PRODUCTION OF GRANDVIEW DRIVE WAS MADE POSSIBLE IN PART BY AMEREN CILCO, WITH ADDITIONAL SUPPORT FROM THE MEMBERS OF THE KLYSTRON SOCIETY.

>>> THEY VIEWED IT AS ART, LANDSCAPE ART, AND THAT WAS REALLY PART OF A GENERATION THAT DID LOOK AT LANDSCAPING AS AN ART.

THIS IS, BY FAR, HIS MOST CHALLENGING PROJECTS.

BY ALL ACCOUNTS, HE DID SOME MARVELOUS STUFF HERE.

IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN GRANDVIEW DRIVE IN PEORIA, YOU SURE MISSED SOMETHING.

IT IS A GREAT PART OF OUR TOWN.

>> ♪♪ I THINK IT IS A WORLD CLASS DRIVE.

WHAT STRIKES ME ABOUT IT IS THIS IS AN URBAN DRIVE.

MOST OF THESE OTHER PLACES IN THE COUNTRY YOU HAVE TO DRIVE MILES TO SEE.

THIS IS IN THE CITY!

I DON'T KNOW OF ANY STREET IN THE WORLD THAT HAS A VIEW LIKE THIS IN ITS OWN BACKYARD SO TO SPEAK .

HERE AGAIN, I BRING PEOPLE IN FROM OUT OF TOWN AN THEY HAVE CORNFIELDS AND CATERPILLAR TRACTORS, AND YOU DRIVE THEM DOWN GRANDVIEW DRIVE, AND THERE IS A WOW FACTOR.

THEY GO WOW.

>>I CAN'T IMAGINE PEORIA WITHOUT GRANDVIEW DRIVE.

I CAME HERE WHEN I WAS NINE, AND STUMBLED UPON IT WHEN I DISCOVERED THE CITY AND BECAME MORE FAMILIAR WITH IT.

I COULDN'T BELIEVE IT.

IT WAS ST INCREDIBLE.

EVERY TIME I HAVE A FRIEND IN TOWN, I SAY "HEY, WE HAVE TO GO TO GRANDVIEW DRIVE."

THE PEORIA HISTORICAL SOCIETY BEGAN THE BUS TOURS IN 1976 AS PART OF THE BICENTENNIAL CELEBRATION.

WE HAD THE TROLLEY TOURS NOW FROM MAY UNTIL THE END OF OCTOBER.

IT HAS BEEN WONDERFUL, AND THIS IS, OF COURSE, ONE OF THE FIRST PLACES WE HEAD FOR BECAUSE PEOPLE ENJOY IT SO MUCH, AND THEY ENJOY THE STORIES OF THE HOMES ALONG DRIVE AND THE DEVELOPMENT ALONG THE DRIVE.

>>HOUSES ON THE RIGHT SIDE ARE PROBABLY DEVELOPED, BUT EVERYTHING ON LEFT SIDE IS PART OF THE PEORIA PARK DISTRICT.

THIS IS A PUBLIC PARK.

SINCE THE TOUR'S CONCEPTION, MOST POPULAR DESTINATION HAS REMAINED GRANDVIEW DRIVE.

HERE VISITORS NOT ONLY LEARN ABOUT THE STORY BEHIND SOME OF THE HOMES, BUT ALSO OF THE HISTORY OF THE PARK, A PARK THAT WAS NOT ONLY ONE OF THE FIRST LINEAR PARKS IN THE STATE, BUT ALSO THE FIRST OF ITS TYPE TO BE LISTED ON THE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES.

>> THE PARK ITSELF IS ABOUT 182 ACRES RUNNING OVER TWO AND A HALF MILES ON THE WEST SIDE OF THE ROAD, THE PARK DISTRICT OWNS ANYWHERE FROM AT A MINIMUM 13 TO 14 FEET ALL THE WAY UP TO IN SOME PLACES 60 TO 65 FEET.

>>IT IS 800 FEET ABOVE SEA LEVEL, AND THE RIVER AT THIS POINT BELOW US HERE IS ABOUT 450 FEET ABOVE SEA LEVEL.

SO THIS MAKES US REALLY, TO MY KNOWLEDGE, THE SECOND HIGHEST ELEVATED PARK IN THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, HIGHEST IS THE PALISADES STATE PARK IN THE NORTHWESTERN CORNER.

THIS IS A HUGE ENGINEERING FEAT FOR DURYEA TO BRING THE ROAD DOWN AND NOT BRING IT DOWN SO STEEPLY.

AND THAT IS WHY THE LOWER END OF THE DRIVE AFTER ABOUT ONE AND THREE QUARTER MILES, AND THE REST OF IT IS VERY, VERY STEEP.

THE DRIVE WAS BEGUN IN 1904 AND FINISHED IN 1906.

BY THEN THERE WERE SOME AUTOMOBILES.

IN FACT, WE WERE TOLD THAT THERE WERE A NUMBER OF FOLKS THAT USED TO LIKE TO RACE THERE, VERY EARLY AUTOMOBILES UP AND DOWN THE DRIVE.

>> IT WAS NOT A NEW DREAM TO LAY OUT A SCENIC DRIVE ON THE BLUFFS OVERLOOKING UPPER PEORIA LAKE, BUT IT WAS A DREAM THAT NEEDED AN ACT IN SPRINGFIELD TO BRING IT TO FRUITION.

BACK IN 1893 THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY PASSED A LAW ALLOWING THE CREATION OF PARK DISTRICTS WITH THE POWER TO RAISE THEIR OWN FUNDS.

IT IS FROM THAT LEGISLATION THAT PEORIA'S DISTRICT GOT ITS OFFICIAL NAME BY WHICH IT IS STILL KNOWN TODAY, THE PLEASURE DRIVEWAY AND PARK DISTRICT OF PEORIA.

>>THE PEORIA PARK DISTRICT WAS THE FIRST ONE FORMED IN 1894 UNDER THE NEW LEGISLATION APPROVED BY THE STATE.

IT WAS, LIKE I SAID, IT WAS A BIG STEP FORWARD.

PEORIA SEIZED THE OPPORTUNITY.

A LOT OF PEOPLE DON'T KNOW HOW ADVANCED PEORIA WAS FOR THE TIME.

>> OSCAR DURYEA WAS ONE OF THE FIRST HIRES MADE BY THE PARK DISTRICT PARK BOARD.

I BELIEVE IT WAS IN 1896, AND HE WAS HIRED AS OUR FIRST LANDSCAPE GARDENER ENGINEER FROM THE WEST PARK DISTRICT OF CHICAGO.

INTERESTINGLY ENOUGH, DURYEA ALSO INTERNED UNDER FREDERICK LAW OLMSTEAD WHO DESIGNED CENTRAL PARK.

DURYEA WORKED IN THE WEST PARK SYSTEM IN CHICAGO FOR 23 YEARS BEFORE COMING HERE AND THE FOREFATHERS, FIRST PARK BOARD MEMBERS HAD THE FORESIGHT TO HIRE A TRUE VISIONARY PARK DESIGNER.

AND WHAT A FIND THAT WAS FOR PEORIA BECAUSE HE WAS A BRILLIANT MAN, AND HE BROUGHT ALL OF HIS SKILLS HERE AND HIS KNOWLEDGE OF LANDSCAPING AND DESIGN.

HE HAD A VISION THAT WAS SO UNIQUE AND EVERY PARK OF OUR PARKS TODAY CARRIES THROUGH THE VISION ESPECIALLY THE ORIGINAL PARK.

HIS FIRST ASSIGNMENT WAS TRANSFORMATION OF A RECENTLY PURCHASED AREA KNOWN AS BURKETT'S HOLLOW.

WORK THERE CONTINUED FOR ALMOST TWO YEARS BEFORE IT REOPENED TO THE PUBLIC UNDER ITS NEW NAME GLENN OAK PARK.

NEXT, HE TURNED HIS ATTENTION TO THE SMALLEST, YET BUSIEST GREEN SPACE OF THE NEW DISTRICT, SOUTH PARK OR AS IT IS KNOWN TODAY TREE WIND PARK.

DURING THAT TIME, HE STARTED ON LOWER BRADLEY AND MADISON PARKS.

