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William Whitney House
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| Location: | 142 E. First St. Hinsdale, DuPage County, Illinois, U.S. |
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| Built: | 1869 |
| Architectural style: | Late Victorian & Italianate |
| NRHP Reference#: | 89001731 |
| Added to NRHP: | October 19, 1989 |
The William Whitney House, also known as the Hallmark House, is a historic Late Victorian & Italianate residence in Hinsdale, Illinois. William Whitney moved to Winfield in 1858 and was elected DuPage County Circuit Clerk and Recorder two years later. During his term, he became involved in real estate, and platted one of the first regioins of Downers Grove. He purchased a house in Hinsdale in 1867 which he sold at three times the price three years later. Now wealthy, he moved into a newly constructed house on First Street. He was elected to the Illinois House of Representatives in 1870. During his term in the House, legislature was passed allowing for certificates of incorporation. Whitney immediately returned to his home town and gained the required signatures for a petition to incorporate Hinsdale, which was approved in 1873.
The house was constructed for the Stodder family in 1869 and purchased by Whitney a year later. Whitney lost a substantial sum of money in the Panic of 1873, and was forced to sell his house in 1879 to cover overdue taxes. Eighteen families have owned the house since Whitney. The house was featured in a national television commercial for Hallmark Cards, earning the residence its nickname.