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TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2012
A Scouting we will go
With the recent anniversaries of Boy Scouts (102 years) and Girl Scouts (100 years) being celebrated, a look at one of West Chicago's oldest Scout groups is in order.
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| Parade scene of Black Partridge Troop, circa 1915. Note the knickers, leggings and campaign hats worn resembling those of the U.S. Army; Scouts carry long wooden poles or staves. |
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In 1914, four years after the national organization of the Boy Scouts, Black Partridge Troop #1 was formed. The troop was named after a 19th century Potawatomi chieftain, who along with his brother Waubonsie, tried to protect the settlers at Fort Dearborn in August of 1812.
Young men, 12-18 years old, joined the troop to become "self-reliant, loyal, upright and useful citizens." About 27 scouts were under the leadership of Scoutmaster Frank H. Thrapp, assisted by Frank C. Perkins. They met twice a month and leased a cabin at 435 Arbor Avenue. Dues of a nickel were collected at each meeting, and a yearly member registration fee of a quarter supported the local headquarters.
The Boy Scouts did a good turn everyday, and were expected to salute their superior officers when meeting them in public places. Getting caught smoking (cigarettes of course) would result in a suspension; on second offense you were expelled.
In 1916 and 1917 several Scouts submitted their resignations citing lack of time and interest. It appears the Troop disbanded soon afterward. A new troop was organized in 1919 with Mr. Brousseau as Scoutmaster.
For many former members like Willard R. Buchanan, the paramilitary preparation and leadership skills learned in Scouts was of timely value during their World War I service.
MONDAY, JANUARY 16, 2012
A New York native, William Henry Brown moved with his parents to what would become Junction in the early 1840s. He entered Wheaton College and left after a year to enlist in the Illinois 105th Infantry. William was 22 and like Lucius B. Church (see the Campaign Singer post), was a member of Company B.
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ut for a brief respite due to dysentery, Brown served two and a half years as a private. In March of 1865 Brown was discharged from the 105th so he could serve as a lieutenant in Company E of the 101st United States Colored Infantry.
African American enlistment for the War occurred after the Emancipation Proclamation was issued in January of 1863. Active recruitment was begun by the War Department in May 1863 and both freedmen and runaway slaves signed up. Infantry, cavalry and artillery units formed what was known as the United States Colored Troops.
About 186,000 black servicemen were placed in as many as 166 units of the Union Army, and many served in the Navy. Commanding officers of the all black units were white, but surgeons and chaplains were often African American. William Brown was one of two officers from Turner who led these men, who were often supplied with second-hand uniforms and shoddy equipment. Prisoners of war were treated as property by the Confederacy and made slaves.
Although black servicemen were fighting and dying on the battlefields, they were not receiving equal pay for an equal sacrifice. Paid $7 a month to white soldiers $13 a month, many black soldiers resisted this discrimination by refusing their pay. The pay inequity kept many recruits from enlistment. In June of 1864 Congress remedied this problem by granting equal pay and making it retroactive.
African American soldiers made up 10% of the Union Army and provided a much needed boost in troop numbers at a critical time in the war. Almost one third, 40,000, died from battle wounds or disease.
MONDAY, DECEMBER 19, 2011
Centennial Business Celebrated
William Treudt, the son of German immigrants and a journeyman printer, bought the West Chicago Press in March 1911. Besides producing this weekly community newspaper, Treudt operated a commercial printing house.
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| William Treudt and siblings Esther and Phillip Treudt in front of West Chicago Press office, circa 1911. |
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When William died in 1919, his sons Phillip and Harold took the reins. Within ten years the business prospered and in 1929 a new site was constructed at 129 Fremont, its home for the next 72 years.
West Chicago was a small town and everyone knew everyone's business, because you read about it in the Press. Phillip was known for his humorous and poignant editorials. He joked every week: "Well, the great molder of public opinion is again on the street." Phillip left in 1939 to start his own print business in Florida.
Harold continued the tradition of running a quality newspaper and print house. During World War II he ran the newspaper practically by himself, as many of his workers went off to war.
