoration going. The next project is construction of the glass conservatory on the front of the house. They are also working on restoration of the parlor, hallway and staircase.
The home and grounds are open the 1st and 3rd Sundays June – September and year round by appointment. They also have several events during the year. Call 217-632-3144 or 217-968-5620 for an appointment. Our guide said there have been weddings on the grounds and I can see how this would be an amazing place for an event like this!
If you would like to donate, keep them in mind, this is the kind of history, our children can’t find in a textbook!
