Naperville Preservation holds contest to help document historic Tosi houses
The homes he built in Naperville and elsewhere represent a journey to the past — specifically, to a post-World War II era that offered a promise of a bright future for young families.
'I think the Don Tosi homes are probably the most representative of that time of great growth and optimism in Naperville,' said Jane Burke, secretary of Naperville Preservation Inc.
The nonprofit — in collaboration with Chicago-based firm Preservation Futures — is in the process of documenting all of Tosi homes in Naperville to help preserve and educate the public about the unique homes that capture a very different time in the city's past.
To help with the effort, Naperville Preservation is hosting a 'Spot the Tosi' contest in which participants are vying for a $100 gift card to the Italian restaurant Gia Mia in downtown Naperville. The contest closes at midnight Friday.
It is the third architectural survey being done by the local preservation group. It previously conducted two surveys — one in East Highlands in 2022 and the other in River Haven Estates in 2023 — to determine how many mid-century modern homes remain standing in those neighborhoods.
Their surveys revealed that while the majority of the historic homes in River Haven Estates were mostly intact, more than half of the 1950s-era homes in the East Highlands had been torn down to make way for sizable upgrades. It's possible Tosi houses fell victim to the wrecking ball.
'Some of the houses in those surveys were built by Don Tosi and we found that there was a lot of interest with people about mid-century and then about Don Tosi,' Naperville Preservation Inc. President Bill Simon said.
The buzz around Don Tosi gave the nonprofit the idea to do another survey, this time focusing just on Tosi homes in the city. With a total budget of $6,950, it's supported by grants from the Naperville Special Events and Community Arts Commission, the Driehaus Foundation and the Donnelly Foundation.
Simon said that while the organization had information on some of the Tosi homes in Naperville, they realized they could collect more with the public's help. So far, seven people have submitted entries to the contest, with participants identifying a total of 56 Tosi homes.
Tosi's architectural career started in the 1950s in Aurora, according to the former state publication Historic Illinois. At the age of 26, Tosi helped implement architect Bruce Goff's vision for the Sam and Ruth Van Sickle Ford House, one of the most renowned homes in Aurora to this day.
'Bruce Goff brought him on,' Simon said. 'They were old wartime buddies, and so he brought him on to do the construction.'
That project was crucial in shaping Tosi's future architectural style. He designed and built 16 houses in Aurora between 1951 and 1958, where his homes often included sharp angular features like irregularly shaped rooflines and triangular chimneys.
In 1956, Tosi took his design skills and affinity for angularity to the fast-growing Naperville. Features of his Naperville homes included prow-shaped windows, overhanging eaves and cantilevered balconies with no exposed posts on the outside wall for support.
Perhaps the most identifiable feature of a Tosi home are his front doors, almost always done in orange — a pop of color that stood out against the browns and beiges of neighboring homes, according to Historic Illinois. These signature doors, occasionally painted in a dark red, were a signature of Tosi house from the mid-1950s to the late-1970s. The Chicago Tribune declared them his 'trademark' feature in his obituary in 2009.
Not all of the Tosi homes that remain in Naperville today kept all of the original design features, Simon said. Some people end up replacing the cantilevered balconies because they can be difficult to maintain, he said.
Once Naperville Preservation finishes the creation of its Tosi home list, it hopes to publish the findings and share it with the broader community. The organization also hopes their findings may encourage owners of Tosi homes to get their houses landmarked.
