Naperville's Local Landmarks

In addition to the Naperville local historic district, the City maintains a local register of historic landmarks. Local landmarks are designated by the Naperville City Council and are subject to the same regulations as properties located within the local historic district.

The following five properties have been recognized as local historic landmarks:

• The Truitt House, 48 E. Jefferson Ave.
  The Truitt House was designated a local landmark in 1990. It was constructed in 1916 and was designed by Harry Robinson, who was the chief draftsman in Frank Lloyd Wright's office. The structure is a good example of Prairie School design. Dr. Truitt was one of the city's most prominent physicians and used this structure as a residence and medical office.
  
  Property survey and ordinance for the Truitt House

• Thomas Clow House, 5212 Book Road
  The Thomas Clow House was designated a local landmark in 1991. The home was built in 1868 and is comprised of limestone. The residence was considered a fine example of mid-19th century Greek Revival Farmhouse style in the architectural survey conducted by Granacki Historic Consultants.
  
  Property survey and ordinance for the Thomas Clow House

• Naperville Woman's Club, 14 S. Washington St.
  The Naperville Woman’s Club was designated a local landmark in 2011. The structure is classified as a charming Gothic Revival church and is a key building in Naperville’s downtown. It was constructed in 1899 and is comprised of a locally quarried limestone and stained-glass windows. The building was originally built for the German Evangelical People’s Church in 1899 and has been occupied by the Naperville Woman’s Club since 1925.
  
  Property survey and ordinance for the Naperville Woman's Club

• Old Nichols Library, 110 S. Washington St.
  Old Nichols Library was designated as a local landmark in 2017. Old Nichols Library was designed by M.E. Bell in a Richardsonian Romanesque style. The structure was used as a library until 1986 and was Naperville’s first public library. The Old Nichols Library is a key building in Naperville’s downtown. After the library use, Truth Lutheran church utilized the property as a religious institution until 2017.
  
  Property survey and ordinance for the Old Nichols Library

• Beidelman Buildings, 235 – 239 S. Washington St.
  The Beidelman Buildings were designated a local landmark in 2024, becoming the first commercial buildings landmarked in Naperville. This includes the Beidelman furniture store constructed in 1928 and the 19th-century building constructed in the 1850s, often referred to as "the workshop."

  The workshop facing Jackson Avenue is where Frederick Long and John Kraushar built pulpit furniture and coaches starting in 1881. This venture was incorporated in 1893 by Long, Kraushar, and several other Naperville businessmen as the Naperville Lounge Company, which operated out of an abandoned skating rink on 20 E. Jefferson. One of the company's earliest hires and eventual owner, Peter Kroehler, moved the factory north of the railroad tracks to the site of 5th Avenue Station and ultimately transformed it into Kroehler Manufacturing Company, billed as the world's largest upholstered furniture maker, in 1915. 

  The three-story brick building facing Washington Street is the home of the longest continuously operating furniture business in DuPage County, Beidelman Furniture. These buildings represent, and are a tribute to, local commercial enterprise in Naperville and the preservation of two carpentry trades that are now all but extinct (wood working/furniture making and undertaking). The chapel windows as seen with the storefront showcase how these trades were combined by a shared use of wood. 

  Property survey and ordinance for the Beidelman Buildings

To learn more about how to landmark a property, visit the Regulations for Historic Districts and Landmarked Properties page.