To show its support for the Peoria area during the Illinois Bicentennial and beyond, the Peoria Area Association of REALTORS® (PAAR) helped with landscaping renovations at the Pettengill-Morrow House Museum in Peoria.

“PAAR reached out to the Peoria Historic Society and everyone agreed the overgrown landscaping in the backyard of the Pettengill-Morron House would be a great project; transforming it to the beauty of yesteryear,” said Dallas Hancock, PAAR CEO.

A task force co-chaired by REALTORS® Sheryl Grider-Whitehurst and Zach Oyler enlisted the assistance of Hoerr Nursery to create the landscape design for the gardens, then raised the required funding and coordinated volunteers, said Hancock.

Grider-Whitehurst thanked Hoerr Nursery, Carmody Services and the Peoria Master Gardeners for planning, removal of old landscaping and planting new plants, respectively.

“It’s amazing the difference this project has made to the grounds of the house,” said Oyler.  “The historic society relies on help like this from the community to support these historic properties.”

In 1833, when Moses Pettengill moved to the area, roughly 200 people lived in Peoria and log cabins were the most popular type of home. The Pettengill home was built in 1868 and featured Second Empire architectural style. Today, the museum has 11 rooms that contain collections from Peoria families that explain the area’s history.

REALTORS® across the state are working with heart in their communities to complete projects like this to commemorate the Illinois Bicentennial. The project is one of more than 30 legacy projects supported by our local REALTOR® associations in the state.

Projects include fundraising for local historic home repairs and historical community murals or promoting local historical properties and societies. Illinois REALTORS® has donated land in downtown Springfield next to its headquarters to build Bicentennial Plaza – a REALTOR® Community Partnership, which is a signature project of the state bicentennial celebrations.

The association is an official endorsed partner with the Illinois Bicentennial Commission, which oversees the state’s plans for the milestone birthday.

This blog post is part of a series over the next several months covering Illinois REALTORS® local associations legacy projects leading up to the state of Illinois 200th Birthday. Learn more.