Around 1945 Harold's son, Bill, joined the company. When his dad retired in 1967, Bill became owner and publisher, and his whole family pitched in and worked at the print shop. Saturday mornings were "cracker-barrel time," with a pot of coffee brewing and visits from locals.
During the 1960s, West Chicago's population grew by about 50%. Bill Treudt and the West Chicago Press faced a growing town with more news to cover, but resources that were stretched. A big change came when George Weimer, editor for 35 years, retired in the late 1970s. After Weimer left, Bill Treudt took on the role of editor. The grind of running a seven day a week business was taking its toll. Bill sold the West Chicago Press masthead in 1979 to Wayne Woltman. Treudt's company became the West Chicago Printing Company.
In 1992, Bill Treudt stepped down and ownership of the business passed to sons Bruce and Steve. In 2001, the business needed room to grow and moved to 131 Fremont.
Our congratulations to the West Chicago Printing Company which remains a family owned and operated business, and this year was named an Illinois Centennial Business.
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2011
Lucius B. Church, a native of New York State, settled in Turner with his wife Clara in 1857. He ran the Junction House, a hotel with restaurant next to the train depot, and would for the next five years.
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| Lucius B. Church, circa 1860 |
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In 1862, Church enlisted in the 105th Illinois Infantry. At a recruitment gathering he sang "The Sword of Bunker Hill," a Revolutionary War song, with such fervor that the entire Company B of the 105th was raised that night. Due to his powerful singing voice, Lucius was known as "Toot" Church.
Church enlisted as a first lieutenant, and was placed in charge of Company B. By the time he returned home in June of 1865, he was Captain Church, Turner's highest ranking Civil War officer.
To commemorate General Sherman's 1864 march from Atlanta to Savannah, Henry Clay Work wrote the lively "Marching Through Georgia." Church was the first person to sing it the morning after its composition. He was later to sing it at the 1868 Republican National Convention, when General Grant received the presidential nomination. At veteran reunions Church's strong voice was in great demand.
Lucius was appointed by Grant to work for the Internal Revenue Department, first in Illinois, and later Montana. When the income tax was repealed in 1872, Church returned to Turner, and soon after was elected the first president of the Village of Turner. He would hold this office again in 1879 and 1881.
In the 1870s, Church worked as an agent for the Parmalee Company, which transported passengers and baggage from Chicago rail stations by horse-drawn coaches. Illness forced Church to retire from this position in 1879. By 1883 Church recovered his health and began a new business, selling lumber and coal.
Lucius Church died in 1893 from the effects of a paralytic stroke. His name and that of his wife Clara are perpetuated on the west side, in Church and Clara Streets.
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 20, 2011
Turner Cornet Band
A town band was launched in 1870. Proceeds from a formal dance party held at the new cheese factory went toward the purchase of instruments. German-born professional musician and gifted cornetist Henry Bayer is credited with organization and management of the band. Soon the group known as the Turner Junction Cornet Band or Turner Cornet Band had its first gig at the annual ball at Voll's Hall.
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Turner Cornet Band,
circa 1894 in their new uniforms. |
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During the Civil War brass bands had been important for recruitment and the morale of troops in the field. After the war there was an increase in community bands and 1880-1910 is known as the Golden Age of Bands. In a time before recorded music, a live band was an essential part of most entertainments.
Cornets have a lovely mellow tone useful for solos and because of their wide use many town bands were dubbed cornet bands. Initially the Turner Cornet Band was comprised exclusively of brass instruments with the exception of snare and bass drums. In later years clarinet and piccolos were added.
The band provided entertainment at concerts, dances and picnics. From 1886-1894 it appears the band was dormant. By 1894, sixteen members had sold enough ice cream and lemonade to buy new uniforms. Citizens petitioned the village board to build a band stand, but it is not known if it was built.
The Turner Cornet Band played at the 1895 DuPage County Fair, was in demand by neighboring communities and often performed at roller skating rinks here and in Wheaton.
When our town's name changed in 1896, the band became the West Chicago Cornet Band. The last known mention of the band in local newspapers was in 1899 when it was reported that it led the Memorial Day parade.
