Monday, January 9, 2012

Historic farmhouse at UIS gets a new lease on life

If you want to accomplish the impossible, just tell Tom Bundy it can’t be done.

Bundy has been working to restore the Strawbridge-Shepherd House at the University of Illinois Springfield. He also has worked on a number of other historic buildings in central Illinois, including the Elijah Iles House in Springfield.

Most thought the Strawbridge-Shepherd House, built around 1845, was beyond repair, and it was in danger of being torn down.

Members of the Elijah Iles House Foundation decided the house deserved a second look.

The foundation worked out a lease with UIS to keep the Strawbridge-Shepherd property from being demolished. The lease arrangement is $1 per year for 10 years with the option of extending the agreement, according to UIS.

The restoration was featured in an January 6, 2012, article in Springfield's Own Magazine.

Read the article online