AND WHILE THOSE PROJECTS WERE UNDER CONSTRUCTION, PARK COMMISSIONERS, ALONG WITH CIVIC MINDED INDIVIDUALS WERE TRYING TO SECURE LAND ALONG THE BLUFFS FOR A SCENIC DRIVE.

>>SOME OF THE LANDOWNERS WERE NOT HERE IN PEORIA.

THEY HAD TO TRACK THEM DOWN IN OTHER PARTS COUNTRY TO FINISH PIECING IT TOGETHER.

SOME OF IT WAS PURCHASED.

SOME OF IT WAS DONATED, AND YOU TRY TO IMAGINE ALL THEY NEED WAS A STRIP THROUGH HERE.

BUT, STILL, THAT TOOK A LOT OF PIECING TOGETHER AND A LOT OF LEGAL MANEUVERING.

THE PARK BOARD PRESIDENT BEN WARNER THREW OUT FIRST SHOVEL OF DIRT ON OCTOBER 14, 1903.

THAT'S WHEN THE WORK OFFICIALLY BEGAN.

THEY SAID THERE WERE 50 PEOPLE OR WHATEVER THAT GATHERED HERE FOR THAT.

♪♪ THE FIRST PORTION OF GRANDVIEW DRIVE WAS CONSTRUCTED FROM THE BOTTOM UP.

THE FIRST HALF MILE OBVIOUSLY WAS PROBABLY THE MOST DIFFICULT BECAUSE OF THE STEEPNESS OF THE GRADE AND THE THICKNESS OF THE UNDER BRUSH.

THEY STARTED FROM THE BOTTOM AND BUILT THE BRIDGE AND WORK THEIR WAY UP TO THE TOP OF WHAT WAS PROSPECT HEIGHTS, NOW PEORIA HEIGHTS.

>>MOST OF THE EQUIPMENT THAT HE HAD WAS HORSES AND MULES DRAGGING LOGS UP AND DOWN THE DRIVE.

SO WHEN YOU CONSIDER THAT, IT IS A FANTASTIC ENGINEERING FEAT.

IT TOOK A LOT OF EFFORT TO DO THAT.

YOU HAVE TO REALIZE, TOO, IT WAS SO STEEP -- I MEAN THERE WAS A VERY DANGEROUS UNDERTAKING, REALLY.

OSCAR DURYEA WOULD NOT PERMIT HORSES TO HELP WITH THIS UNTIL MEN HAD COME IN AND THEY COULD MAKE IT SAFE ENOUGH FOR THE HORSES TO DO THAT BECAUSE HE WAS VERY ADAMANT ABOUT THE CARE OF THE HORSES.

IT WAS SAID HE WOULD DISMISS ANYBODY THAT DIDN'T TREAT A HORSE HONESTLY.

YOU TRY TO IMAGINE DOZENS OF MEN LITERALLY DIGGING OUT TO GET THIS BECAUSE IT WAS SO STEEP.

BUT THEY HAD TO GET IT TO A POINT WHERE IT WAS LIKE THIS.

AND SCO IT TOOK AWHILE BEFORE THEY COULD EVEN BRING IN HORSES TO CARRY OUT SOME OF THAT.

IT TOOK ABOUT THREE YEARS FOR THE ROADWAY TO BE COMPLETED, TWO AND A HALF TO THREE YEARS.

IN 1906 IT WAS WHOLE 2.5 MILES WAS COMPLETED.

>> IN THE FIRST FIVE YEARS OR SO, THEY SPENT $107,000 ON THIS, AND YOU KNOW, THAT WAS A BIG CHUNK OF CHANGE.

BUT, STILL, IT WAS LESS THAN WHAT THEY SPENT TO DATE ON GLENN OAK PARK OR BRADLEY PARK.

OF COURSE, THE PAY AT THE TIME -- HE WAS ONLY MAKING $208 A MONTH FOR ALL OF HIS EFFORTS.

>>HIS APPROACH IS PARTICULARLY EVIDENCED HERE ALONG GRANDVIEW DRIVE IS TO USE THE NATURAL LINES OF THE BLUFFS ABOVE THE RIVER VALLEY TO USE THE NATURAL VIEWS, NATURAL APPROACH TO SALVAGING THE TREES AND THAT SORT OF THING.

>>THE LAGOON, THE GENERAL BEAUTY, TAKING ADVANTAGE OF WHAT WAS THE NATURAL LAY OF THE LAND, AND THAT'S TRULY WHAT HAS HAPPENED WITH GRANDVIEW DRIVE.

IT IS JUST A MAGNIFICENT LINEAR PARK AND THERE AREN'T VERY MANY OF THOSE.

OBVIOUSLY SOME TREES HAD TO GO TO MAKE ROOM FOR IT.

BUT HE TRIED TO KEEP IT A MINIMUM NUMBER.

WHAT HE DID WAS, TOO, THOUGH, AT THE TIME HE ALSO PLANTED SHADE TREES ALONG THE WAY TO FILL IN CERTAIN GAPS.

SO THAT'S WHY YOU SEE TREES THAT SEEM SO, THEY ARE IN A CERTAIN PATTERN DOWN THE ROAD, REAL CONSISTENCY WITH IT.

>>THERE WAS A PURPOSE BEHIND IT.

IT WASN'T JUST PLANTING GRASS AND FLOWERS AND SOME PLACE.

THERE WAS A REASON WHY THINGS WERE HERE, THINGS WERE THERE.

THERE IS A REASON WHY GRANDVIEW DRIVE CURVES THE WAY IT DOES.

AT THE TIME HE PROBABLY, AND PEOPLE AT THE TIME PROBABLY THOUGHT LIFE WAS VERY HECTIC AT THE TIME.

NOTHING WOULD BE CONSIDERED LIFE AS IT IS NOW, BUT PEOPLE WERE SUPPOSED TO STOP AND ENJOY NATURE AND TAKE THE TIME GOING THROUGH.

OSCAR DURYEA AND SAMUEL KINS I FROM THE PARK BOARD, THEY WENT TO LOOKOUT TOWER IN SANTA FE BACK IN 1904.

AND THEY LOVED THE WAY THAT LOOKED THERE, LOOKOUT TOWER AND TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THAT WHOLE AREA.

SO HE AND SAM WENT DOWN THERE.

THEY DIDN'T WANT TO SPEND TIME AND MONEY, AND THEY STOOD THERE IN A RAINSTORM MEASURING THAT TOWER, AND BROUGHT THAT INFORMATION BACK.

SO THEY STARTED ON THAT TOWER HERE SHORTLY, A YEAR OR TWO AFTER THE START OF THE DRIVE.

>>YOU KNOW, IT WAS MANY, MANY STEPS BE AND I HAVE NO IDEA HOW MANY, WENT THIS WAY, AND THIS WAY, AND IT WASN'T A CIRCLE OR ANYTHING.

BUT IT WAS PRETTY INCLINED.

>>THERE WAS 126 STEPS WENT UP 70 FEET, 16-FOOT SQUARE BASE ON IT, AND YOU COULD SEE ABOUT 20 MILES ON A CLEAR DAY.

THEY HAD DIFFERENT LEVELS WHERE YOU COULD STOP ALONG THE WAY, AND THEY SAID IT WAS BUILT FOR ALL AGES AND ALL LEVELS OF BRAVERY, I GUESS.

SOME PEOPLE DIDN'T WANT TO GO UP REAL HIGH.

THEN YOU ALSO HAD -- TALKED ABOUT BOYS WHO WOULD CLIMB UP THE OUTSIDE OF IT, AND THERE WERE A FEW FALLS, BUT THERE WERE NO FATALITIES RELATED TO THAT.

BUT THEY SAID SOMETIMES THE KIDS WOULD SPIT FROM THE TOP OF THE TOWER OR THROW OBJECTS DOWN.

SO, YOU KNOW, KIDS HAVEN'T CHANGED A BIT WHEN IT COMES TO THINGS LIKE THAT, I GUESS!

IT WAS FALLING APART BY 1942, AND THE PARK DISTRICT THEY DIDN'T HAVE THE MONEY WHICH WAS ONLY 2 TO $3,000 WHAT IT WOULD TAKE TO FIX THAT TOWER, BUT THE STEEL WAS DETERIORATING.