'We tend to think of historical buildings as the historic district, the downtown,' Simon said. 'These homes by Don Tosi are really unique — and they are historical now. So we want to raise awareness of them because he is recognized as being a significant designer of homes and builder of homes.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Boston Globe
an hour ago
- Boston Globe
Jack McAuliffe, who brewed a craft beer revolution, dies at 80
New Albion offered something profoundly different: handmade ales using just water, barley, hops, and yeast. Mr. McAuliffe and his partners, Suzy Denison and Jane Zimmerman, ran the label out of a rundown warehouse in Sonoma, Calif., making just 400 barrels a year, about as much as Coors could produce in a few minutes. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up The very idea of small-batch beer was such an anomaly that Mr. McAuliffe struggled to find equipment and ingredients. Instead, he fashioned much of the production line himself from materials he had scavenged from a junkyard. Advertisement Unable to buy traditional hops in small quantities, he opted for a new variety, cascade, whose notes of fruit and pine didn't appeal to the big breweries -- but which, thanks to Mr. McAuliffe, became a prized part of the craft brewing repertoire. His DIY ethic likewise became a defining characteristic of craft brewing, said Theresa McCulla, a former curator at the National Museum of American History who documented the history of beer in America. Advertisement 'He really showed Americans that if you can build it and sheetrock it, and weld it, then you can brew your own great beer,' she said in an interview. Mr. McAuliffe called his brewery New Albion as an homage to a long-closed predecessor in the Bay Area, as well as to the name Sir Francis Drake gave the region when he sailed along the coast of Northern California in 1579. A drawing of Drake's flagship, the Golden Hind, appeared on New Albion's labels. New Albion was profiled in The New York Times and The Washington Post, and demand for its beers grew rapidly. Still, Mr. McAuliffe was unable to secure bank loans to fund expansion, and the brewery closed in 1982. Though New Albion lasted less than six years, practically every craft pioneer who came along afterward has cited the brewery as an inspiration, among them Ken Grossman of Sierra Nevada, Jim Koch of Sam Adams, and Sam Calagione of Dogfish Head. 'They say that when the Ramones first played in England, members of the Clash were in the audience, members of the Sex Pistols were in the audience, then away they went,' Calagione said in an interview. 'While the Ramones launched a million bands, Jack McAuliffe launched 10,000 American craft breweries.' John Robert McAuliffe was born May 11, 1945, in Caracas, Venezuela, where his father, John James McAuliffe, was a code breaker for the US government. His mother, Margaret (Quigley) McAuliffe, was a teacher. After World War II, Jack's father joined the State Department. The family lived in Medellín, Colombia, and later in Northern Virginia while his father taught at American University in Washington. Advertisement In high school, Jack became enthralled with welding and worked in a shop as an apprentice. He enrolled at Michigan Technological University but quit to join the Navy. He was posted to a base in Scotland, where he repaired submarine antennas. In his free time, he developed a fondness for British ales -- especially full-bodied porters and stouts -- and began brewing his own at home. After he was honorably discharged from a base in the San Francisco Bay Area, Mr. McAuliffe decided to stay. He received an associate degree from the City College of San Francisco and worked for an engineering company in Sunnyvale, Calif., all the while dreaming of making his beloved British-style ales in the United States. Finally, in 1975, he met Denison and Zimmerman, who each put in $1,500 in seed money to start New Albion. Mr. McAuliffe was a demanding brewmaster, and Zimmerman left the company. But Denison stayed on, eventually running most of the daily operations. 'He totally trusted me,' she said in an interview. 'He might go into San Francisco to pick up hops or something and leave me completely in charge.' After the brewery closed, Mr. McAuliffe sold his equipment to a new brewery, the Mendocino Brewing Co., where he worked for a time as a brewmaster. He soon quit, he said, because after being a captain, he couldn't stomach working as a deckhand. But he continued supporting the craft brewing movement, in one instance working with Fritz Maytag, the owner of the Anchor Brewing Co. in San Francisco, on securing legislation to allow brew pubs to serve food. Advertisement Mr. McAuliffe later lived in Nevada and Texas before settling in Arkansas. Along with his daughter, he leaves his sisters, Cathy and Margarita McAuliffe; his brother, Tom; two grandchildren, and one great-grandchild. Craft beer did not take off as a national phenomenon until the late 1990s, and many in the new generation of drinkers had never heard of New Albion. That began to change in 2012. Koch, of Sam Adams, contacted Mr. McAuliffe to tell him that not only had he bought the trademark to New Albion, but he also wanted to resurrect the beer as a limited release. After leading a nationwide tour reintroducing New Albion to craft-beer fans, Koch gave the proceeds from the beer and the rights to the New Albion name to Mr. McAuliffe. And in 2019, the National Museum of American History, part of the Smithsonian Institution, featured items related to New Albion in a permanent exhibit on craft brewing, including an original bottle of its ale and a photograph of Mr. McAuliffe. McCulla, who designed the exhibit, interviewed Mr. McAuliffe for an oral history of craft brewing in 2019. She asked him what he thought of his legacy. 'Damnedest thing I ever saw,' he said. 'It's really hard to believe that this happened.' This article originally appeared in
