Margery was born in 1897 and lived here all her life; the last 42 of her 86 years by berself. She never married; her social life was centered almost entirely on her church where she taught Sunday School for 60 years.

Miss Adams left her house and land to the Illinois Audubon Society when she died in 1983. Volunteers cut trails, renovated the house for use as a nature center, and planted the prairie. An Open House in 1989 drew over 1,000 curious visitors. The Society built its new statewide headquarters, incorporating the original 185Os farmhouse, in 2008.

In 2008, the adjacent 12 acres was given to the Society, increasing the overall size of the Sanctuary to 40 acres.