IT HAD BEEN ALMOST 40 YEARS.

THEY DECIDED -- THEY POSED TO THE PUBLIC WHETHER THEY SHOULD TEAR IT DOWN, DURING WORLD WAR II.

THERE WERE SENTIMENT BOTH WAYS.

AND THEY DECIDED TO SCRAP IT.

SUPPOSEDLY IT WENT INTO THE WAR EFFORT.

>>DURING THE WAR, WORLD WAR II, WHY, CAME AND TORE DOWN FOR THE STEEL DRIVE.

AFTER THE WAR WAS OVER, WHY, I FOUND OUT THE STEEL WAS STILL DOWN IN THE YARDS DOWN IN PEORIA.

>>BUT THE TOWER WASN'T THE ONLY STRUCTURE ALONG THE DRIVE.

AT GIBSON POINT, LOCATED NEXT TO THE ENTRANCE TO THE COUNTRY CLUB OF PEORIA, WAS A LARGE GAZEBO WITH THE COMMANDING VIEW OF BELVIDERE.

ITS WINGS WERE OPEN LATTICE WORK TO CREATE NATURAL ROOF OF VINES AND FLOWERING PLANTS.

IT WAS A SHADED SPOT FROM WHICH PATRONS COULD WATCH THE RIVER TRAFFIC.

UNFORTUNATELY, VANDALS COMPLETELY DESTROYED THE STRUCTURE IN 1949, LEAVING STANDING ONLY THE IRONWORK AND PART OF THE ROOF.

WHILE THERE HAD BEEN OTHER ADDITIONS AND LOSSES TO THE DRIVE THROUGHOUT THE YEARS, IT HAS ESSENTIALLY REMAINED THE SAME SINCE OSCAR DURYEA LAST RODE DOWN THE STREET.

THE VIEWS ARE MORE OR LESS MAINTAINED AND PRESERVED AS HE INITIALLY LAID THEM OUT.

FLOWER BEDS THAT YOU SEE, THE TURN-AROUNDS, ALL THOSE SORTS OF THINGS, AND THEN THE NATURAL MEANDERING OF THE PARKWAY IS ALL THE SAME AS IT WAS DESIGNED IN THE EARLY 1900S.

GRANDVIEW DRIVE WOULD BE OSCAR DURYEA'S LAST PROJECT.

SHORTLY AFTER THE COMPLETION, THE MAN WHO MANY CALL THE FATHER OF PEORIA'S PARK SYSTEM, DIED OF A HEART ATTACK AT AGE 56.

HE WAS BURIED IN PRESTIGIOUS SPRINGDALE CEMETERY LOCATED NEXT TO HIS FIRST CREATION IN PEORIA, GLENN OAK PARK.

>> ALL THESE PARKS, ESPECIALLY THE GRANDVIEW AND GLENN OAK AND LAURA BRADLEY PARK AND SOUTH, THIS IS A REAL TRIBUTE TO HIM.

YOU KNOW, A HUNDRED YEARS AGO, HE HAS BEEN GONE ALMOST THAT LONG, AND, YET, TREES ARE STANDING LONGER THAN MOST MEMORIALS.

ORIGINALLY PROSPECT HEIGHTS DRIVE FOR THE FIRST YEAR, AND IT WASN'T UNTIL DECEMBER 7, 1904 MEETING THEY DECIDED TO CALL IT GRANDVIEW DRIVE.

>>FOUR YEARS AFTER GRANDVIEW DRIVE'S COMPLETION, IT WAS KRISTINED IT A NEW NICKNAME GIVEN TO IT BY A FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.

>> OCTOBER 12, 1910, AT THE REQUEST OF ARCHBISHOP JOHN SPAULDING, JOHN SPAULDING HAD INVITED TEDDY ROOSEVELT TO PEORIA TO ADDRESS THE KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS BANQUET, OCTOBER 12.

AND HE ACCEPTED THE INVITATION.

HE ENDED UP GOING TO LUNCH AT THE PEORIA COUNTRY CLUB.

THEY GOT INTO A CAR THAT WAS BUILT RIGHT HERE IN PEORIA HEIGHTS CALLED THE GLIDE AUTOMOBILE.

AND THEY RODE HE IN THE BACK SEAT, AND ONE OF THE BARTHOLOMEW FAMILY WHO OWNED THE BARTHOLOMEW MOTOR COMPANY AT THE CORNER OF SIBERLING AND PROSPECT ROAD, DROVE HIM.

HE APOLOGIZED FOR THE DEEP RUTS IN THE ROAD, THE DIRT ROAD.

HE TURNED TO HER AND SAID, "MY DEAR, I HAVE BEEN ALL OVER THE WORLD, AND, BELIEVE ME, THIS IS THE WORLD'S MOST BEAUTIFUL DRIVE."

>>IN ITS EARLY YEARS, UNPAVED ROAD ONCE VEHICULAR TRAFFIC -- AUTOMOBILES THAT IS, WERE POPULAR, IT CREATED DUST PROBLEMS, AND FURTHERMORE BY NOT HAVING A PAVED SURFACE, A LOT OF EROSION AND RUT PROBLEMS WITH VEHICLES WHEN THE WEATHER GOT NASTY.

>>AS DESIGNED ORIGINALLY, THE PEOPLE AT THE CROSS SECTION UTILITY LIZED AND COMBINATION OF SAND AND GRAVEL WITH A PIECE OF CROWN, 22 INCHES TO SHED THE WATER OFF TO THE SIDE.

MODERN DAY, YOUR CROWN IS USUALLY A THREE TO SIX INCH CROWN WITH A PAVED SURFACE TO ALLOW THE WATER TO RUN OFF.

>>BUT IT WAS NOT PAVED UNTIL THE 1930S.

THEY COULD HAVE HAD CALLED IT, IN MY REFERENCE BOOK, DUST VIEW DRIVE BECAUSE THERE WAS SO MUCH DUST WITH THE DIRT AND EVERYTHING.

PEOPLE COMPLAINED ABOUT THAT.

>>IN THE OLD DAYS, THE ORIGINAL PART, WHAT THEY DID WAS THEY HAD WATER WAGONS DRAWN BY HORSES THAT WOULD SPRAY WATER ON IT OR ALSO A WATER MIXTURE THAT WOULD LAST LONGER THAN THE WATER TO KEEP THE DUST DOWN OF OVER TIME IT WOULD WEAR OFF THE SURFACE, AND THE DUST WOULD COME BACK.

BUT THERE WAS ONE AREA THAT WAS PAVED.

JUST OFF THE DRIVE NEAR THE COUNTRY CLUB OF PEORIA ARE THE LAST BITS AND PIECES OF THE ROMANTIC WALKWAY.

HERE REMAINS SOME OF THE STEPS AND CONCRETE PATHS FOR THE WATER FOUNTAINS AND BENCHES THAT ONCE LINED THE PATH.

ADDED IN 1911, THE PATH CONNECTED THE TROLLEY LINES IN THE HEIGHTS TO AL FRISCO PARK AT THE FOOT OF THE BLUFFS.

ALFRESCO, SPANISH FOR "OPEN AIR," WAS A POPULAR DESTINATION OFFERING RIDES, LIVE ENTERTAINMENT AND TWO STORY BEER GARDEN FACING THE RIVER.

IN FACT, SEVERAL OF THOSE RIDES CAME FROM THE ST. LOUIS WORLD'S FAIR OF 1906.

>>IN THE EARLY DAYS, A LOT OF PEOPLE CAME OUT ON THE STREETCAR, AND THEY CAME OUT THROUGH ALONG PROSPECT HEIGHTS, AND THEY CROSSED OVER TO THE REAR OF THE CASTLE.

AND THAT WAS THE END OF IT.

AND HEADED TO A PATH CALLED GIBSON PATH NAMED AFTER SOME PEOPLE THAT LIVED THERE AND THE PATH RAN DOWN THE HILL TO FRISCO PARK.

IT WAS USED QUITE A BIT BY THE PEOPLE GOING DOWN TO THE AMUSEMENT PARK.

