Virgil Hickox House

What is Virgil Hickox House?

Over the years the Hickox family remodeled the house several times. By the time they left in 1880 it looked much as it does now, an Italianate building with bracketed eaves and tall, arched windows. It is easy to spot because it is the lone house left in the heart of the city, with the old Leland Hotel right next door.

History of Virgil Hickox House

Virgil Hickox was a prominent local figure. As a businessman he helped bring Springfield its first railroad, which extended the Chicago and Alton line to the city. He also practiced law and led the Democratic State Committee for two decades, which put him in the circle of both Lincoln and Douglas.

In 1895 the Sangamo Club, a private club for men, moved in and stayed for more than fifteen years. During Prohibition the building ran as a speakeasy, and it kept pouring afterward as Norb Andy's Tabarin, which became a known haunt of Illinois legislators. By the 1980s, reports called it one of the last bars where politicians still gathered regularly. The house joined the National Register in March 1982.

Visiting Virgil Hickox House: tips

The house sits about 0.6 mile off the old road, right next to the Leland Hotel, with the Cong. James M. Graham House and the Jennings Ford Automobile Dealership each about 0.1 mile away. Check current use before planning to go inside; otherwise enjoy the Italianate front from the sidewalk. A few minutes is enough, but it adds real color to a downtown walk.