Wood-Maxey-Boyd House

Address: 2801 S. Prairie Avenue Year Built: 1885 Architect: John C. Cochrane Date Designated a Chicago Landmark: October 1, 2003

The Wood-Maxey-Boyd House, located in the Douglas community area, is a finely-preserved Queen Anne-style mansion built for lumberman George E. Wood in 1885. It was designed by architect John C. Cochrane, who designed the All Saints Episcopal Church on N. Hermitage Avenue, a Chicago Landmark, and the Illinois State Capitol. The house was once part of "Lower Prairie Avenue," a section of the City's most prestigious 19th-century residential street between 26th and 30th Streets that was almost completely redeveloped under urban renewal efforts in the 1950s and 60s. The house's current owner, Dr. Alva Maxey-Boyd, bought the house with her husband, Charles Boyd, in 1948, and it was through their decades-long efforts that the house survives today.