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2011
Naperville-born Henry Elkanah Daniels worked with his physician father Hamilton Daniels. Dr. Daniels also ran a drug store and Henry gained valuable medical and pharmaceutical experience, allowing him to set up shop as a druggist in Aurora.
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| Henry Elkanah Daniels, circa 1910 |
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At the age of twenty-one Henry enlisted as a private in Co. H, 124th Illinois Infantry in the fall of 1862. Early in 1863 the 124th was stationed at Barre's Landing, Louisiana, where Henry worked as the Regimental Druggist.
The 124th moved on to Vicksburg, Mississippi, where Daniels was appointed Druggist for the 3rd Division Hospital. In January of 1864 he was made Steward of the hospital.
Each regiment was allowed to have one hospital steward; noncommissioned officers who received the pay and allowance of a sergeant major. Daniels received $30 monthly, a room, daily ration, and firewood and clothing allowances.
Stewards were to be between eighteen and thirty-five years of age, honest and reliable, and temperate as to the use of liquor. This was especially important as the steward was in charge of dispensing medicinal whiskey. Henry prescribed and administered all other drugs.
Literacy and intelligence were needed as stewards were responsible for accurate medical record keeping. They directed the general administration of the hospital, and with the exception of doctors, supervised all other personnel.
Assisting surgeons in operations and performing minor operations during emergencies, applying dressings, bandages and leeches, pulling teeth, and giving injections were some of the medical skills required of stewards.
While home on furlough just before his appointment as steward, Henry married Frances Goodwin of Aurora. Within the year Frances went to Vicksburg where she worked as a cook in a hospital and later a nurse. On May 1, 1865 she was discharged from her duties and returned home to have her first child; Henry returned home in August.
The Daniels came to Turner in the 1880s where Henry ran a drug store for about 20 years. Affectionately known as "Old Doc Daniels," he died in West Chicago in 1914 and Frances in 1918. Both are buried in Westside Cemetery, Aurora.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 18, 2011
The Cinema in West Chicago
Ever since the late 1890s when movie theatres began to pop up in towns across the U.S., people have loved the diversion of watching a story on the big screen.
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| World War I servicemen Cyril Dieter and Sam Gregory stand in front of The West Chicago Theatre, ca. 1918. |
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West Chicago's first moving picture show was the Improv Theatre or “Imp” located in the Atcherson Building on west Washington. The “Imp," showing silent films as early as 1912, vowed not to present anything that would “offend the most refined taste.” Anna Steffes Mann's fine soprano voice set the mood with songs like “The Battleship Maine,” “Mockingbird Rag,” and “Moonlight Bay” as film reels were changed.
After Chicago's disastrous Iroquois Theatre fire in 1903, safety became a prime concern. The West Chicago Theatre, built in 1912 right next to City Hall (now the Museum), was of fireproof cement blocks with front and rear exits. Unlike the “Imp,” films shown here such as the 1917 “Paradise Garden,” were more risqué in nature.
By 1923 the name changed to the Lyceum Theatre and by 1927 it was operating in the red. Perhaps it went out of business at this time as sound technology developed and silent movies became “talkies.” The building was demolished in 1931.
In 1924 Lester Norris proposed building a new theatre on Depot (Main) Street. The two story building would have two storefronts and a theatre located behind the stores. The theatre plan fell through, but three years later Harlow Belding built on the site using the original façade design. Check out the ornate terra cotta at 213-215 Main, home of the St. Vincent DePaul Society.
The lavish Roxy Theatre at 111 W. Washington opened in 1936 in a remodeled car dealer's garage. Movies were shown here until 1952 when the American Legion bought the building.
Movies took to the outdoors with drive-ins. In 1961, the Cascade opened on North Avenue showing “Mr. Roberts.” Still thriving, it is one of twelve remaining Illinois drive-ins. Experiencing a drive-in should be on everyone's bucket list!
THURSDAY, AUGUST 4, 2011
Here in DuPage County once the Civil War began, soldiers' aid societies were organized in every town. These groups supported the war effort by providing materials needed by soldiers on the front line and the sick and wounded in hospitals.
