Porte cochere doors on the front facade of the Glessners’ Prairie Avenue home, as seen in an image taken by their son George about 1888. The doors opened into the porte cochere - a covered portion of the driveway that allowed the Glessners and their guests to exit their carriages and step directly into the house through a side entrance, protected from the weather.
This photograph was used to recreate the doors, which were removed in the 1950s and replaced with an overhead garage door. The new oak doors, each weighing 950 pounds, were made by Joseph Woodworking in Schiller Park and installed in June 2023 by Berglund Construction. John LaMonica crafted the elaborate wrought ironwork which was installed in May 2024.