Howard Van Doren Shaw's 'Thorndale Manor' In Lake Forest Sold

LAKE FOREST, IL — The historic Lake Forest mansion of Thorndale Manor sold this month for $2 million. Designed by Howard Van Doren Shaw, the three-story Georgian was commissioned more than a century ago by the president of a railroad company who did not survive to see it completed.

The closing price was $500,000 below its final listing price, $700,000 under its the price at which it was relisted 18 months ago and $7 million below its peak asking price from more than a decade ago. The six-bedroom home boasts more than 10,000 square feet of space, 25 rooms and several porches on a 6-acre lot.

Miller, the home's original owner, began his career with the railroads as a stenographer before the age of 20, eventually working his way up to the position of president of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy railroad in 1910.

Miller and his wife had been on tour in a national park in Montana before he died suddenly in 1914 after undergoing an operation for appendicitis, despite the best efforts of specialists brought in from surrounding areas on special trains.

Since World War II, the Green Bay Road manor on the northern border of Lake Forest has been owned by the family of the late Marshall Field & Co. executive Ronald Boardman.

Boardman, whose family traces its lineage to the Mayflower in 1620, was instrumental in opening and managing the first suburban Marshall Field's stores, according to an obituary. He was also a banker, philanthropist and former director and treasurer of Lake Forest Academy.

Eight years after his death, the estate – then 19.45 acres – hit the market asking for $17 million. About 13 acres of the estate was subsequently subdivided into six smaller lots, three of which have already been sold through the Boardmans' Thorndale Management company, formed in 2008.

The manor home has been restored and updated with refinished hardwood floors and central air. It also includes an elevator and five wood-burning fireplaces.

Its grounds include a wooded area and pond. The estate's gardens were originally designed by renowned landscape architect Jens Jensen.

According to the Lake County Assessor's Office, the manor home's estimated market value of the property is $2.66 million. Its more recent annual property tax bill was nearly $46,000. The identity of the buyers was not immediately available in public records.

Earlier: "Thorndale Manor," a restored Georgian estate in Lake Forest, remains elegant though its grounds have been divided.

• Thorndale Manor
• Built: 1917
• Architect: Howard Van Doren Shaw
• Peak listing: $9 million in July 2007
• Final listing: $2.5 million in August 2018
• Sale Price: $2 million on Nov. 16
• Square Feet: 10,064
• Lot: 6.07 acres
• Bedrooms: 6
• Bathrooms: 5 full, 2 half

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