577 Cherry

The elegant Federal Revival house at 577 Cherry was first built around 1899 for Jesse and Agnes Alton.

Jesse Alton moved around quite a bit before making his way to the Chicago area. He was born in LaGrange, NY in 1858. He then moved to what was the Dakota Territory in the late 1870s before arriving in the Chicago area sometime in the 1880s. In 1889, he married Agnes Leslie in Oak Park. The couple moved to Evanston before settling in Winnetka in 1900.

Once in Winnetka, both Jesse and Agnes were active in the village. While maintaining a career as a builder’s hardware salesman, Jesse also served on the village council and helped the Congregational Church campaign for its new building. Agnes was also an active member of the Congregational Church and was part of several local social groups.

Notably, during WWI, Jesse Alton was in charge of the Red Cross Civilian Relief Headquarters at the Great Lakes Naval Station. While he remained stateside throughout the war, his service was not without sacrifice. According to his obituary in the Winnetka Talk, Alton developed a chronic illness during his time with the Red Cross, which never improved. He died suddenly, however, of an unrelated illness in 1927.

After Jesse Alton died, Agnes stayed in the house for several years. In the mid-1930s, she sold it to the first of several subsequent homeowners who helped maintain the historic integrity of the house.

While many revival styles became very popular on the North Shore in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, such as the Georgian Revival and Tudor Revival, the Federal Revival style didn’t really catch on. And as a result, there are relatively few examples of the style in Winnetka. 577 Cherry, then, is a somewhat rare example.

The Federal Revival style takes its cues from Federal architecture that was popular in the US after the American Revolution until the 1830s. Several important elements of the Federal style are exemplified, such as the symmetry of the front façade, the delicate and refined ornamentation on the front porch and along the roofline, and the wood clapboard siding. The widow’s walk on top of the roof is also occasionally seen on early examples of the style.

In a 1989 survey, one architectural historian referred to 577 Cherry as an “elegant example of the style with exquisite classical detailing.” It certainly stands out, as we hope it will for many years to come.