Hiram B. Scutt Mansion

Hiram B. Scutt Mansion
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
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Location	206 N Broadway Joliet, Will County, Illinois, U.S.
Coordinates	41°31′37″N 88°5′18″W / 41.52694°N 88.08833°W / 41.52694; -88.08833Coordinates: 41°31′37″N 88°5′18″W / 41.52694°N 88.08833°W / 41.52694; -88.08833
Built	1882
Architect	James C. Wesse
Architectural style	Second Empire
NRHP Reference #	02001760[1]
Added to NRHP	February 5, 2003

The Hiram B. Scutt Mansion, also known as Barb Villa, is a historic residence in Joliet, Illinois.

History

Hiram Scutt was a Civil War veteran who opened H. B. Scutt & Co., the first barbed wire manufacturer in Joliet, in 1874. Scutt held ten patents for varieties of barbed wire fencing. The mansion was designed by Joliet architect James C. Wesse and was built in 1882. It was constructed in the Second Empire style with elements influenced by the Eastlake Movement. Scutt sold his business in 1884 and started the Joliet Barbed Wire Company. He also was the president of the Joliet Wire Check Power Company and the Citizens Electric Company. Following his death in 1889, Hiram's son Frank W. Scutt owned the mansion. The house was later sold to Daniel Watson, who allowed a variety of women's schools, such as the Business Woman's Club House, to operate in mansion. The mansion held such classes until 1977, when it again became solely a single-family residence. Recently, the house has been opened to the public as a banquet hall.^[2] It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on February 5, 2003.

The banquet hall has been further converted into the P. Seth Magosky Museum of Victorian Life. Left in its original state of furnishing and decoration, the museum may be used for private weddings, corporate meetings, private parties, church groups, and as a movie location. The museum is also a common attraction for a murder-mystery dinner theater and paranormal investigation groups.

It has been determined that two murders have taken place in the estate, as well as the death of (at least) three of the home's owners in the house. Many paranormal investigation groups to have conducted investigation events in the home have also claimed the spirits of children and other entities remain in the house.

As of May, 2014, the house is in foreclosure, the price under $160,000. Nothing on the real estate page alludes to the history of being haunted.^[3]

The historic haunted mansion of Joliet didn't stay on the market long, and the real estate agent selling the paranormal property credited Patch for getting word out about the foreclosure on North Broadway. "You're responsible for this going viral," agent Maria C. Cronin said, telling how she had 175 people come through a Saturday open house—and that was after she closed the sale of the Hiram Scutt mansion. The national historic landmark fell into foreclosure and was taken by a bank. Cronin listed the property at $159,900 but said a bidding war drove up the price.

References