SO GRANDVIEW DRIVE WAS THE CONNECTOR TO ALFRESCO, AND GIBSON PATHWAY WAS A BEAUTIFUL LITTLE AREA THAT WAS HAS DITCHES AND LANTERNS AND PEOPLE WOULD BRING PICNIC BASKETS AND GET OFF THE TROLLEY AND GET OFF ON GIBSON PATHWAY AND SPEND A PLEASANT DAY AT ALFRESCO BEACH.

>>GIBSON PATH, AS A CHILD WE PLAYED IN THAT AREA ALL THE TIME.

THERE WAS A CREEK THAT THE PATHWAY FOLLOWS, AND IT WAS ACTUALLY PAVED ALL WAY DOWN TO THE RIVER.

FROM WHAT I GATHER FROM MY GRANDPARENTS AND SOME OF THEIR CONTEMPORARIES, THERE WAS A HUGELY POPULAR ATTRACTION.

AT THE LOWER END OF THE DRIVE IS ANOTHER REMNANT, THIS TIME OF A BYGONE COMMUNITY.

THIS AREA WAS ONCE PART OF THE VILLAGE OF AVERYVILLE, NAMED FOR AVERY MANUFACTURING COMPANY.

VILLAGE WAS HOME TO 6,000 RESIDENTS AND SEVERAL BUSINESSES.

IN 1915 THE CITIZENS OF AVERYVILLE SUCCESSFULLY PETITIONED THE PARK BOARD TO INSTALL A PLAY GROUND AT THE FOOT OF THE DRIVE.

IT WAS COMPLETED IN TIME TO BE INAUGURATED AT THE TOWN'S ANNUAL PICNIC.

>>AN INTERESTING PART OF PEORIA'S HISTORY IS THAT AVERYVILLE IS NOW THE NEAR NORTH SIDE USED TO BE A SEPARATE COMMUNITY.

>>THE AVERYVILLE RESIDENTS CONSIDERED THAT PARK AVERYVILLE.

AT THE TIME, AND OF COURSE, ORIGINALLY THIS WAS CALLED PROSPECT HEIGHTS.

SO YOU HAD ALMOST REALLY TWO COMMUNITIES, I GUESS, THAT FORMED TOGETHER AND REACHED EACH OTHER ALONG GRANDVIEW DRIVE.

>>THEN THEY ALSO DECIDED THEY NEEDED SOMETHING ELSE TO ATTRACT PEOPLE.

THEY BUILT A PAVILION WHICH OPENED AROUND 1917 DOWN THERE.

>>THE PAVILION IS A WONDERFUL DANCE PAVILION BACK IN MY DAY WHEN I WAS A YOUNGSTER AND LITTLE OLDER.

THEY HELD DANCES, BIG BANDS PLAYED THERE.

IT WAS A WONDERFUL PLACE.

>> IN THE BACK WAS AN OFFICE FOR THE PARK FOR MAN, A PLACE FOR STORAGE, AND EVEN A SMALL CONCESSION STAND.

THE CORNER PILLARS WERE MADE OF SOME OF THE BOULDERS FOUND IN THE PARK, AND ABOVE, TALL WINDOWS LET THE LIGHT FILTER ONTO THE DANCE FLOOR.

>> I THINK AT THE TIME THE PAVILION HAD WINDOWS.

THE PAVILION HAD AN ACTUAL WORKING STAGE AND CURTAINS FOR PERFORMANCES DOWN THERE.

IN THE EARLY 1980'S, IT WAS IN GREAT DISREPAIR AND THERE WAS SOME DISCUSSION ABOUT ACTUALLY DEMOLISHING THE STRUCTURE WHEN ANONYMOUS DONOR CAME FORTHWITH $60,000 TO SAVE THE STRUCTURE WHICH I AM VERY GLAD THEY DID.

AND EVENTUALLY, EVERYTHING MINUS THE STAGE, WAS PUT BACK JUST AS IT WAS DESIGNED.

STANDING APART FROM THE PAVILION AND ITS PLAYGROUND IS THIS MONUMENT, STEEL BEARING THE AVERYVILLE NAME.

IT WAS A GIFT TO THE PARK DISTRICT AND A WAY FOR THE TOWN TO COMMEMORATE THE MEN FROM THE COMMUNITY TO SERVED DURING THE FIRST WORLD WAR.

ERECTED IN 1920, THE MONUMENT IS 25 FEET HIGH AND TOPPED BY AN AMERICAN EAGLE.

HALFWAY UP THE COLUMN, WHICH IS COVERED IN WHITE VENETIAN TILE IS A CARVING OF SOLDIERS MARCHING IN FILE.

BELOW THAT IS FOUR SIDED PEDESTAL, EACH SIDE WITH BRONZE PLAQUE LISTING THE NAMES OF THE 244 MEN WHO SERVED.

FREE NAME HAVE A STAR NEXT TO THEM, CADING THEY DID NOT RETURN RETURN -- INDICATING THEY DID NOT RETURN HOME.

THE NEXT MAJOR ADDITION TO THE DRIVE OCCURRED IN 1928 WHEN THE PARK DISTRCT PURCHASED THE SUMMER HOME, ALONG WITH ITS 38 ACRES OWNED BY DR. SCHOLFF.

THE JAPANESE STYLE BUILDING LOCATED JUST BELOW THE BLUFF FROM THE TOWER WAS DESIGNED BY THE DOCTOR AND FINISHED IN 1907.

NICKNAMED GLENNS WOOD VILLA FEATURED TWO SPACIOUS PORCHES, EACH STRETCHING OUT 38 FEET.

INSIDE THE MAIN FLOOR WAS LEFT OPEN FOR LARGE GATHERINGS, PLUS THEY HAD A MASSIVE BOULDER FIREPLACE.

AFTER IT WAS SOLD, THE PARK DISTRICT REMODELED THE HOME INTO ANOTHER PAVILION FOR THE UPPER END OF THE PARK.

IT, TOO, WAS A PLACE FOR PICNICS AND DANCES, A PURPOSE IT SERVED UNTIL TERMITES RUINED THE STRUCTURE, AND IT HAD TO BE CONDEMNED AND TORN DOWN.

BUT THE PAVILIONS, LIKE THE ROMANTIC GIBSON'S PATHWAY, ARE INDICATIONS HOW PUBLIC PARKS WERE VIEWED BACK THEN.

AT THAT TIME THEY WERE SEEN AS NATURAL REPRIEVES FROM THE GROWING CITY SPRAWL AND INDUSTRIALIZATION, AS DEMONSTRATED DURING ONE SUMMER STIFLING HEAT WAVE.

>>MY MOTHER-IN-LAW WHO IS 92 RECALLS THAT IN THE SUMMER OF 1936 WHEN THERE WAS AN ABSOLUTE SUFFOCATING HOT SUMMER, THAT THEY WOULD GET ON THE TROLLEY AND BRING THEIR BLANKET AND BRIT CHILDREN AND COME UP HERE AND SLEEP ON THE DRIVE.

>> JUNE, I THINK IT WAS, IT GOT A HUNDRED -- NO, JULY, 113 DEGREES IN PEORIA, AND THAT ENTIRE SUMMER WAS HOT.

I FORGET HOW MANY DAYS STRAIGHT THEY WERE OVER 100 DEGREES HERE.

PEOPLE WOULD COME OUT HERE AND JUST LAY IN THE GRASS AND TRY TO GET THE BREEZE OFF THE RIVER.

PEOPLE TODAY, ESPECIALLY THE YOUNGSTERS DON'T REALIZE, WE DIDN'T HAVE AIR CONDITIONING BACK THEN.

IN FACT, MANY OF US DIDN'T EVEN HAVE ELECTRIC FANS, BUT IT WAS THE HOTTEST SUMMER THAT I EVER EXPERIENCED.

I WAS 11 YEARS OLD AT THE TIME.

BEFORE OSCAR DURYEA BEGAN CONSTRUCTION OF THE DRIVE, MEMBERS OF A RECENTLY FORMED CLUB LEASED 27 ACRES OF THE GIBSON PARK.

THEIR GOAL WAS PROMOTE ATHLETIC EXERCISES AND RECREATION ENJOYMENT.

