The Magnificent Medills by Megan McKinney

Author:Megan McKinney
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins

WHEN MCCORMICK, THEN newly promoted to Colonel, and Amy had returned from Europe following the war, they were delighted to arrive at her house in Lake Forest, with its spacious stables and proximity to the equestrian activities of Onwentsia. But it took little time to realize they had been frozen out of proper North Shore society by the lingering effects of scandal. Whispering began every time they entered the Onwentsia clubhouse for a drink or the grandstands to watch a horse show. To minimize notoriety, Bert and Amy opted to spend the polo-playing, foxhunting and trail-riding months at Red Oaks Farm, Grandfather Medill’s country house near Wheaton, which now belonged to the Colonel.

The couple directed the rebuilding of the estate’s infrastructure, including electrical wiring, plumbing, insulation and heating facilities, and renamed the property Cantigny to commemorate the Colonel’s World War I liberation of the French town. They hired farmers to work the estate and redesigned the property’s basic landscaping, clearing views through dense woods and planting stands of leafy trees along roads within the grounds. A polo field was installed and the cellar stocked with enough of the best Scotch whiskey to last through the long Prohibition years. Amy hired staff, a cook and assistant, upstairs and downstairs maids and a butler, valet and chauffeur. For a time they joined the nearby Chicago Golf Club; the Colonel’s father had once been president of the historic and notably selective club, and furthermore its membership was more broad-minded than that of Onwentsia.

Haven or not, Cantigny was still a part-time residence and the McCormicks spent the winter months at a house they acquired in town at 1519 Astor Street. The stately four-story limestone and brick residence was ivy-covered, with a formal garden encased in high walls, providing an elegant setting for occasional charitable benefits hosted by Amy, and such events as one she held for Queen Marie of Romania. As exquisite as the Astor Street house was, the McCormicks were without facilities for enjoying their beloved equestrian sports during the winter months, and a search was on.

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