Few houses for sale are more perfectly matched for Arbor Day, the day of observance that fell on Friday in the United States where people are encouraged to appreciate and plant trees.
Elaine Silets planted a pink magnolia outside her North Barrington, Illinois, home for her mother’s 100th birthday. She planted a blue spruce with her husband, Harvey Silets, for their 40th wedding anniversary. Together, they planted a linden tree for their son who died at 17, and next to the linden, Silets planted a copper beech in remembrance of Harvey when he passed away.
It’s part of Silets' lifelong love for gardening, but Harvey, an esteemed attorney, would join in the hobby too, specifically gravitating toward trees. The two would scour nurseries on weekends for rare plants and foliage for their home’s 11 gardens and multiple groves, many of which were woven into Silets' other life passion: trains.
She gained the nickname “The Train Lady” from her career in designing model train sets for department stores, restaurants and homes. Silets first heard it from a group of 5-year-olds at the Chicago Children's Museum where she was setting up an exhibit.
One of multiple model train railways on the estate navigates around a lily pond and through rose bushes. Railroad track-themed steps lead to the estate’s own train museum, named after Harvey, complete with a model replica of Chicago, which cost an estimated $1.5 million on its own, according to Silets.
Silets' life from the past half-century is told through her home, filled with details of her life passions and pains across 10 acres of land, 10 structures and 10,000 square feet. With all plants and train sets included, the home and a guest house, train museum, barn, treehouse, greenhouse, party room and train depot are listed at $2.5 million.
“The value of the gardens is priceless. Even if you had a million-[dollar] budget, you wouldn’t be able to create this because you can’t just transplant an entire grove of mature trees,” said listing agent Eugene Fu of @properties Christie’s International Real Estate. “They won't survive. Many of the trees and bushes were planted as seedlings. It took over 50 years to create what you see here today.”
An arborist and train enthusiast
Among the personally significant trees, the estate also includes an arborist attraction, a 90-year-old American Chestnut tree. Mature American Chestnuts are virtually extinct after disease and chestnut blight killed the trees, which once reached a population in the billions, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
“There are arborists who come from around the world to see this tree,” said Fu.
Silets has garnered similar attention for her work in model railways, which is also on display at her estate.
The Chicago-themed set spans a 44-by-27-foot layout and includes a miniature Millennium Park fixed with a “Cloud Gate” sculpture, better known as the “Bean,” and the nearby Crown Fountain, which displays larger-than-life videos of Chicagoans’ faces and even spurts out water in the summertime. Silets chose to include her own face and her husband’s. Of course, Wrigley Field, the Art Institute, and Union Station are also included.
Silets began constructing the Chicago railway when her husband was diagnosed with cancer, hiring teams of people to assist in its construction that lasted two years. The railways are all included in the sale of the estate.
The primary home and guest house include seven bedrooms and nine bathrooms with a crafting room, exercise room, wine cellar, two laundry rooms, a library, and two walk-in closets, with one extending 40 feet long and 18 feet wide. A 1950s soda fountain in the lower level features soda taps and milkshake glasses behind a metal retro-style bar, a gift from a former client of Harvey’s. A small train railway hangs from the ceiling.
“The client owned a bowling alley in Waukegan and was known to give very unique gifts,” said Fu.