IT WAS THE BEGINNING OF THE COUNTRY CLUB PEORIA.

>>AND THEY RENTED THE FARMHOUSE THIS, THE GIBSON HOUSE AS I RECALL AND PURCHASED SOME OF THE ACREAGE THAT THEY TURNED INTO A GOLF COURSE AND LEASED ANOTHER PARCEL THEY HAD CONTEMPLATED AND PUT GOLF COURSE.

IT WAS THE FIRST GOLF COURSE IN PEORIA.

IN THE BEGINNING IT CONSISTED OF ONLY NINE HOLES.

IT WASN'T UNTIL 1914 WHEN MORE LAND WAS PURCHASED THAT THE COURSE WAS EXPANDED TO 18 HOLES LATER, IN 1934, THE COUNTRY CLUB OF PEORIA HOSTED THE WESTERN OPEN.

>>I WAS -- MUST HAVE BEEN, OH, 16 AND ANOTHER FRIEND OF MINE FROM WEST BLUFF, WE WOULD DRIVE OUT EVERY DAY AND PARK ON MILLER AND RECRAWLED OVER BARBED WIRE FENCE AND THE FIRST DAY THEY GAVE A CASE, WALKER GAVE A CASE OF BEGIN ANYBODY THAT DROVE THE NINTH GREEN.

THE NINTH HOLE IS NOT TOO LONG, PRACTICALLY EVERYBODY DROVE THE GREEN.

THE SECOND DAY THERE WERE A LOT OF HANGOVERS!

(LAUGHING) I REMEMBER WALTER HAGEN WAS PLAYING, AND HE GOT TO THE 15TH HOLE, HE SAID "I GOT TO SIT DOWN.

"(LAUGHING) HE LET TWO OR THREE PLAYERS GO THROUGH.

THE PLACE IS DECORATED THE SAME.

HOWEVER, ABOUT FIVE YEARS AGO OR SO, THEY REDID MOST OF THE GREENS AND A LOT OF THE BUNKERS.

BUT THE COURSE BASICALLY IS OUT LINED THE SAME NOW AS IT WAS IN THE 30'S.

WHEN I FIRST JOINED THE CLUB, WE CUT THE GRASS WITH HORSE DRAWN MOWERS.

I DON'T KNOW ABOUT THE GREENS, BUT THE FAIRWAYS MOWED WITH A HORSE DRAWN.

>>THE COURSE HAS A HISTORY, BUT SO, TOO, THE CLUBHOUSE, THE FIRST WAS COMPLETED IN 1904 WHILE THE DRIVE WAS STILL UNDER CONSTRUCTIONED.

BUILDING LASTED 16 YEARS BEFORE IT WAS DESTROYED BY A KITCHEN FIRE WHOSE NAMES WERE FANNED BY THE RIVER BREEZES.

UNFORTUNATELY THE BUILDING WAS NOT TOTALLY INSURED.

IT TOOK TWO YEARS TO FINISH THE NEXT BUILDING DUE TO THE NEED TO RAISE FUNDS AND FIVE MONTH CARPENTER STRIKE.

LIKE ITS PREDECESSOR, IT, TOO, IS PERCHED ON THE EDGE OF THE BLUFF.

JUST SOUTH OF THE CLUBHOUSE STANDS A POOL AREA.

THE FIRST ONE WAS CONSTRUCTED IN 1930 AS A RESULT OF MEMBERSHIP FINANCE.

BUT BECAUSE THE GROUNDS DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH FLAT SPACE, THE POOL HAD TO BE OF AN ABOVE GROUND DESIGN WHICH REQUIRED MUCH HEAVIER CONSTRUCTION AND RATHER COMPLICATED DECKING.

FROM SOME ANGELS TODAY, THE POOL AREA APPEARS TO BE FLOATING AMONG THE TREES LINING THE BLUFFS.

THE POOL AND THE CLUBHOUSE ARE AMONG THE FEW STRUCTURES ON THE EASTERN SIDE OF THE DRIVE.

INSIDE THE CLUBHOUSE, THE DINING ROOM OFFERS A SWEEPING DISTANCE THAT DAZZLES MEMBERS AND GUESTS FOR GENERATIONS.

>>TYPICALLY WHEN I HAVE PEOPLE OUT OF TOWN, THAT'S WHERE I WILL TAKE THEM FOR LUNCH, AND GOLF, AND BUSINESS ASSOCIATES BE AND TAKE PEOPLE OUT THERE AND SIT ON THE TEAR ON NICE SUMMER EVENING AND LOOK OVER THE RIVER.

IT IS ABSOLUTELY SPECTACULAR.

FOR A TIME THE CLUBHOUSE WAS ONE OF THE FINEST BUILDING IN THE AREA OF BEFORE THE POPULARITY OF AUTOMOBILES, RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT ALONG THE BLUFF CONSIST MAINLY OF SUMMER COTTAGES.

>>ON THE DRIVE, THERE WERE MANY OF THESE COTTAGES, SUMMER COTTAGES THAT PEOPLE WHO LIVED IN THE CITY WOULD COME OUT TO THE DRIVE AND SPEND TIME OUT HERE TO CATCH THE BREEZESHAT IS USUALLY PREVALENT UP HERE ON THE DRIVE.

THE OLDEST HOUSE THAT IS BUILT IS ON THE LEFTHAND SIDE, ABOUT THE FIRST HALF BLOCK, AND THAT WAS A SUMMER COTTAGE.

THE FIRST GRAND HOME ALONG THE DRIVE WAS BUILT BY ONE OF THE FOUNDERS OF THE COUNTRY CLUB.

THE HOUSE WAS BUILT BETWEEN 1912 AND 1913 BY MR. KIRK WHO WAS THE PROMINENT PEORIA ATTORNEY.

RUMOR WAS THAT MR. KIRK HAD SEEN A BEAUTIFUL HOME ALONG THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER THAT HE LIKED, AND HE CONTACTED THE ARCHITECT THAT WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR BUILDING THAT HOME AND BASED THIS HOME ON THE HOME THAT HE HAD SEEN AND LIKED SO MUCH.

>>OUR HOUSE IS OFFICIALLY REGISTERED WITH THE STATE AS VALLEY VIEW TWO WORDS.

IT WAS VERY COMMON BACK IN THAT PERIOD FOR LARGE FARMS, LARGEST STATES, AND HOME GIVEN A NAME AND REGISTERED WITH THE STATE IN THAT MANNER.

>>THE HOME ORIGINALLY HAD -- IT WAS THREE LOTS, AND THEN THE THEY HAD BASICALLY THE WHOLE CORNER.

THE BACKYARD WAS SOLD OFF IN THE 50'S.

I THINK THE BACKYARD IS WHERE THE FARMING WAS, TOOK PLACE.

>> WALTER KIRK WAS MARRIED TO PEARL MATTHEWS, THE GRAND NIECE OF LYDIA BRADLEY.

BEFORE BUILDING VALLEY VIEW HE ALREADY HAD BEEN THE ASSISTANT SUPERVISOR OF PEORIA AND HAD SERVED AS THE CITY ATTORNEY.

>> RUMOR HAS IT THAT MR. KIRK HAD POLITICAL ASPIRATIONS, AND WHEN HE BUILT THE HOME, HE SPECIFIED THE BALCONY FOR GREET THE MASTERS, AND GIVE VICTORIES SPEECHES.

WHEN WE BOUGHT THE HOME, THE FRONT LAWN WAS BIG EXPANSE, WOULD HAVE MADE A GREAT MEETING PLACE, FOR THE THRONGS TO GAT GATHER AND CHEER HIM ON.

>>WALTER KIRK DIED IN 1924 AT THE AGE OF 58.

HIS WIDOW REMAINED IN THE HOME UNTIL IT WAS SOLD TO THE MURPHY FAMILY IN 1958.

>>THERE WAS SOME TALK OF KNOCKING IT DOWN BECAUSE IT WAS IN NOT VERY GOOD SHAPE AND SUB DIVIDING THE THREE LOTS THAT WERE HERE.

WHAT THEY CHOSE TO DO WAS TO KEEP THE HOUSE INTACT, IN THE FRONT PART OF THE PROPERTY.

