Tinker Swiss Cottage Museum

What a hidden gem! I took a couple of teenagers for an impromptu visit. The tour is amazing because the stories that remain in those walls are intact and on display. It took us 1 hour and half to get through the tour.
It was so interesting!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tinker_Swiss_Cottage

The Tinker Swiss Cottage is a jewel. The staff/volunteers were wonderful. The house is beautiful and 95%+ of the original belongings still in place. As a museum person this made my day. Fascinating that the original owner was both a self taught architect and artist which melded beautifully in the home he created. Hat's off to our volunteer docent Terry who was a fount of information on the family, house and objects inside.

Highly recommend taking the time to take a tour. Well worth it.

Let's start by painting a picture of the Tinker Swiss cottage tour. Oddly enough, the tour starts in a gift shop, which was formerly a barn. Our tour guide was relatively informative, had some snappy replies, and was slightly uncomfortable speaking. That being said, the tour guide is a volunteer and intended well. The residence consisted of a large amount of original items from the "tinker times" as the tour guide states. It was a very interesting residence and we enjoyed learning the inspirations of the home. We also liked seeing the work that Tinker had done himself such as his root wood furniture.

The downside is the surrounding area is decrepit and garbage loosely finds it's way around the outside area, which shadows the fantastic work Tinker put into this house. Some of this garbage includes a junk tire in the creek below the beautiful limestone cliff, an abandoned building right next to the property, grocery bags in the trees, and low income housing.

Apart from that the house itself is a great work of art. Additions were done to the house, which are oddly obvious and patchy looking, but overall we were impressed primarily by the greenhouse and library.

This place is also to known to be haunted, if that interests you. It was also visited by paranormal investigators due to paranormal activity. There's an Indian burial and eight people are known to have passed away there. As a result, they also have haunted tours once in a while.

Tinker Swiss Cottage is a hidden Gem in the middle of Rockford. The house is filled with Victorian era furnishings, artwork, clothing and everyday items that one wouldn't normally see in one place. There is a long rich history of the house and the architecture is beautiful.

In order to enter the museum you need to have a guided tour. The guides are knowledgeable and will go into great detail regarding the history of the house and the family. Well worth the price of admission. Also, depending on what time of year you go depends on how the house is decorated. They will change the furnishings and the interior based on holidays as was the custom in the Victorian era.

They also hold various workshops, lectures and events throughout the year. You need to check their schedule to see what might pique your interest. One of the events they do that we enjoyed was the Ghost Tour. The house is allegedly haunted and they will take people through at night and tell stories of things that have happened in the house. We had a lot of fun with it. If ghosts aren't your thing, try holiday teas, Murder Mysteries, lectures and much more. There's something for everyone.

Definitely worth the visit.

Nice place , but the tourist left out a few facts. The story was all over the place she puzzled and skimmed through when we asked her certain questions

Who goes to Rockford, right? Like a lot of other smaller cities, Rockford may be one of those places you pass through.

Definitely make an hour-stop at this place if you happen to roadtrip by it. I know, Illinois has lots of Eastern European-inspired architecture, but this is definitely not to be missed.

The docent-guided tour is free, and showcases the style and lifestyle of the owner, and that of time past.

Also, curious about the origin of the sock monkey? The docent will share that information with you. No, it has nothing to do with the house.

Definitely enjoyed my tour today! Guide was very educational and informative on the history and life of the time. House built the same year the civil war ended and still keeps the original wood floors in first room. Was told total of 8 people died in the house: Mr Tinker, his first and second wife, and other family members. Nothing violent. First wife died of a condition that required "a gallon of water to be drained off her body daily." 1800s were difficult to say which condition she died from. Mr Tinkey apparently had an accident with a runaway rail car that ran over his foot and required amputation. Foot was buried somewhere in the gardens and no one has located it after (he wanted to be buried whole and by that time the Gardner couldn't remember where he set it). There's a VERY creepy painting of an old woman in the parlor that really does stare at you like a stern grandmother when you enter the room! And of course the upstairs nursery where the adopted son was kept since 6months old, complete with baby basket and hand molding! Creepy old tree in front of the house with bench to sit on, donated by the great grandnephew of the late Mr Tinker. As far as haunted happenings was told that at times there are footsteps upstairs but that's about it. They had a ghost hunters episode there in the past.

This is best historic site tour I have been on. You are able to enter almost every room. The furnishings are not only from that era, but were the family's things. The tour lasts about an hour, but it really could have gone on for 2 and I would have been happy. Plus there is a little scandal of a story about the second wife. =) The library and the stairs in it are worth the visit themselves. The tour guide is very knowledgeable and allows for questions throughout. I was truly impressed.