Our Story
Since 1854
Welcome to The Homestead 1854
More than just a unique and unforgettable intimate wedding & special event venue and boutique working bed & breakfast, we host corporate and individual retreats and we are a perfect mid-weeknight gathering spot for beer, wine & coffee or yoga!
Located less than 60 miles from downtown Chicago in Plano, Illinois, The Homestead 1854 is a unique property that features an elegant mix of old and new. The Homestead 1854 is a place friends can laugh and enjoy much needed time together, family can gather and share stories and individuals & teams can be inspired, create and re-energize.
The Homestead 1854’s current owners, Chet and Mary Kay Sergo, purchased the Chicago area bed and breakfast in July 2012. The Sergos are committed to maintaining the integrity of the home and to serving their guests with the hospitality, energy, and respect that was so well embodied by the home’s original owner, Lewis Steward.
A property that boasts a rich and varied history.
In 1854, Lewis Steward, the founder of the town of Plano, built the Homestead 1854 to be patterned after the picturesque country cottages that are reminiscent of rural Tuscan villas.
In the early 1850s, the Chicago Burlington & Quincy Railroad began expanding westward from Chicago.
Seeing an opportunity for business growth as a result of the railroad’s expansion, Steward offered the railroad access across his family’s farm and proposed to build a town around the railroad. In 1853, Mr. Steward plotted the town of Plano, configuring the streets, planting trees, subdividing his property for new settlers, and donating land to build the town’s twelve original churches. For the next several years, Lewis Steward focused his efforts on the growth and development of Plano, supporting its industries and maintaining the city’s economic strength. Steward was a lawyer, farmer, merchant, manufacturer, horse breeder, philanthropist, and served as the area’s Representative in the. 52nd United States Congress. Mr. Steward was known as a man of integrity, always with an eye for the welfare of the residents of Plano. He provided the town with its water system, developed a park, built an opera house, and took school children to the neighboring city of Aurora to see the circus. As a result, Plano became known as “The Child of Lewis Steward’s Creation.” Mr. Steward expanded the house in the early 1860s and again in the late 1870s, and the house remained in the Steward family until 1954.
