New to the neighborhood, Eric and Lana Barton – along with family canines Minnie and Benji – are thrilled to kick off their home’s 100th birthday celebration this December by featuring their home on the Candlelight Tour.

When asked what drew them to Grant Park, Lana says, “We always loved the area, and Eric was constantly searching the internet for Grant Park houses for sale. We finally met an agent one day who showed us another house across the park. After looking at that house and chatting with him for a bit about what we were REALLY looking for, he brought us to this one. Eric and I walked through the front door and we both immediately got that ‘I-gotta-have-it’ feeling!”

Built in 1911 as a single-story, single-gable Craftsman bungalow with two bedrooms and one bathroom, the hallway of the home was modified mid-construction by adding a simple staircase leading down to what was to become a turn-of-the-century home office area. The expansive attic space was simply used for storage at the time. Fast forward 90+ years to a new gourmet kitchen installation, an upper story guest suite build-out, and the creation of a magnificent English garden out back full of herbs, flowering shrubs and vegetables.

Today, the home’s simple Craftsman exterior speaks significantly to the American Arts & Crafts movement with the Aroyo porch lights, brick columns and the unique picket fence made from willow branches. Step inside, though, and the three-floor interior exudes a sense of provincial France. Original plaster and lathe walls, immaculate woodwork, century-old hardware and six-panel doors all float tastefully above shiny heart pine floors and under lofty ten-foot ceilings. Throughout the home, you will notice that the unique upper sashes of the windows bear their original diamond-and-obelisk divided light pattern. On the upper floor, reclaimed heart pine was chosen for the study area and the bedroom to echo the floors in the rest of the home.

Some of the couple’s favorite features of the home are the five original fireplaces, most of which have their original tile, and the tasteful yet subtle laundry area between their kitchen and the light-filled breakfast nook. And although the home itself has not changed much since the couple purchased it in May of this year, they have made some improvements in the backyard including large decorative gravel areas, new plantings, benches and lighting.