THEY DID SELL OFF SOME BACKACHE RIDGE.

BY THE TIME THE MURPHY FAMILY LEFT, LARGE OLD HOMES WERE NO LONGER IN VOGUE.

VALLEY VIEW SAT EMPTY FOR YEARS.

EVENTUALLY, IT WAS THE FIRST PROPERTY ON GRANDVIEW DRIVE TO BE AUTHORIZED.

TODAY, IT IS HOME TO ITS THIRD FAMILY WHICH ALSO ADDED ITS MARK WHILE RETAINING THE ORIGINAL CHARACTER.

♪♪ INSIDE THE STAIRCASE STILL SPLITS BEFORE CONTINUING TO THE SECOND FLOOR.

ABOVE THE LANDING IS A STAINED GLASS WINDOW THAT LETS THE OUTSIDE LIGHT ONCE FILTERED.

BUT THE HOUSE HAS BEEN ENLARGED TO ACCOMMODATE A GROWING FAMILY.

>>IF YOU WERE IN THE BACKYARD, THAT WOULD BE THE PART OF THE OUTSIDE WALL YOU SAW, THE STAINED GLASS WINDOWS THERE ALSO.

HOUSE WAS A PERFECT RECTANGLE EXCEPT FOR SMALL PIECE OF IT WAS ATTACHED TO THE KITCHEN THAT HOUSED A PORCH, UTILITY ROOM, AND THEN A SMALL SUNROOM ON THE SECOND FLOOR, IT JUTTED OUT JUST A LITTLE BIT FROM THE MAIN RECTANGLE.

WE ENJOYED THE HOUSE, BUT AFTER BEING HERE FOR ARE TIME, WANTED TO HAVE INFORMAL ROOM ON FIRST FLOOR AND NEEDED A FEW MORE BATHROOMS WE WOUND UP PLANNING AN ADDITION.

>> TODAY VALLEY VIEW REMAINS AS ONE OF THE FEW ORIGINAL GRAND HOMES THAT HAVE SURVIVED THE DECADES.

FURTHER DOWN STREET IS ANOTHER ONE WHICH WAS ONCE OWNED BY CATERPILLAR FOR USE AS A GUEST HOUSE.

>>THAT WAS BUILT BY DR. MITCHELL.

DR. MITCHELL HAD VERY FAMOUS SANITARIUM DOWN ON GALENA ROAD.

DR. MITCHELL WAS A GOOD FRIEND OF DR. ZELLAR, AND GOOD PIONEERS IN DEVELOPMENT OF THE MENTAL HEALTH PRACTICES.

HE BUILT IN LOVELY HOME UP HERE ON THE DRIVE.

ONE OF THE INTERESTING HOMES IS ON THE DRIVE IS THE HOME ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE IF YOU ENTER FROM THE UPPER ENTRANCE.

I THINK IT IS FASCINATING BECAUSE THERE ARE MARBLE PEDIMENTS, AND MARBLE WALKWAY THAT MOVES UP TO THE PORCH AND,G OF COURSE, THAT WAS ALL BECAUSE PELTS OWNED PEORIA MARBLE WORK.

>> IN A WAY, HIS WORK CAME HOME WITH HIM.

HE HAD VARIOUS PIECES OF MARBLE LEFT OVER FROM THE WORKSHOP EMBEDDED IN THE SIDEWALK LEADING UP TO THE MORE MARBLE WAS USED IN ACCENT PIECE OVER THE FRONT DOOR.

INSIDE, AS ONE WOULD EXPECT, THERE IS A LARGE MARBLEúéëO FIREPLACE.

ANOTHER INTERESTING HOME AND ONE OF THE LARGEST ALONG THE DRIVE IS FINISHED IN 1923.

IT WAS ORIGINALLY BUILT FOR THE SCULLY FAMILY.

SCULLY CENTRAL ILLINOIS FAMILY.

TWO BROTHERS, ONE DELVED INTO THE OIL AND GAS BUSINESS, AND RELOCATED TO OKLAHOMA IN THE 20S AND 30'S.

THE OTHER WAS GEORGE SCULLY THAT BOUGHT A GREAT DEAL OF FARMLAND AROUND CENTRAL ILLINOIS, COUNTIES IN FACT, DOWN IN THE LINCOLN AREA.

THEY EN MASSED A GREAT AMOUNT OF WEALTH, NOT ONLY IN ILLINOIS, BUT IN 37 STATES AND THE WEST WHERE THEY SUBSEQUENTLY PASSED ANTI SCULLY LAWS BECAUSE THE SCULLIES WERE KNOWN TO PURCHASE WHOLE COUNTIES AND HAD A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF POLITICAL INFLUENCE.

I WAS BORN AND RAISED IN THIS HOUSE.

I HAVE LIVED HERE ALL MY LIFE.

I COULDN'T IMAGINE LIVING IN ANY OTHER PART OF TOWN.

WHEN THE HOUSE WAS BUILT BECAUSE OF ITS LARGE SIZE, THEY NEEDED TO HAVE SOME WAY TO GET NATURAL LIGHT INTO THE FOYER AREA.

WHAT HAPPENED WAS THEY PUT DORMERS UP IN THE ATTIC WITH MASSIVE STAINED GLASS PIECE THAT WOULD LET THE NATURAL LIGHT FILTER INTO THE FOYER.

THE DORMER FACED SOUTH SO IT GETS ALL IMPORTANT WINTER LIGHT WHEN YOU NEED IT THE MOST.

IT IS ONE OF THE NEATEST, I THINK, ATTRIBUTES THIS HOUSE HAS.

THIS IS PROBABLY MY FAVORITE ROOM IN THE HOUSE.

IT IS THE LIVING ROOM, AND IT IS DONE MUCH WAY IT WAS ORIGINALLY BUILT.

THESE WERE CLEANED UP AND POLISHED UP WHEN WE TOOK OVER THE HOUSE.

THE INTERESTING THING IS WHEN WE STARTED THE RENOVATION, THE WALLS WERE FIVE OR SIX SHADES DARKER THAN WHAT THEY ARE NOW.

YOU HAVE TO REMEMBER IN 1922, THIS HOUSE AND MOST OF THE HEATING WAS DONE BY COAL OR OIL, VERY MESSY OR DIRTY FORMS OF/¦(¦ HEAT.

IT IS SORT OF AN INTERESTING ANECDOTE.

BEFORE I WAS BORN, MY DAD WAS HEAVILY INTO SOUND SYSTEMS.

HE HAD, IN THE GARAGE ACROSS THE BREEZEWAY PUT IN A SOUND STUDIO.

AND THIS ROOM WAS WIRED FOR SOUND AS WELL.

IT WOULD DIRECT CONNECTION INTO THE STUDIO.

DAD WAS WORKING WITH A FLIGHT SURGEON AT NASA BEFORE THEY SENT UP THE FIRST ROCKETS WITH THE MONKEYS IN THEM, AND HE WAS WORKING ON MODELING SYSTEM FOR THE MONKEYS THEMSELF TO CHECK THEIR HEARTBEAT AND WHATNOT.

AND THAT SYSTEM PART OF IT WAS DEVELOPED IN THIS ROOM USING MY MOMAS A TEST DUMMY, IF YOU WILL, AND USING ME -- SHE WAS PREGNANT WITH ME BE AND USING MY HEARTBEAT TO SIMULATE THE MONKEY'S HEARTBEAT, AND ALL THAT WAS DEVELOPED HERE IN THIS ROOM AND STUDIO ACROSS THE BREEZEWAY.

THAT DESK WAS OWNED BY JOSEPHINE BONAPARTE, NAPOLEON'S WIFE, AND WAS ACQUIRED -- BEEN IN THE FAMILY NOW FOR FIVE GENERATIONS.

AND IT IS A WONDERFUL PIECE.

IT WAS ACQUIRED IN FRANCE MANY YEARS AGO.

A VALUED FAMILY TREASURE.

TODAY THE HOME HAS BEEN RESTORED TO ITS ORIGINAL CHARACTER, WHILE BEING UPDATED WITH NEW TECHNOLOGY AND AMENITIES.

