Tons of Taxidermy and a Train

846 Ashland Ave., River Forest, IL 60305

It looks so unassuming from the outside, but then once you step inside…

846 Ashland Ave., River Forest, IL 60305

Lions!

846 Ashland Ave., River Forest, IL 60305

And… um… mountain lions!

846 Ashland Ave., River Forest, IL 60305

And polar bears!

846 Ashland Ave., River Forest, IL 60305

Oh my.

I think this place may take the taxidermy crown from the Gig Harbor, WA home we featured a couple years ago.

846 Ashland Ave., River Forest, IL 60305

Also, who keeps six buffet servers in their dining room? This place is creeping me out for a variety of reasons.

But hey, at least there’s this:

846 Ashland Ave., River Forest, IL 60305

Yay, train! Probably not as awesome as the incredible “Railway Resort” in Oregon (which is still for sale, by the way, and $1.7 million cheaper than this place), but hey it’s a lot cooler than a bunch of dead animals.

Found by: Christin C.

About the Author

Marty E.
Naked Loon Editor-in-Chief

3 Comments on "Tons of Taxidermy and a Train"

  1. Hehe – I see what you mean, Marty.

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  2. It’s like a zoo without the poo.

    Actually, looking at the photos, I wonder if it wasn’t being used as a private hunt club. I know that hunt clubs get together to taste the various meats that the hunters bring home. That would explain the multiple buffet servers as well as the multiple grills in the back.

    Although… this is the first time I’ve seen a sewing room in a house like this. I come from a long line of seamstresses that would have loved to have a space like that for sewing. It seems out of place with the rest of the house.

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  3. Imagining the interiors without all the dead animals gives me hope. (Living room… want, want, want) Views in the back yard, Pics 18-20 in particular, turn that to cautious hope.

    – Pic 18: extensive cracking in the concrete; if there’s cracking there, there may be cracking in the foundation, too.
    – Pic 19: my heart skipped a beat, others might do so literally. A not particularly vertical power line pole within feet of the swimming pool? Um, no.
    – Pic 20: serious water damage/rot at the base of the garage doors reveals a level of neglect.

    The yard, too, seems ignored when compared to the meticulously manicured neighboring lawns. Back inside, the dated wall treatments (including water damaged wallpaper in Pics 9 and 17) also suggest neglect. It’s a 1927 house, but it’s no older than most of the surrounding homes and they all look much better.

    Still, there’s a ton of potential. If it’s structurally sound and has room to expand/modernize the kitchen, it could be a real find (although the lack of bathroom pics is worrisome). The only stumbling block is the ridiculous price tag. With so much need for updates the only plausible reason for it is the close-in location to Chicago, closer even than La Grange Park where I grew up, and its homes were beyond modest compared to this place.

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