UPI
2 hours ago
- UPI
New memorial project brings Britain's bloodiest Korean War battle to life
SEOUL, July 25 (UPI) -- On the site of one of the Korean War's most ferocious battles, a pioneering hybrid online/offline tour was launched Friday to commemorate the British army's stand at the Battle of the Imjin River. "Stand in the Bootprints of Heroes," produced by the Seoul-based non-profit British Korean War Memorial Committee, features 11 QR-coded signs located at key sites around the battlefield in Paju, some 25 miles north of Seoul. The codes link to a series of 19 video episodes detailing the events of the three-day battle with narration, music, photographs, paintings and maps. The project's combination of real-world location markers with multimedia storytelling "brings history to life in a way that is immersive, respectful and accessible to all," Commodore Andy Lamb, Britain's defense attache in Seoul, said at a launch event held at the British Embassy in Seoul on Friday. "It is helping people connect with the past without altering the landscape itself," Lamb, who serves as the president of the BKWMC, said. The April 1951 battle came during the largest Chinese offensive of the Korean War and is remembered for the heroism of the British 29th Infantry Brigade, particularly the last stand of the Gloster Battalion. British and U.N. forces held off the Chinese 63rd Army in an effort to delay their advance toward Seoul. On April 25, the heavily outnumbered U.N. troops were forced to withdraw from their positions, but the Gloster Battalion was surrounded and fought valiantly until being overrun. The British held the key breakthrough point long enough to blunt the Chinese offensive and help U.N. forces maintain control of Seoul. With over 1,000 casualties, the Battle of the Imjin River remains Britain's bloodiest action since World War II. The 1950-53 Korean War left millions dead, including some 160,000 South Korean soldiers and more than 36,000 U.S. soldiers. Britain provided the second-largest contingent to the combined United Nations Command -- over 81,000 troops -- and saw 1,078 killed and 2,674 wounded. Despite the scope of the devastation, the Korean conflict has long been overshadowed in the West's historical memory, lost between World War II and the Vietnam War -- a situation the team behind the Imjin River project is hoping to help rectify. "It is widely recognized as the 'Forgotten War,' and this work tries to address that," Lamb told UPI. "We're trying to bridge together commemoration and education. As the number of veterans reduces and many of them come to the end of their lives, it's important that we find new ways to commemorate and inform." Younger Koreans also have much to learn about the history of the battles fought right in the backyard, said Lee Myung Hee, a Paju city official who attended the opening ceremony. Lee told UPI that the city is planning to promote the Imjin River project and is organizing a tour for students in October. "This project is a good opportunity for the younger generations, not only in Paju, but nationwide, to understand and remember what the veterans did during the Korean War," she said. "Standing in the Bootprints of Heroes" is the second project by the British Korean War Memorial Committee, which receives its funding from local business sponsors and private donations. The group installed a series of informative panels last year at Paju's Gloster Hill Memorial Park and is considering future expansions for the Imjin River site, including augmented-reality features and physical installations. A new project commemorating the 1951 Battle of Happy Valley in Goyang is also being discussed, organizers said. British Ambassador to South Korea Colin Crooks said in remarks at the launch event that the Imjin River tour is an innovative way to keep the stories of Korean War veterans alive. "One of the great privileges of being ambassador is helping to mark the British contribution to the Korean War," Crooks said. "As the number of living veterans declines, our duty to preserve their legacy becomes more urgent."
CBS News
2 hours ago
- CBS News
Sister Pat Murphy, longtime advocate for immigration rights, dies at 96
The Chicago Catholic community is mourning the loss of a beloved nun and humanitarian. Sister Pat Murphy, a tireless advocate for migrants and refugees, has died at 96. She was a sister of Mercy for 77 years. Sister Pat Murphy began her Mercy ministry in 1947 as a teacher in parochial schools in Illinois and Wisconsin. She then spent nine years as a missionary, educator, and administrator before returning to the U.S. in 1969. She was a lifetime companion of Mercy Sister Joann Persch, and together, they pursued justice and opportunity for immigrants and other marginalized groups. Both spoke with CBS Chicago a few months ago about their dedication to serving Chicago's asylum seekers. "This is our life's work, is to reach out in some way and help those who are vulnerable, and right now, the group that seems the most vulnerable here in Chicago are the many, many immigrants coming into Chicago, seeking, seeking freedom," Sister Pat Murphy said. She died on July 21 in the company of her Mercy sisters, family members, and colleagues, who shared her passion for justice and human dignity.