ANOTHER HOME BUILT AND THE SAME TIME, BUT WITH MORE EXOTIC APPEARANCE IS THIS MEDITERRANEAN STYLE HOME.

>>THE ITALIAN VILLA IS ON THE RIGHTHAND SIDE AS YOU COME IN TO THE UPPER ENTRANCE, AND IT LOOKS EXACTLY LIKE ITS NAME.

IT HAS THE TILE ROOF ON THE TOP, AND THE BEAUTIFUL ARCH #-D WINDOWS, IT IS SAID IT WAS BUILT IN 1927, AND IT WAS REALLY THE RESULT OF A DREAM THAT A PROMINENT PEORIA WOMAN HAD ONE NIGHT SHE HAD THIS WONDERFUL DREAM ABOUT THE HOME THAT SHE WOULD LOVE TO LIVE IN, AND SHE TOLD HER HUSBAND THE NEXT MORNING ABOUT THIS HOME THAT SHE DREAMED ABOUT, AND HE SAID, WELL, HONEY, DRAW IT OUT ON A PIECE OF PAPER.

SO SHE GOT THE PAPER, FOLDED IT UP, AND PUT IT IN HIS POCKET.

THEN NOT TOO LONG A TIME, HE SURPRISED HER WITH THIS BEAUTIFUL HOME.

SO WE CALL THIS THE GREENHOUSE NOW.

THERE MAYBE A LITTLE FOLKLORE LAID INTO THAT, I DON'T KNOW.

BUT IT IS CERTAINLY A BEAUTIFUL HOME.

HE DID NOT GO BROKE BUILDING IT, BUT THE CRASH OF 1929 WIPED HIM OUT.

THEY DIDN'T LIVE THERE VERY LONG.

OF ALL THE HOMES ALONG THE DRIVE, THE ONE THAT GATHERED THE MOST ATTENTION AND IS REMEMBERED MOST BY VISITORS IS THE CASTLE.

>> THE CASTLE IS THE LEST CASTLE.

IT WAS BUILT AS A WEDDING GIFT FROM MR. CHUBBET WAS HIS DAUGHTER WHO MARRIED MR. LUSK.

>>FATHER PROMISED TO BUILD THEM A HOME.

THEY WENT TO PARIS ON THE HONEYMOON AND BOTH DECIDED THIS IS WHAT THEY WANTED.

AND DAD HIRED AN ARCHITECT OUT AND SENT HIM OVER TO DRAWING BOARD AND SAID DESIGN IT AND CREATE SOMETHING VERY CLOSE TO THE ORIGINAL HOUSE WHICH WAS ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF PARIS.

THIS HOUSE WAS BUILT BY VERY ACTIVE COUPLE.

THEY ENJOYED ENTERTAINING.

THEY ENJOYED HAVING OUT OF TOWN GUESTS BECAUSE THE HUSBAND WAS FROM NEW YORK.

THEY HAD VERY BIG PARTIES HERE.

THE ENTRY HOME IS BIGGER THAN YOU NEED TO BE AS ENTRY HALL, BUT THEY USED IT AS A BALLROOM.

INSTEAD OF BEING ON THE TOP AS WAS TYPICAL IN HOUSES BUILT IN THE 20S, IN THIS HOUSE, IT IS ON THE BOTTOM WHICH MEANT IT STAYED COOLER THAN ANY PLACE ELSE IN THE HOUSE.

ALSO A JAY SEN TO THE GARAGES, AND THEY HAVE DOUBLE DOORS SO YOU CAN OPEN THE ENTRY HALL INTO THE GARAGES, AND ONE TIME THE GARAGE WAS ALL DECORATED WITH LATTICE WORK AND TRIM SO IT COULD BE INCORPORATED INTO THE BIGGER PARTY AND USED FOR DINING.

THE DINING ROOM, ONE OF THE OTHER ITEMS THAT WERE BROUGHT FROM FRANCE, I AM TOLD THE GLASSWORK WAS DONE THERE, AND THE MIRRORS AND SOME OTHER PARTS OF THE HOUSE WERE KIND OF DONE TO MATCH THAT.

THIS HOUSE HAS A SURPRISE IN STORE FOR MOST PEOPLE WHEN THEY COME IN IT, IN THAT IT HAS SO MANY WINDOWS.

MOST PEOPLE THINK IT WOULD BE DARK AND GLOOMY AND VERY TYPICAL WHAT THOUGH THINK A CASS THE WOULD BE LIKE.

AFTER BUILDING, IT WASN'T ACTUALLY A REAL CASTLE IN THE FIRST PLACE.

IT WAS COPIED AFTER 18TH CENTURY COUNTRY RETREAT OUTSIDE OF PARIS.

THAT WAS ALSO COPIED AFTER BUILDING OF A MUCH EARLIER STYLE.

IF THIS WAS AUTHENTIC, IT WOULDN'T HAVE HAD ALL THE WINDOWS AND SO FORTH THAT IT HAS NOW.

THIS IS THE WAY THE HOUSE WAS SO EN DEARING TO THE ORIGINAL OWNERS LOOKED AND THAT'S WHAT THEY COPIED.

]%Rç >> THE BRIDGE IN FRONT OF THE HOME WAS NOT JUST A DECORATIVE PIECE, BUT SERVED A FUNCTIONAL PURPOSE.

SINCE CASTLE ONCE HAD A MOAT ACROSS THE FRONT CONNECTED TO A SMALL LAGOON.

THE SYSTEM WAS KIND OF TRICKY TO OPERATE, AND VARIOUS PEOPLE THAT STAYED HERE THROUGH THE YEARS HAD VARIOUS PROBLEMS WITH THAT.

ONE PERSON MANAGED TO FLOOD GRANDVIEW DRIVE AND EVEN GOT WATER OVER TO COUNTRY CLUB TENNIS COURTS TURNING ON THE WRONG THING WITH THE MOAT.

THAT PUT AN END OF HAVING A MOAT IN THE YARD.

>>LIKE THE OTHER HOMES, THE CASTLE, TOO, HAD BEEN UPGRADED AND HAS SOME MODERN ADDITIONS.

>> WE HAVE AN I DOOR POOL NOW.

THE POOL WAS ORIGINALLY BUILT AS AN OUTDOOR POOL ABOUT A YEAR BEFORE WE BOUGHT THE HOUSE.

BIG FIREPLACE, REALLY NICE WHEN IT IS SNOWING OUTSIDE, HANG THE TOWELS ON PROTRUDING STONES AND HAVE THEM HOT WHEN YOU GET OUT OF THE POOL.

IT IS REALLY PLEASANT.

WINTER IS THE TIME IT IS MOST USED.

LIONS AT THE CORNER OF THE POOL USED TO BE THE SUPPORT FOR THE DIVING BOARD WHEN IT WAS AN OUTDOOR POOL.

THE DIVING BOARD, OF COURSE, WENT WHEN THE CEILING CAME IN, AND I JUST PUT THEM ON THE CORNERS.

COAT OF ARMS IN THE CENTER OF THE FIREPLACE IS ONE OF THE FEW PIECES THAT WAS ACTUALLY BROUGHT FROM FRANCE WHEN THE HOUSE WAS ORIGINALLY BUILT.

AND AT ONE TIME, WE HAVE PHOTOGRAPHS THAT SHOW IT, INSTALLED IN LIVING ROOM OVER THE FIREPLACE THERE.

THE STORY I WAS TOLD, WAS THERE THERE WAS A FAMILY FEUD THAT THE HUSBAND DIDN'T REALLY LIKE A COAT OF ARMS OVER THE FIREPLACE IN THE LIVING ROOM THAT WASN'T HIS, AND HAD IT TAKEN OUT.

WE FOUND IT BACK IN THE GARDEN IN BACK OF THE HOUSE.

WHEN I BUILT THE FIREPLACE AT THE POOL, WE HAD IT PUT THERE.

>>ONE OF THE MOST INTERESTING ADDITIONS IS THIS LIGHT FIXTURE WHICH WAS PURCHASED AT THE MGM AUCTION IN CALIFORNIA.

>> THE HISTORY, THE CHANDELIER WAS MADE ABOUT THE TIME ELECTRICITY WAS BECOMING AVAILABLE.

