This mansion was built in 1882 and owned by Hiram B. Scutt who held 10 patents for barbed wire. In addition to the barbed wire business, Scutt was President of the Joliet Wire Check Power Company and the Citizens Electric Company. After he dies in 1889, his son lived in the house. It later became a business school for women and is now used as banquet hall. The site was listed on the National Register of Historical Places on 2/5/2003.
According to this website (
visit link) ... the site is also haunted. That site reports:
"Two murders are tied to this mansion, at least two deaths of past owners while living there, two infants who have died while living there, and those are the ones we know about."
That website also reports one person's paranormal experience here:
"When I agreed to go along to the mansion in Joliet, I figured at best it
would be an historic adventure. I was a paranormal virgin if u will.
Then I got upstairs to the "doll" room where there was already something
goin on. I went to the west end of the room and my right arm got extremely
cold.Only the right arm. I tried rubbing it and putting my coat on to no luck.
Then came the overwhelming sensation to get the hell outta that room and
now. At that point I had no idea why I was leaving,only that I needed to go.
I did not want to return to that room, but I did. Once again the same chill
and the same desire to get out. When the circle came, things got stronger
for me. Cold and the sence of being messed with.
1/2 of the ride home, my wife's freind (who was also in the circle) and
I were really sick to our stomaches. Like having too much to drink and
wanting to get sick. I was also detached for a New York minute. Once
that passed then I trying to fight staying awake. Never felt like that.
It was as if I didn't sleep for a week. I fell asleep hard and woke up the
next morning just as tired and felt scrambled. The whole day I felt like
I was standing on one foot. "