Historic O’Fallon mansion being renovated with new bar, restaurant and event space
The historic Wastfield Mansion is being renovated by new owners Justin and Candice Mills, with tentative plans to open a bar first this winter, then a restaurant and event space in early 2024.
Mills said the restoration has been extensive and a slow process since they purchased the building in 2021.
“We’re still working on it. We’ve been doing a lot of stuff. The grounds were overgrown, and the place was in shambles. We had to re-do all the plumbing, the sprinkler system. There were cracked pipes and damaged walls. Vines were everywhere,” he said.
Their goal was to refresh the structure and landscape to provide an elegant space for weddings and special events. They wanted to provide modern décor and amenities without sacrificing its old-world charm, they state on the website.
The Mills own Terra Veta Aeronautical and Geospatial Solutions in the nearby Lakepointe Center Professional Park.
Because there is a full bar and a commercial chef’s kitchen in place, they are planning to open the bar with a limited menu at first. Mills said they will be interviewing chefs and have consulted with a head chef at a highly regarded restaurant for advice.
The bar will not be a sports bar, he said, but a quieter place where people can meet for conversations. He estimated the bar will be able to hold 66 while the restaurant will be able to seat at least 100.
The building has nearly 6,500 square feet, including the original two-story Italianate-style brick home plus an addition in back. The lot is .15 acres.
Mills said they purchased the lot next door, are planning a patio and fire pit, and the exterior will be picturesque, providing many photo backdrops. They have spruced up the fountain.
He said the renovations have become a “passion project” for their contractor.
“He’s great. He loves working on this place. It’s been a night and day transformation,” Mills said.
“We’ve opened the downstairs. We found the original pocket doors, and are putting them back, and we’ve created a grand bathroom upstairs,” he said,
Located at 1680 Mansion Way, the oldest mansion in town has a rich history dating back to 1857. It was built by A.J. Wastfield, an independently wealthy farmer. After he married Elisie Osbourn of Lebanon, they had two children, Walter and Julia. With a passion for politics, the Wastfields hosted their most famous visitor, Abraham Lincoln, at their home.
The home was also a stop on the Underground Railroad, and historians account for 100 slaves being there on their road to freedom during the Civil War.
Wastfield was fatally injured in a threshing machine accident on Nov. 15, 1866, but his family continued to live there for many years.
The Mansion received a Landmark Award in 1963 from the St. Clair County Historical Society. In the mid-1990s, it became a fine-dining restaurant, The Mansion at Lakepointe, operated by Mike and Ellie Miller, which closed around 2000 and sat vacant for seven years.
Paulo Pacheco renovated it and operated the restaurant Paulo’s at The Mansion from 2007 to 2015. The last owners were Jerry Conway, also the executive chef, and Kathy Cox, and ran The Grille at The Mansion from 2015 to 2019. That July they stopped the restaurant food service but kept it open for parties, then abruptly closed that September.
Mills said they have been discussing different names but haven’t decided for sure.
While they have been working on the place, people have stopped by to chat as they’re out walking, he said.
“We’ve received interest about weddings, and we’ve heard from neighbors about how they are glad it will reopen It seems to make people happy that we’re doing something here,” Mills said.