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| Harper’s Weekly, September 6, 1862 engraving showing women sewing materials for soldiers |
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Sewing circles made shirts, underwear, towels and bedding; socks and gloves were knit. Individual "comfort-bags" were assembled containing personal items, such as handkerchiefs, combs, soap and sewing kits.
Fresh food was critical to the health of the troops. Illinois soldiers requested vegetables such as tomatoes, potatoes, onions, and cabbage, and dried fruit, all vitamin C rich foods which prevented scurvy.
On a local level, assistance was extended to families who were in financial and emotional need due to the absence of family members who were in the service.
And so it was that aid societies led much of the war relief effort.
Today war touches our country and relief work continues. The West Chicago City Museum has joined over 1,500 other museums to show their support of our military and their families by becoming a Blue Star Museum. Blue Star Museums offer free admission for all active duty military personnel and up to five family members now through Labor Day, September 5, 2011. This program is a partnership of the National Endowment for the Arts and Blue Star Families -- an organization which raises awareness of the challenges and strengths of military family life.
Because the West Chicago City Museum does not have an admission fee, it will present a pin with the West Chicago city logo to honor military personnel and their families who visit now until Labor Day, September 5, 2011.
MONDAY, JULY 18, 2011
Water works comes to West Chicago
During the last week in June a familiar landmark just behind the Tastee-Freez came down. A red brick pump house that dated from 1896 and was one of the key components of Turner's first water works system bit the dust. The pump house had not been used since the City's new water treatment facility on Hawthorne Lane opened in 2005, and was in disrepair.
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| From left to right: Standpipe, reservoir (behind tree) and pump house, circa 1910. Steeple of the First Congregational Church can be seen at far right in the distance. |
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Beginning in the 1880s local newspapers called for the building of a public water works to provide fire protection. A series of fires, some ignited by sparks from trains, threatened the downtown. Bucket brigades from local water pumps often failed to get fires out quickly, if at all. Most homes and business buildings were made of wood, so the fire risk was high.
There was stiff resistance to building a water works, and in the first vote in July of 1890 it was soundly defeated. Four years later it was voted down again, despite the fact that fire insurance rates had increased by as much as 25%. The Wheaton Illinoian stated that, "It does not pay to vote against public improvements."
Finally in October of 1895-success! A water works was voted in. By the end of November a site was selected.
Chicago-based steamfitters S.I. Pope & Company began construction in 1896. Besides the building that housed the pumps, a 126 foot high iron standpipe with a 178,000 gallon capacity and a 40,000 gallon reservoir were built.
All components were completed in August and a test of the pressure at one of the forty-four hydrants shot streams of water that cleared the First Congregational Church steeple.
Five months later a fire at the Wilson home on Conde Street was the "maiden business trip" for the Fire Department. Manpower and waterpower came together to quench the blaze. The water works had proved their value.
TUESDAY, JULY 5, 2011
In the last blog entry, William Currier, Arvilla Currier Clark's father, was noted as Turner's oldest war volunteer at the time of his enlistment. Currier joined the Illinois 52nd Infantry at the age of 51.
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| William Currier, circa 1860 |
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From Arvilla's diary:
Father has been to Geneva today and enlisted in the Lincoln Regiment. He is to remain at home on furlough until Friday. People will be surprised when they hear this for father has been an invalid all summer and even now only professes to "getting a little better."
- October 4, 1861
Arvilla remarked that it was "odd indeed" to see her father in uniform, and realized that she might never see him again. William's regiment traveled from Missouri to Kentucky.
Father is not very well. I wonder that he holds out at all. His regiment has been stationed at six or seven different places-never remaining more than about two weeks without moving. - February 11, 1862
When some of the regiment came to Chicago with Confederate prisoners from Fort Donelson, the Currier family was visited by William's tent mate, who told of William's slight improvement in health. But a following letter reported that William was hospitalized in St. Louis with a fever.
