Info: Do what you wish with the attached information. It is all from publicly available sources.
Attached are some files and information you may find interesting. I have provided several arial views (1 from 1978 and a few from 2002), and have outlined the property on one of the 2002 maps and the 1978 map.
To me this looks like a very upscale property with tennis courts, a 1 or 2 hole golf course, stable, etc. prior to whatever occured post-1978 that led to the abandonment.
I have also provided the parcel map that shows the properties borders from a tax perspective. The property was sold in 1997 for around $540,000 which is a steal (it is almost 18 acres). Since 1997 it has been listed as “land” on the tax records. Tax bills are sent to a private address in North Barrington. I haven’t traced the actual ownership, but may do so some day to amuse myself.
The property has recently begun to be developed. The gates have been torn down and construction crews are preparing a road bed, drainage, etc. From the road I could still see old buildings standing so they have not torn them down yet.
The “insane asylum” has been a popular legend since the mid-1970′s (and maybe before). My friends and I would cruise Cuba / Rainbow road back in the mid-70′s (seems like this is still popular today). We once went looking for the “insane asylum” and found the gates which was a lot harder to do back then without the Internet, GPS, etc. In my day the “asylum” was referred to as “Krilich” or “Krillich” but I don’t really know why. When we found the gates there was a large, stylized “K” on the locked gates so maybe there was some truth to the name. The property was inhabited back then so we never went on it but it was still really spooky just stumbling across this gated property in what was the middle of nowhere back then.
Here is the text of an article from the Tribune. The address of the property I sent you photos of is 210 S Rainbow and is 18 acres. However, the properties have all been renumbered since 1968 and there is no longer any 92 Rainbow road (mentioned in the article below). Also, when looking at the tax plat maps, there are two parcels immediately north of the 18 acre property that total about 11.5 acres in size, potentially accounting for the “30 acre” estate. There is also a private road that still exits that neatly bisects the 11.5 acres to the north and the 18 acre estate to the south.
1968-02-20 Chicago Tribune (IL)
TOPPLES PART OF BIRD BATH, BOY, 7, KILLED
William Cokenower III, 7, was killed yesterday when the concrete tray of a birdbath fell on his head on an estate at 92 Rainbow rd., near Barrington in Lake county.
The boy apparently was climbing on the birdbath when the accident occurred.
William’s family lives in a home at the Rainbow road address, a 30-acre estate owned by Robert Krilich, president of Krilich Builders, Inc., of Niles. The boy’s father, a treetrimmer and landscaper, is caretaker of the Krilich estate and other estates in the area.
I have attached picture with revised boundaries showing what the total estate MIGHT have looked like. FYI, the north parcels are referred to as Rainbow woods and were sold off in 6/97 and 2003.
Another reason that Rainbow Road may seem haunted:
All not peaceful in regards to roads, Daily Herald, June 20, 1999, Author: Katherine Hamilton-Smith
Roads can be controversial. Take the Route 53 extension, for example, which causes heated discussion among residents of Long Grove, Mundelein and other towns through which it is proposed to pass.
Heated discussion – and even violence – over the location and construction of roads is nothing new in Lake County.
On Sept. 8, 1877, three Lake Zurich road commissioners – John Robertson, Jacob Bees and August Kuikke – went to the western edge of Lake Zurich to the Peter Davison Farm. The commissioners were charged with the task of opening up an obstructed road, what is now Rainbow Road, on the Davison property. Evidently, Davison had put up a few sections of crooked fence rail to block a public right of way.
Davison, his son, wife and a hired hand refused to take down the fence, and in fact sat upon it in order to more completely block the road. The Davisons were armed with clubs and revolvers. When the two parties could not come to an agreement, the commissioner’s party began to take down the fence.
Davison and his son drew their revolvers, and Robertson said, “Mr. Davison, we don’t want any fuss. We don’t want any fighting. If we do not act right, then use the law.”
Davison replied, “If you go on, I’ll use force enough to stop you.”
Even though the witnesses’ accounts all indicate that Davison was not aiming specifically at Robertson, a shot was fired.
The bullet entered Robertson’s lower jaw just under the right of the chin. It struck several vital parts and caused a hemorrhage, which filled Robertson’s lungs.
By the time the doctor reached him, about an hour and a half after the shooting, Robertson was still breathing, but was “already black in the face and in the first stages of suffocation.” The bullet had taken a fatal course and he died at 6 p.m.
Davison was convicted, but was later released due to ill health. Robertson was one of the early settlers of Lake Zurich. His big beautiful white house with broad arcaded front porch still can be seen at the corner of Robertson Road and Route 22 in Lake Zurich.
The story of the Rainbow Road dispute will be told in the Lake County Museum’s Mall of History exhibition, opening later this fall.
Katherine Hamilton-Smith is the curator of historic resources for the Lake County Museum. The Lake County Museum, a department of the Lake County Forest Preserves, is an award-winning regional history museum on Route 176, west of Fairfield Road near Wauconda.
Edition: Lake, Section: Neighbor, Page: 1, Column: Notes from Lake County Museum
