As a "living museum," the building and gardens preserve in vivid detail the flavor of an era and a way of life. The grand spaces of the Venetian style architecture, filled with antique furnishings and artwork and the quiet paths through the manicured grounds allow the visitor to savor the elegant splendor of the "gilded age." The Cuneo mansion is one of the few surviving manor homes from the early 20th century settlement of gentleman farmers in the fields south of Libertyville, which included Joseph Medill Patterson of the Tribune and Adlai Stevenson, the presidential candidate. Now surrounded by busy suburban development, the museum is a magnificent relic of the domestic opulence and rustic retreat of that former period.

It is also a personal legacy of the families who lived in the home. Samuel Insull, founder of the Commonwealth Edison Company, had the home built for his family in 1914. John Cuneo, Sr. purchased the mansion in 1937 after the collapse of the Insull utility empire. Mr. Cuneo was best known as the founder of the Cuneo Press and Hawthorn Mellody Dairy. The mansion remained the family home until the death of Mrs. Cuneo in 1990. Certain features of the home reflect aspects of the owners' personal interests. Mr. Insull had the landscaper include a small grassy stage between a classical colonnade, so that his wife Gladys, an actress before her marriage, could perform for their dinner guests. A devout Roman Catholic, John Cuneo, Sr. obtained permission through his friend, Cardinal Stritch, to convert a sun porch into a consecrated chapel with magnificent stained glass windows and ceiling murals of the stations of the cross. The histories of the people who shaped the mansion, the collections and the grounds are told on the guided, room by room tours of the building. Guided tours are offered Tuesday through Saturday at 11:00am, 1:00pm, and 3:00pm. On Sundays, tours are self-guided (with booklet) from 10:00 until 4:00pm.

The Cuneo Museum is also an art museum. In fact, the building itself is a work of art, housing an art gallery within. The mansion was designed by prominent architect Benjamin Marshall, builder of the Edgewater Beach and Drake Hotels in Chicago. The grounds were laid out by famous prairie style landscaper, Jens Jensen. Inside the museum is filled with a variety of objects of great beauty from different periods and countries and in different media. The paintings, porcelain, silver, tapestries, statues and furnishings are the result of a lifetime of discriminating collecting by Mr. Cuneo and his family.

Whether you are interested in the history of the period, or you admire fine art or you simply want to step back into a quieter, more elegant time, a tour of the Cuneo Museum has much to offer you.