Father is dead. He died in the Pacific Hospital May 14th the day after the letter was written informing us that he was sick. - June 3, 1862
We heard of father's death on Thursday, May 22nd. The next morning Mr. Clark [Arvilla's husband] started for St. Louis to bring home the body..He found father decently buried, had the remains disinterred, put into a case filled with charcoal. On Monday at half past eleven his remains arrived. Mother could not bear the idea of going to the depot, so my sisters and myself went without her- a large crowd was present. When the procession passed our home, mother joined us. - June 8, 1862
William Currier, like many Civil War soldiers, was a victim of dysentery. His advanced age and already dicey health undoubtedly prevented his recovery from this bacterial disease.
MONDAY, JUNE 13, 2011
High Lake, a streetcar suburb
In 1902 an electric interurban railway was built from Chicago to the western suburbs. By 1909 a branch line came through West Chicago. The Geneva Branch of what would become the Chicago & Aurora Elgin Railroad extended from just northwest of Wheaton to Geneva. This new transportation mode created "streetcar suburbs," facilitating population growth away from Chicago.
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| A lakeside clubhouse provided a social center for the community. It entered a period of neglect in the 1930s, and was abandoned; in 1955 it was destroyed by fire. |
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Edmund A. Cummings, a Chicago realtor, bought 210 acres of land east of West Chicago for just such a "streetcar suburb" in 1910. It had been the site of the David Ward and John Steffes farms. Part of the area was known as Ward's lake and grove, and was a popular site for community picnics.
The spring fed lake covered almost five acres and was about seven feet deep. In the winter ice blocks were cut, and in the summer, the lake was the place to take a cooling swim. Because of its 250-300 feet elevation above Lake Michigan, Cummings christened the lake and its surrounding subdivision, "High Lake." High Lake is bounded on the north by Geneva Road, on the west by Prince Crossing Road, on the south by High Lake Road and on the east by the Winfield Mounds Forest Preserve.
High Lake became an early commuter suburb, where residents could travel to Chicago's loop in under an hour by train, enjoying country living with city conveniences.
What happened to the lake? Development in the Woodland subdivision south of High Lake and the drilling of a well there lowered the water table in the 1920s. Eventually the lake lost almost all of its water, and the shoreline became overgrown with vegetation. In 1956, residents cleared the brush, and pumped thousands of gallons of water in an unsuccessful attempt to fill the lake. Today the lake which is privately owned has a higher level of water.
As it did in years past, suburban living "among the wooded hills of the highlands near West Chicago" continues to attract homeowners to this sylvan area.
MONDAY, MAY 30, 2011
Since no local newspapers survive from the time of the Civil War, there is a lack of information about what the local response to the war was. The West Chicago City Museum does have a transcript of the 1861-1863 diary of Arvilla Currier Clark, which provides some details of wartime life in Turner. From time to time an excerpt from Arvilla's diary will be presented in this blog.
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| Arvilla Currier Clark, circa 1860 |
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Arvilla was a young married woman who wrote almost daily of the events of the War. Born in New Hampshire in 1833, she had come west to Illinois with her family about 1850. They lived in the stately home on the hill at 241 E. Washington.
As a young adult, Arvilla worked as a schoolteacher in Turner's first school and at Gary's Mill School. In 1859 she married Charles M. Clark, a local businessman. As was the custom, after her marriage, Arvilla stopped teaching. She and Charles moved to 249 E. Washington, next door to her family. To earn some money, Arvilla tutored the 17 children of a neighbor, and made candles and brooms.
The Clarks would have a son, Charles D. Clark, who would become a successful attorney and DuPage County judge.
Arvilla's family was touched very personally by the War when her father William Currier enlisted. William was in his early 50s and at the time was Turner's oldest volunteer for service.
At the young age of 32, Arvilla died in 1865. She is buried in Oakwood Cemetery alongside her parents and siblings.
MONDAY, MAY 16, 2011
Homes on Main Street
As you drive down Main Street, do you realize that 100 years ago, amongst the stores that housed bakeries, tailor shops, saloons, drugstores, meat markets, groceries, shoemakers and furniture, there were homes? Sometimes these housed businesses too, and the residence was in the back or on an upper floor.
