An outside shot of the Dietrich Mansion in Willow Springs. (Photo by Michelle Jarosik)
Former Dietrich Mansion in Willow Springs draws huge crowds at estate sale
By Carol McGowan
If you’ve ever seen the huge historic home at 112 S. Charleton Street in Willow Springs, you couldn’t help but be intrigued.
It’s just up the hill from Archer, on the east side of Charleton.
Last Thursday through Sunday, it drew crowds as word got out about an estate sale going on.
The village streets were packed with cars of those wanting to get a look inside.
According to online research, Chicagoan Henry Dietrich and others purchased 300 acres and laid out the Mt. Forest subdivision in 1873 near Willow Springs.
In the fall of 1883, the Chicago, St. Louis & South-Western Railroad came through the town, the forerunner of today’s Metra.
In the 1870s and 1880s, ice harvesting from the Des Plaines River was a major enterprise in Willow Springs.
The construction of the Sanitary and Ship Canal from 1892 to 1899 brought a new generation of canal workers to the Willow Springs area, including many Italians. This led to the village’s incorporation in 1892, with the towns of Mt. Forest and Willow Springs combining their names to form Spring Forest. In 1937, the name was changed to Willow Springs.
The Dietrich mansion is said to be the only building in Mt. Forest to survive a fire back in 1890.
The latest owner of the home bought it in 1986, and passed away in October of 2020. There’s no word on what will become of the home.
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