Landmarks

Aurora City Hospital, 1888

516 S Lincoln Avenue
Aurora, IL 60505

The Aurora Hospital Association was organized in 1886 by a group of civic-minded citizens who raised donations for a hospital building. According to local lore, they were compelled to establish a hospital after an unconscious child was found in the yard of the Oak Street School. With no hospital facility, the child was taken to the jail. The Aurora City Hospital is an excellent example of Queen Anne institutional architecture. Only the cupola and porch roof cresting are missing from the original design.

Characteristic Queen Anne features include the decorative octagonal shingles in the gable of the projecting pavilion, incised brackets and turned columns on the entry porch, the lattice design along with the date on the porch gable, and the bay window supported by heavy scroll-sawn brackets on the south elevation. When the hospital opened in 1888, patients paid $1 per day for a bed, food, and care.

The Cooper House

729 W Downer
Aurora, IL 60505

The Cooper house is an excellent example of the Prairie style of architecture. Features of this style include an emphasis on the horizontal lines of the house, art glass windows, and the wide-overhanging eaves. While the architect is unknown, it is thought to be the work of an associate of Frank Llyod Wright.

Crane Brown House, Circa 1837

2888 Eola Road
Aurora, IL 60505

The historic red brick house was constructed in the British "I" plan. Stylistic elements of the dwelling adapt and combine late Federal and Greek Revival styles, including the symmetrical facade, and the heavy limestone lintels over the windows. The home was built of brick manufactured on the site from rich brown clay found beneath the thick topsoil. The brick is laid in an American bond, with header rows every seventh row, with stretcher rows in between. James and Annie Crane Brown were natives of Wayne County, New York, and came west in the fall of 1836. They made claim to the homestead that same year. In 1868 the homestead was sold to a son, DeWit Crane Brown.

Dr. Charles Livingston Agnew House

653 N May Street
Aurora, IL 60505

Dr. Agnew was a prominent physician in Aurora. His house was designated a landmark in honor of his accomplishments as the first African-American physician in Aurora, and the charitable contributions that he made to the community. Dr. Agnew was recognized in the 1913 Funk and Wagnall's Dictionary, which was dedicated and inscribed to him. He graduated from Meharry Medical College in 1895, and came to Aurora in 1907.

Fire Station Number 3, 1887

71 S Lake Street
Aurora, IL 60505

Constructed in the Italianate style, the building still features the original pressed metal decorative cornice and the carved stone inset identifying it as AFD Number 3.

Fire Station Number 5, 1939

534 Fifth Avenue
Aurora, IL 60505

This fire station was designed in the bungalow style to "merge perfectly with its residential surroundings." Ironically, is now a being used as a private residence.

George Jungels House

985 Sheffer Road
Aurora, IL 60505

The Jungels family were early immigrants to Aurora from Luxemburg in what became known as the Pigeon Hill neighborhood. Part of the Jungels' farm was an Indian burial ground, which he never plowed out of respect. The house was built by George Jungels Jr. in the 1920s. It is a Four Square style with Craftsman influences.