John D.
Old-timers still remember Schnering\'s six-pony hitch carrying joy-filled passengers down Main Street, the state-of-the-art livestock arena, and the trophy-winning cattle raised at Curtiss Farm..
In 1943, Hertz sold his Estate to Otto Schnering, of Baby Ruth and Butterfinger fame, who transformed the grounds from a lush playground to the headquarters of a 10, 000-acre farming operation.
Eleanor Roosevelt was once a guest too.
Here Hertz raised racehorses, including two Kentucky Derby winners, and hosted Gatsby-like parties for the rich and famous, including Myrna Loy, Will Rogers, and Walt Disney.
Famous landscape architect Jens Jensen designed its scenic landscape, fishing streams, and ponds.
He built a mansion, barns, and polo grounds on the banks of the Fox River, calling his new country Estate Leona Farms.
Hertz, of rental car fame, discovered Trout Valley (then a part of unincorporated Mc Henry County) in the 1920s.
John D
