Fabyan Estate

The estate of Colonel George and Nellie (nee Wright) Fayban. Nelle was widowed when she died of cancer in 1939. The heirs sold the estate to Kane county, Illinois for $70,500; it is now part of the Kane County Forest Preserve District and known as Fayban Forest Preserve.

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1		The Fabyan Lighthouse When George and Nellie lived there the estate was known as "Riverbank" as it is bisected by the Fox River.
2		Fabyan Villa. The home of Colonel George Fayban was redesigned and enlarged by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1907. It is on the Register of Historic Places and is now part of Fayban Forest Preserve in Batavia, Illinois.	Frank Lloyd Wright
3		Splendor Back in Fabyan Villa. The Daily Herald, Chicago, Illinois, Friday, May 8, 1998, section 1 page 4.
4		Fabyan Estate George and Nellie lived here from 1905 to 1939. The home now serves as a museum. The features of the estate grounds are eclectic, running from Egyptian, Japanese, Roman themes and, more. While the Villa and the windmill have been fully restored most of the features like this chair which, is missing a head, are less than pristine.
5		The Fabyan Windmill. The mill was originally constructed in York Township, Illinois from a Dutch-built prefabricated kit that included hand-cut cypress beams with hickory and maple gearing. The mill also had a wing building possibly for storage or, it may have once housed an auxiliary steam engine. On October 15, 1914, Fabyan purchased the mill for $8,000 from the widow of it's owner. It's not known why he purchased it. Some have suggested it was a present for his wife. Looking around the grounds it's easy to see that he just liked having things that were different. The size of the mill prevented him from easily moving it the 20 miles to it's new home. he would spend his next 19 months and $75,000 disassembling the mill piece by piece and reassembling it on his property. He made a number of modifications. A new foundation for was poured from concrete that included a basement level. This made the rebuilt mill six floors high and, the tallest in Illinois. Windows were added to the fourth floor. The original mill was made almost entirely of wood including the driveshaft. He had an separate iron drive shaft installed to run the machinery in the basement level, which included a sharpening wheel, a corn sheller, and a grain separator. He also installed an oven in the basement, although it was rarely, if ever, used. An exhaust system was built for the underground level. It came up through a false chimney in a stone bus shelter which, unfortunately was destroyed by a truck in the 1950s. At one point the estate was home to award-winning livestock and other animals. The mill was used to grind their feed as well as by other local farmers. The mill was last used about 1950 and the sailcloth was removed from the blades. The mill sat and deteriorated for years. The county was considering demolishing it in 1990 when it wasn't even considered safe enough for inspection. Fortunately many people argued it should be saved. It was restored with the help of private donations and fund raising which paid the $916,000.00 bill. A grand reopening celebration was held June 3, 2005, exactly 26 years after it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places. Today it is open on weekends May through October for public tours. In 2008 a small picnic shelter was built near the windmill which echos the storage wing that was there when the mill was at it's original location. Lucas Verbij a windmill expert from the Netherlands served as the consultant for the restoration. He said; "If the windmill was in Holland, it would be the most revered windmill in all of Holland".
6		Windmill Stamps. In 1980 the United States Postal Service release a set of 5 15¢ stamps depicted in sepia ink on yellow paper. The stamps were only available in booklets. The Illinois windmill is the Fayban Windmill.	George Fabyan
7		Route 25 Landmark To Get Second Wind. The Daily Herald, Chicago, Illinois, Saturday, November 27, 1999 page 1.
8		Route 25 Landmark To Get Second Wind, The Daily Herald, Chicago, Illinois, Saturday, November 27, 1999 page 4.
9		Japanese Tea Garden. The Garden was designed about 1910 by Taro Otsuka, an emigrant Japanese landscape architect, who had an office in downtown Chicago. Covering about an acre it still has some of the original plants including a Ginkgo Tree and Weeping Spruces.
10		Fabyan Indian. Yet another feature who's original intent is lost to time. This giant Indian statue now stands guard over a parking lot. It's headdress originally had one vertical feather but, it too is lost to the ages.
11		Fabyan Bear Cage. Once the home to his bears; Tom and Jerry, the bear cage now serves as a picnic shelter. Years before the cartoon, Tom and Jerry were named after an eggnog type drink popular in the day.
12		Riverbank Laboratory Gates. There are many things in Fabyan Forest Preserve that seem out of context. Some of these are just because they lie in ruin. These gates that were once the gates the Riverbank Laboratories have been relocated and now seem to be gates to nowhere.	George Fabyan
13		Fabyan Owls. Today as a forest preserve the estate is an ideal place to bird watch and see other wildlife.
14		Fabyan Turtles.

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George Fabyan (23432), Nellie May Wright (23433)