Contrasting with the heavy classical elements in the library are the Art Deco-style elements in the hidden barroom. The Gaelic inscription etched into the mirrored glass above the bar translates to: Food and Drink to McCormick!

Like the McCormick’s 18^th century Virginia plantation home, which the 1935 expansion was based upon, portraits of the ancestors grace the upper parts of the library walls.  American artist George Peter Alexander Healy (1808-1894) painted the portrait of  Joseph Medill, the portrait of Mary Ann Grigsby McCormick (1828-1878), and the portrait of William Sanderson McCormick (1815-1865).  All three portraits date from around 1850.  William McCormick was the younger brother of Cyrus McCormick, who patented the revolutionary agricultural tool, the McCormick Reaper.   It was from his paternal grandparents’ side of the family that McCormick inherited his inventive genius.

In 1907, American artist Everitt Raymond Kinstler painted the portrait of Robert Sanderson McCormick.  Before Colonel McCormick gave his father’s portrait to United States Embassy in Paris, France, he had French artist Aime Morot make a copy of the Kinstler portrait.  Morot’s copy hangs here.

Around 1895, Francois Flaming painted the portrait of Katherine Von Etten Medill McCormick, which hangs over the Art Deco bar.  At some time during the 1930s, Clara Fargo Thomas worked with photographs to capture the images of two veterans: the portrait of the Colonel McCormick in his World War One uniform and the portrait of the Major William H. Medill (1835-1863) in his Civil War uniform.  William Medill was Joseph Medill’s brother and Colonel McCormick’s great-uncle. Major Medill was mortally wounded during the Gettysburg's Campaign and died in 1863 in a hospital at Fredericksburg, Maryland.

American artist Wayman Adams (1883-1959) painted the portrait of Maryland McCormick, which hangs in the southeast corner of the library.  Maryland wears a red dress, for red was her favorite color.

Colonel McCormick had many of the latest technological details added to his home, and many of these features are evident in the library.  For example, recessed lighting (initially incandescent bulbs, now florescent bulbs) illuminates the whole perimeter of the library above the cornice line.  McCormick was one of the first in Chicago to have indirect lighting installed in his home.  An electrified Otis elevator pops up out of the northeast corner of the floor to reveal a wooden dolly filled with logs for the fireplaces. At Christmas time, McCormick had the Yule Log and Christmas presents brought up on this elevator.

Glass-door cabinets running along the perimeter of the library house some of the Colonel’s favorite books and firearms.  Most of the books in his collection reflect the Colonel’s interest in American political and military history. Hidden cabinets below the bookshelves hold over-sized books.

On August 9, 1937 at the bidding of General Pershing, Robert McCormick gave a speech in Cantigny, France at the dedication of the First Division’s monument that commemorated the 1918 Battle of Cantigny.  McCormick often gave this same speech over the WGN airwaves as part of his “Chicago Theatre of the Air” program.  McCormick was so proud of his speech that he had it painted onto his library floor.

The oldest piece of furniture in the house is the hand-carved vestment chest.   When this chest was made around 1450, it was used to store precious gold and silver-threaded robes of the Catholic Church officials.  Allegedly, Colonel McCormick acquired this chest from his newspaper rival, William Randoph Hearst.  McCormick, Hearst and Samuel Insull (creator of Commonweath Edison) became the basis for Orson Wells’ film character “Citizen Kane.”