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Barfield/Creager Home circa 1900
From left are John H. Creager (Thomas Barfield's son-in-law), Ruth Creager, Lydia Barfield, Esther Barfield Creager, and Arvilla Creager. |
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At least nine homes stood in the 100-200 block of Main, many of them built back in the 1860s-1870s. This commercial-residential mix was neither odd nor prohibited. There was no zoning to govern what types of structures could be built where.
An example of a Main Street dwelling was the Thomas and Lydia Barfield home at 210 Main Street. From the 1860s-1880s Thomas operated a tailor shop and Lydia created fashionable ladies' hats. After Thomas's death in 1887, Lydia remained in the house, living with her stepdaughter's family. By the early 1920s only the northern most segment of the house remained. The lot would soon be home to an A&P grocery store.
Five houses were in place on Main as late as the 1920s; and guess what--one of the homes (which is no longer a home) remains: 116 Main!
TUESDAY, MAY 3, 2011
Although we don't have photographs of town from this era, we can get a "snapshot" of Turner in 1860, a year before the War begins. The 1860 census counted 722 people in the Turner postal area; about 200 living on outlying farms.
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Map of Junction, circa 1860; east-west highway is Washington Street. |
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The Galena & Chicago Union Railroad had been coming through town for eleven years, and not surprisingly, Turner was home to the largest number of railroad workers in DuPage County; this was a busy rail center with about forty daily trains. The Junction House was an early hotel that accommodated rail travelers.
Most of the homes in town had been built in the previous ten years, and there are indications that some log homes were still present. Eleven carpenters in town were undoubtedly building new homes for the growing community.
A couple of general stores, a butcher and a grocer fed the populace. Ann Wheeler, a single mother supporting her eight children, ran one of the four saloons. Three shoemakers, a tailor and a seamstress were available for clothing needs, and four washerwomen did laundry.
The following businesses reflected the fact that it was a horse and buggy world: livery stable, wagon maker, eight blacksmiths and a harness maker. Three doctors attended to the town's medical needs and any railroad accidents. A constable saw that law and order was observed.
By this time three faith communities had formed: Catholic, Congregationalist and Methodist. Children attended the public school on Fulton Street, which was deemed the "best public school house in DuPage County." Oakwood Cemetery opened in 1858: in a short time it would be the resting place of many Civil War soldiers.
MONDAY, APRIL 4, 2011
Royalty in West Chicago?
Prince Crossing station, originally called East Ingalton on the Aurora Elgin & Chicago (AE&C) Railroad was built in 1903 and still stands on the west side of Prince Crossing Road north of Wheaton Academy. It was a power substation and depot for this streetcar line. The crossing refers to the AE&C crossing beneath the tracks of the Chicago Great Western, northwest of the station.
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This undated map (click on the image for a larger and more complete version) shows the Country Home for Convalescent Crippled Children's grounds.
The farm was located immediately to the west in what is now the Forest Trails subdivision
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OK. So why Prince Crossing? Dr. Isaac Prince (1834-1911) was the first Superintendent of the Home for Destitute Crippled Children in Chicago in the 1890s. At that time, the word crippled was used to describe children with bone, muscle or joint deformities which were congenital, or due to disease or accident.
In the early 1900s, the Home for Destitute Crippled Children was looking for an additional location to care for these children. Many had bone problems due to tuberculosis and treatment consisted of fresh air, physical therapy, and good food coupled with corrective surgery.
West Chicago provided a restorative rural setting when in 1911, on land purchased by Richard W. Sears, the Country Home for Convalescent Crippled Children was built with money raised by Chicago philanthropists, Mr. and Mrs. William Chalmers. The road to the east of the new facility was named in honor of Dr. Prince, hence Prince Crossing.
The Country Home, farmland and woods were sold to the University of Chicago Clinic in 1938. They in turn sold the Home and 26 acres in 1945 to Wheaton College Academy, now Wheaton Academy, which currently uses some of the Country Home's original structures.
The 165 acre Country Home Farm supplied dairy products and vegetables for its residents. This land was sold to Campbell Soup in 1945, primarily for mushroom production and operated as Prince Crossing Farm.
