Butterworth Center & Deere-Wiman House

Welcome to Butterworth Center & Deere-Wiman House, located in the Overlook District of Moline, Illinois. Both historic homes once belonged to John Deere’s descendants but are now operated by the William Butterworth Foundation. They serve as year-round sites for quality educational and cultural events, meeting space for not-for-profit organizations, and tours for local, national, and international visitors.

Please enjoy our virtual offerings on this website, on our YouTube Channel – Deere Family Homes (click here), on Facebook (click here), and on Instagram (click here). A new Curator's Pick video is added each month on YouTube.


Welcome to Butterworth Center & Deere-Wiman House, located in the Overlook District of Moline, Illinois. Both historic homes once belonged to John Deere’s descendants but are now operated by the William Butterworth Foundation. They serve as year-round sites for quality educational and cultural events, meeting space for not-for-profit organizations, and tours for local, national, and international visitors.

Click here To support the Honoring Our Heritage:

The Deere-Wiman House Campaign

History: gossip well told.

~Elbert Hubbard, The Roycroft Dictionary
People tend to forget that the word "history"
contains the word "story".

~ Ken Burns
History is who we are and why we are the way we are.

~David McCullough
In a certain sense all men are historians.

~Thomas Carlyle, Essays: On History
Professor Johnston often said that if you didn't know history, you didn't know anything. You were a leaf that didn't know it was part of a tree.

~Michael Crichton, Timeline
If we don’t care about our past, we cannot hope for the future… I care desperately about saving old buildings.

~Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis
The challenge of history is to recover the past and introduce it to the present.

~David Thelen
A nation that forgets its past can function no better than an individual with amnesia.

~David McCullough

Coming April 2024
If These Walls Could Talk

The Deere-Wiman House walls have been witness to technological and mechanical changes for nearly 150 years. From customized, practical installations to new and marvelous innovations, they have seen it all. Join Jan Stoffer, Director of Operations & Administration, on a guided experience through rooms and corridors rarely seen by the public. Guests on the tour will gain a better understanding of the home's utility modification over time and how they reflect the life of a family of early adapters at the turn of the last century.

Participants should wear comfortable shoes, be prepared to climb stairs and ramps, and bring their curiosity.


Post-tour dessert included. Duration 90 minutes. Space is limited to 16 people. Cost $25. 



  • Click here to register for free guided tours on Wednesday, Thursday, and Fridays at 2:30p


  • Click here Click here to register for free Sunday guided tours

First Sunday of the Month and Every Sunday during July and August


   Contact meetings@butterworthcenter.com for scheduling meetings or click here for online reservations

Weather related closings at Butterworth Center & Deere-Wiman House are posted on our social media sites.

Click on an icon below for Facebook or Instagram.


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