A Well Connected Village

A Well Connected Village. Historic Dwight. The architecture of Dwight has always attracted Route 66 travelers. The Keeley Institute for treating alcoholism was founded here and brought the Village national attention. As the institute gained popularity, Dwight became a “model village” with paved streets, electric lights, and refined buildings., “Gone to Dwight for the Keeley Cure”, The Keeley Institute, founded by Leslie Keeley in 1879, was the first to treat alcohol addiction as a disease rather than a vice. At its peak, 800 patients arrived here by train each week, and over 200 branches of the Institute were operating in the U.S. and Europe. The famous “Keeley Cure,” reputedly gold chloride injections, was never accepted by the mainstream medical community., The stained glass “five senses” windows in the Keeley building were from the studio of Louis Millet, a collaborator of Architect Louis Sullivan. They express the holistic approach the Keeley Institute promoted in its treatments., “Drunkenness is a disease and I can cure it.” – Dr. Leslie Keeley, The Dwight Depot, The Chicago and Alton Railroad designed Dwight in 1854 around a “depot ground” between two main streets. By 1891, the expanding town needed a new station. The railroad hired Henry Ives Cobb to design this Richardson Romanesque building. It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. , Other Historic Landmarks, The 110-foot high Dwight Windmill was built in 1896 to provide water to the Oughton Estate. John R. Oughton was a partner and successor to Dr. Keeley. After his death, the estate became the primary facility for the Keeley Institute., Built in 1905, the First National Bank on West Main was designed by world-renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Of the three banks he designed, it is the only one still in existence. Its simple yet dignified style rejected classical influences of the time.