History

Before its closure in 1985, Congress School housed classrooms for Polo School District students in kindergarten through sixth grade.

McHenry's Landmark Commission, working with local film production company Fine Line Productions, released their second film about the city this week, looking at its history during the prohibition era

Limited spots are still available for this year’s holiday tea event at the Colonel Palmer House in Crystal Lake. This year’s theme is The Christmas Tree Ship.

Visitors came from near and far to witness the iconic Gemini Giant reclaim his right as a U.S.Route 66 roadside attraction during a homecoming event in Wilmington.

The McHenry County Historical Society and Museum will host Warming Up to History Saturday.

Museums around the world - and in Will County are participating, giving patrons a chance to learn and shop on Museum Store Sunday..

The McHenry County Historical Society and Museum has a challenge to draw people to tiny Union. Its new director, replacing someone who left after a new months, aims for new programs.

Three local media members known for covering high school sports will be the presenters for the “Those Were The Days” program at the Oregon Depot.

The Mundelein Heritage Museum, located at 601 Noel Drive, will be extending the display of a special exhibit entitled “Lost and Found Artifacts of Diamond Lake” by John Hynds,

Importance of Native American Women in Illinois History the focus of Lombard Historical Society program

The restoration crew at Bradley’s Restoration Works Inc. had planned to painstakingly bring new life to hundreds of window panes

The Lincoln Highway Commission’s mission was to create a thoroughfare across America. The route began at Times Square in New York City and ended in Lincoln Park in San Francisco.

Like so many others, Charles Rudolph Walgreen became forever attached to Dixon, a historic endearing town by the Rock River. Even though he acquired more wealth and business success than any other person in Dixon history, he remained attached to Dixon throughout his life.

The Indige-Facts traveling exhibit at the Isle a la Cache Museum covers such topics as terminology, population size and the sovereign rights of Native people.

The history of Druce Lake will be the topic of the November monthly meeting of the Grayslake Historical Society.

Downtown theater enjoys a good week after being shut down over asbestos issues.

Joliet and state officials on Wednesday celebrated park improvements funded through state grants made available along Route 66 ahead of the historic highway’s 100th anniversary year in 2026.

The historic Hired Man’s House received a special lift Tuesday with the assistance of law enforcement authorities escorting the way from Sycamore to DeKalb.

Barrington's Catlow Theatre is undergoing a restoration. The theater opened in 1927.

Dixon Fire Chief Ryan Buskohl will present a program on the history of the Dixon Fire Department at 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 28, at the Lee County Historical and Genealogical Society.

Janus Theatre Company stages dramedy that takes creative liberties with famous real-life women during the French Revolution.

This month’s presentation at the Fulton (Martin House) Museum pertains to the “Underground Railroad” as it relates to the strategic role played by Clinton County, Iowa and Whiteside County in the years prior to the Civil War.

Sterling Park District Executive Director Larry Schuldt will be discussing the 100-year growth of the Sterling Park District beginning with its first acquisition, Lawrence Park.

Church services begin at 11 a.m. Sunday and will be followed by a small presentation of the church’s history.

The first organized group tour of the DeKalb sites where barbed wire was invented drew tourists from across the country, said organizers from the Glidden Homestead.

During Monday’s City Council meeting, the council unanimously approved a motion to provide a letter of support to the LCCOA that will be used in its application to the T-Mobile Hometown Grants program.

Renovations of a historic 140-year-old barn in Crystal Lake are estimated to cost over $200,000 as the Crystal Lake Park District discusses how to exactly restore the barn and how much to spend taxpayer dollars on it.

Opening its doors, Old Joliet Prison invites visitors to experience Flashlight Tours and Prison After Dark Guided Tours, among an array of events.

An exhibit on display at the Ellwood House Museum in DeKalb centers the works of Latino artists from across northern Illinois this Hispanic Heritage Month. The artwork can be viewed now through December.

The Frederick W. Huverstuhl Photography Exhibit at the at the Joliet Area Historical Museum include images of Huverstuhl’s family, home, travels and Joliet streetscapes.

Highlighting the October programs of the Grayslake Historical Society will be the annual Living History Tour of the Grayslake Cemetery on Sunday, Oct. 6.

“Inherit the Wind” is on stage at Goodman Theatre in Chicago, with star power including Harry Lennix of television’s “The Blacklist.”

The J.F. Glidden Homestead and Historical Center is excited to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the barbed wire patent, known as “The Winner,” with a full weekend of activities come Sept. 28-29.

Visitors to the Bos Brothers Historical Farm “Old-Fashioned Fall Harvest” on Saturday got a real taste – literally, of what field to table means. A variety of antique farm machinery in a rainbow of colors and styles, descended on the Bos Brothers Historical Farm on Springhill Road, south of Erie, to give visitors a glimpse of how farmers reaped their corn and soybeans before the days of automated, air conditioned combines aided by global positioning for field navigation.

Participants can learn about family history or share family research facts.

Vintage vehicles, reenactments are part of event.

In part 1 of this series about George Page, published on Sept. 5, we learned about the meteoric rise of George Page, Dixon’s homegrown mega-successful entrepreneur. In this installment, we learn of his return from Switzerland to Dixon to build his largest condensed milk factory.

The Forest Preserve District of Will County will host “Indige-Facts” an exhibit examining Native Americans contributions to society at Isle a la Cache Museum in Romeoville.

A stone marker for the Broadway Methodist Church in Sterling was placed on the building when it was erected in 1856. In 1902, fire damaged the spire and the stone plaque went into storage as repairs were made to the building.

An 1856 stone sign erected on the original building for the First United Methodist Church in Sterling has been retrieved from storage.

Marengo residents are invited to an upcoming 100th birthday celebration for Grant Intermediate School, formerly Marengo High School. A Louis Sullivan-designed school was once torn down in Marengo.

Centennial, quasquicentennial, sesquicentennial, bicentennial, dosquicentennial - Lee County can observe all of them in 2024.

Continuing in a series of local research projects, which have included histories of gas stations, taverns and bars, physicians and steamboats, this topic features human behaviors.

Games are part of Creston Booster Days.

Vintage steam locomotive does not disappoint rail fans who came from miles around.

The lines were long, but the wait was worth it for the estimated 61,000 people who journeyed to Ogle County on Sunday to see the Union Pacific’s Big Boy 4014 steam engine. Parked at the Union Pacific’s Global lll Intermodal Terminal (GB3), southwest of town, thousands made the trip to see the historic locomotive at the free, daylong event.

Local artist Kevin Traynor has created a full-room chalk mural in the Founders Gallery at the Gaylord Building to commemorate the city's first "Fire Fest" marking the anniversary of the Great Fire of 1895.

In the weeks before the next election, an entertaining tribute to democracy in action awaits at Marriott's production of “1776.”

Nine handwritten letters from former President Ronald Reagan are being offered for sale for the first time. The letters are part of the Raab Collection, a firm specializing in purchasing, selling and authenticating historical documents, autographs and items.

Interior preparation underway for taking down former Joliet Catholic High School gym. Hickory Street lane to be closed Thursday.