SO IT WAS BOTH A GAS FIXTURE AND HAD SOME ELECTRICAL APPARATUS IN IT WHEN IT WAS FIRST BUILT.

INTERESTING PART OF THE HISTORY REALLY ISN'T THAT, IT WAS THE MOVIES IT WAS USED IN.

MOST FAMOUS ONE WAS "GONE WITH THE WIND."

THAT WAS THE NICKNAME OF THE CHANDELIER.

IT WAS ALSO USED IN "PHILADELPHIA STORY" AND PROBABLY LOTS OF OTHER MOVIES.

THERE IS AN INTERESTING BOOK, CHILDREN'S BOOK WRITTEN HERE IN THE 1950'S.

CALLED "MELINDA'S DOLL HOUSE."

IT WAS A FAIRY TALE BOOK WRITTEN BY A FRIEND OF THE ORIGINAL OWNERS WHO STAYED HERE FOR SOME TIME WRITING THE BOOK.

IT WAS WRITTEN ABOUT AN ACTUAL DOLL HOUSE THAT EXISTED HERE IN THE HOUSE THAT WAS A MODEL OF THIS BUILDING.

AFTER BEING HERE FOR 31 YEARS, I CAN'T IMAGINE REALLY ANY PLACE ELSE I WOULD WANT TO LIVE.

WE ARE VERY HAPPY BEING RIGHT HERE, THE VIEW IS FABULOUS.

>> BUT JUST LIKE THE GRAND HOMES IT INSPIRED, GRANDVIEW DRIVE ITSELF WAS IN NEED OF REPAIR AND UPDATING.

>> WELL, ACTUALLY IT NEVER WAS BLACKTOPPED.

I DON'T KNOW IF MIKE EVER THOUGHT OF THAT, BUT WHAT IT WAS LAYER AFTER LAYER OF CHIP AND OIL, AND THAT WAS IT.

>>THAT WAS ONE OF THE FIRST UNIQUE ASPECTS OF GRANDVIEW DRIVE I NOTICED, GROUND WAS SO HIGH THAT DURING WINTER, CARS WOULD LITERALLY SLIDE OFF OF THE CROWN AND GET STUCK.

>>IF YOU WANT TO GET OUT OF THE DITCH BETWEEN THE ROAD AND THE HOUSING AND PEOPLE COULDN'T PARK THERE BECAUSE THEY COULDN'T GET OUT OF THE CAR.

>>WE HAVE DONE QUITE A BIT WITH THE RENOVATION OF THE ROADWAY OVER THE LAST ABOUT EIGHT YEARS TO REPAIR ANCIENT STORM SEWER SYSTEMS.

MOST OF THAT STUFF IS UNDERGROUND.

SOLVE PROBLEMS DOWN THE HILLSIDE.

>>THE OLD WORK WAS BROKEN DOWN.

PIPES WERE BREAKING, SO WHAT WE DESIGNED LARGER INLETS WITH GREATS, AND ANOTHER CONCERN WAS FOR THE BRIDGE AT THE BEGINNING OF THE DRIVE WHICH SPANS DEVIL'S CREEK.

>>A REALLY UNIQUE PROJECT FOR THE TIME WHEN IT WAS CONSTRUCTED, AND THEY BUILT EACH ONE OF THOSE BLOCKS, THE BIGGER ROCKS AND EVERYTHING.

EACH ONE WAS MADE BY HAND.

THEY MADE THEM OUT AT ONE OF THE PARK DISTRICT OFFICES, THE AREAS, AND BROUGHT THEM OVER.

>> THE BRIDGE IS A CONTRIBUTING FACTOR TO THE DRIVE BEING LISTED IN THE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES.

WE HAD TO PUT THE BRIDGE BACK TOGETHER EXACTLY AS IT WAS CONSTRUCTED IN 1903.

>> THE ACTUAL BRIDGE STRUCTURE UNDERNEATH, ART STRUCTURE WAS STILL IN VERY GOOD CONDITION.

IT DIDN'T HAVE TO BE REPLACED.

WHAT HAD TO BE REPLACED THE WALLS ON EITHER SIDE OF THE STRUCTURE.

WATER HAD GOTTEN IN THERE, AND THROUGH FREEZE-000, OPENED VERY LARGE CRACKS IN THE WALL AND THEY WERE THIS DANGER OF COLLAPSES.

ORIGINAL STRUCTURE, AND IF YOU HAVE SEEN THE SIDE, LOOKS LIKE ALL MASONRY STRUCTURE.

YOU HAVE GOT THE LARGE CONCRETE, STANDING CONCRETE SPACE AND MORTAR JOINTS IN BETWEEN.

ONCE WE BROKE INTO THIS AND FOUND OUT HOW IT WAS HELD TOGETHER, IT WAS CAST IN PLACE CONCRETE WALL WITH, OH, SIX INCH MORTAR BLOCKS JUST MORTARED TO THE TOP OF IT WHERE WE THOUGHT IT WAS COMPLETELY MASONRY STRUCTURE.

>>ONE OF THE INTERESTING SURPRISES WE FOUND WAS HOW THE CONCRETE WAS MIXED BACK THEN.

WE FOUND CINDERS.

WE FOUND CRUSHED ROCKS, CRUSHED BRICK, JUST A LITTLE BIT OF EVERYTHING MIXED UP IN THERE.

AND IT APPEARED NO TWO BATCHES WERE ESSENTIALLY THE SAME.

>>IT WAS BUILT OBVIOUSLY FOR VERY LIGHT TRAFFIC.

BUT THE MAIN STRUCTURE UNDERNEATH THE ARCH IS THE STRONGEST STRUCTURE YOU CAN GET.

AND AT THE TIME, THEY USED PLENTY OF CONCRETE IN IT.

SO IT LASTED A LONG, LONG TIME, AND THE ARCH ITSELF WILL PROBABLY LAST ANOTHER HUNDRED YEARS.

THERE IS NOT A DAY THAT GOES BY THAT I DON'T DRIVE BY AC AND LOOK OUT AT THE RIVER TO THINK HOW BLESSED WE ARE TO HAVE THIS SET UP HERE.

YOU WOULD THINK ONE WOULD GET TIRED OF IT, BUT ONE NEVER DOES.

CONSTANTLY CHANGING, THE WINTER STORM THS, AND SUMMER STORMS, YOU HAVE THE BEAUTIFUL SUNSETS, THE MOON COMING OVER THE OTHER SIDE OF THE RIVER, IT IS SPECTACULAR.

FALL IS TREMENDOUS HERE.

>>THEY COMPARED THE GRANDVIEW DRIVE HERE TO SOME OF THE MOST FAMOUS DRIVES IN THE WORLD AND LOOK-OUT POINTS AND EVERYTHING.

AND THEY SAID AT THE TIME, TOO, YOU HAD NOT EXPERIENCED PEORIA UNTIL YOU HAD SEEN GRANDVIEW DRIVE.

IF WE DIDN'T HAVE GRANDVIEW DRIVE, WE WOULD BE PROBABLY LIKE ANY OTHER PRAIRIE TOWN, BUT WE HAVE THE RIVER AND WE HAVE THE HIGH BLUFFS HERE, AND SO WE ARE VERY FORTUNATE TO HAVE GRANDVIEW DRIVE IN PEORIA.

I THINK IF DURYEA CAME BACK TODAY AND SAW THE BEAUTY THAT HAS BEEN RETAINED, HE WOULD BE OVERJOYED BECAUSE THE DRIVE IS STILL ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL PLACES IN THE STATE OF ILLINOIS.

BEING INVOLVED WITH TROLLEY TOURS AND BUS TOURS THAT FOLKS COME IN FROM OUT OF TOWN ALL OVER THE WORLD AND COME HERE AND THEY ARE ABSOLUTELY IN AWE OVER THE BEAUTY THAT WE HAVE HERE IN PEORIA.

PRODUCTION OF GRANDVIEW DRIVE WAS MADE POSSIBLE IN PART BY AMEREN CILCO WITH ADDITIONAL SUPPORT FROM THE MEMBERS OF THE KLYSTRON SOCIETY.