The Civil War has gone by many names: the War Between the States, the Brothers' War, The War of the North and South, and depending on which side you were on, The War Against Slavery, The War of the Rebellion, The War for Southern Independence, The War to Suppress Yankee Arrogance, and Mr. Lincoln's War. Whatever you call it, it is a war that still separates us, and one that has left lasting legacies and wounds.
In 1860 Abraham Lincoln's Presidential election led to the secession of seven southern states, which formed the Confederate States of America.
At Charleston, South Carolina's Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861, the War's first shot was fired, leading to a four year long conflict and the deaths of 600,000 Americans.
DuPage County would respond to the call for volunteers by supplying 10% of its population to serve in the War, about 1500 men. It is difficult to put a number on how many men served from Turner* as many did not enlist from this area and many who did later moved from town. Most served in the infantry, some in the cavalry and only one in the navy.
* West Chicago's previous name
MONDAY, MARCH 14, 2011
A First Class Hotel in Every Respect
William Ripley built a feed and flour mill on what is now Main Street around 1875. The mill was powered by a windmill. Constructed next to the two story mill in 1878 was the Ripley House Hotel, run by William Ripley and his wife Jane. The three story building still stands at 200-202 Main Street.
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Ripley Hotel at left, mill building at right, circa 1890. Note elevated wooden sidewalks, telephone pole, dirt street, large cistern on hotel roof and windmill. |
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As early as 1879 it was called "one of the best kept hotels in DuPage County." Turner was an active rail point, and the hotel accommodated both train travelers for short stays and railroad workers who resided there. In 1895 it cost $1.50 a day to stay there.
The Ripley was a first class hotel with steam heat, noted for its good food, cleanliness and comfort. It touted a dining room on the mill building's first floor, 24 rooms on the hotel's second and third floors, and a third floor dance hall and meeting room. It was here that the Village of Turner met until Town Hall was built in 1884.
The hotel was the center of a busy social whirl: suppers, fairs, meetings, with dances and music being the predominant entertainment. In business for nearly 40 years, the Ripley closed in 1915.
In the 1920s the upper floors were converted into several apartments. Over the next 30 years the ground floor held Haffron's Barber Shop and later a billiards parlor. For a time, Evelyn's Beauty Shop shared space with the barber shop.
After 1950 various short-lived businesses occupied the first floor, and the upper floors were rented.
In December 2005 the City opened 200 Main as the new home of Gallery 200, an art outlet for local artists to display and sell their works. Gallery 200 also hosts opening receptions for featured artists, and art classes and workshops.
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 28, 2011
Welcome!
Welcome to A Sense of Place, the West Chicago City Museum's new blog! Through brief capsules of local history we're here to prove that history is not dry and dusty, but alive and entertaining. And starting in April, this blog will contain additional essays to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Civil War.
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Seal from Village of Turner Minute book, 1873
At the first Village of Turner Board meeting in 1873, it was decided that the village seal would feature a locomotive engine. Now in its third edition, the city seal still uses a locomotive prominently in its design.
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Let's start at the beginning. Knowing our name provides a sense of place.
What's in a Name?
West Chicago- You're smack dab in the middle of the first Illinois community shaped by the new technology of railroads. Back in 1849 the tracks of the Galena & Chicago Union (G&CU) Railroad reached this area, and a town began to take shape. By 1850 three railroads met here, forming the first railroad junction in the state, and giving the town its first name-Junction.
In 1857 two plats of town existed. One, the aforementioned Junction, the other named Turner in honor of John B. Turner, one of the G&CU's early presidents, a benevolent local landowner, although never a resident. The town became known informally as Turner Junction. In 1873 it incorporated as a village and took the formal name of Village of Turner.
Soon after Chicago's successful Columbian Exposition, local businessman Charles E. Bolles thought we should tie our fortunes to Chicago by changing our name to Village of West Chicago in 1896. It would attract business, grow the town and locate us in the state. Unfortunately we lost a unique name that told of our railroad roots.
In 1906 the village changed to a mayor-aldermanic government and became the City of West Chicago.
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Let us know what West Chicago history topics you would like to see explored.
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