SPRINGFIELD'S SCULPTURES,            Carl and Roberta Volkmann
MONUMENTS, AND PLAQUES              cvolk@aol.com
www.arcadiapublishing.com
Around the Town
PASFIELD HOUSE PLAQUE
The contributions of the Pasfield family to Springfield and Illinois are described on the
plaque outside the Pasfield House at 535 South Pasfield Street.  It reads:
“In 1896 George Pasfield Jr. (1870-1930) built this historic
Georgian-Revival Mansion, the Pasfield House,
overlooking the original family home that was built in a
wooded estate his grandfather began acquiring in 1835.

Pasfield’s father and grandfather were early settlers of
Springfield (1831) and personal friends of Abraham
Lincoln.  The elder George Pasfield (1790-1867) was one
of the first merchants of the public square and an original
bond signer to build the Springfield Old State Capitol.  His
son, Dr. George Pasfield (1831-1916), was recognized by
the Illinois State Journal as the wealthiest man in central
Illinois after expanding the notable Pasfield commercial
and agricultural properties, establishing local banks and
co-founding both the internationally known Illinois Watch
Company and Springfield Iron Works.

The Pasfield Family contributed greatly to keeping
Springfield as the Illinois State Capital.  George Pasfield, Jr.
served as President of the Capitol Grounds Purchase
Association, which enlarged the State House site, to erect
the Centennial Memorial Building commemorating the
statehood of Illinois.

George Pasfield, Jr. is best remembered as stepping in as
President of the Pleasure Driveway and Park District of
Springfield, to address a financial scandal blamed on
machine politics, eventually undertaking the parks largest
expansion. Pasfield Park Golf Course is named in his honor.

The City of Springfield, in 2004, designated the once 40 acre
homestead as the Pasfield House Historic Area.”


The original mansion was constructed by Scottish builder John Stewart Sine and
served as the Pasfield home until the 1930s when the family sold it.  The house was
converted to nine apartments. Over the years aluminum siding was added to the
exterior, and the original interior oak, walnut, and mahogany woodwork was painted
over.  

In 1995 Tony Leone, a Statehouse lobbyist and former clerk in the Illinois House of
Representatives, purchased the house to restore it to its original grandeur. Bruce Ferry
of the architectural firm Ferry and Associates oversaw the five year renovation to a
multi-use building.  Six apartments remain on the second and third floors, but the lower
level has been transformed into office, conference, and party spaces. With the
elegance of the original home restored, the Pasfield House again welcomes Springfield
residents and State politicians in the shadow of the State Capitol.
Pasfield Family plot,
Oak Ridge Cemetery