Ragdale is the former summer retreat of Chicago architect Howard Van Doren Shaw, located in Lake Forest, Illinois, United States.

The raggedy look of the shrubbery, the low hanging branches of trees, and the invasion of the lawn by violets were all deliberate effects.

Ragdale was also where Sylvia Shaw Judson (1897–1978), Howard's daughter, sculpted her piece Bird Girl, which is prominently featured on the cover of John Berendt's best-selling nonfiction book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.

In 1943, the Meadow Studio was built on the prairie in an effort to accommodate Sylvia's work as a sculptor; in fact, it was here that she formed the Bird Girl as well as a number of other well-known pieces, such as Cats and Summer.

In 1976 Shaw's granddaughter, poet Alice Judson Hayes, founded The Ragdale Foundation as a non-profit aimed at providing a place of rest and relaxation for artists of all disciplines.

Hayes donated both the buildings and 5 acres (20,000 m2) of grounds in 1986 to the City of Lake Forest, in an effort to preserve the Ragdale property as well as its environmental integrity.

Due to poor roof maintenance in the studio's early years, it was subject to extensive damage—however, the Ragdale Foundation was fortunate in attaining the funds necessary to rebuild it.