Let there be Light … wait, not so Fast!
Nineteen years ago, Lyons Township High School officials decided to take a page from other schools and start playing football games on Friday nights. But that meant adding lights, and some nearby residents took strong exception While Friday night high school football games are a tradition in a lot of
Western Springs’ School Bell Lives On
Exactly 110 years ago, a 350-pound bell was placed in the cupola of the Grand Avenue School. While it no longer calls children to class, residents can still experience the thrill of ringing the bell. During the earliest years of the village’s history, there were no radios or telephones to
Western Springs’ Love Affair with Tobogganing
As early as the 1930s, area residents were enjoying their winters on toboggans in nearby Bemis Woods. But, that all changed in 2007. In the 1930s, the federal government established the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). This was an effort to put unemployed young men to work, usually doing public works
Vaughan’s…From Grass Seed to Catalog Sales
In 1876, John Vaughan opened a small Chicago seed store. Twenty-one years later, he expanded to Western Springs, where he built what became one of the nation’s largest wholesalers and retailers of horticultural items. Having achieved considerable success selling seed and horticultural supplies through catalog sales, Vaughan opened five greenhouses
Galesburg to Chicago… and Back
In December 1931, two teenage boys from Galesburg decided to see the world. Broke and alone, their odyssey ended in Western Springs. On Thursday, December 10, 1931, most teenagers were probably thinking about the upcoming Christmas school vacation. But, Leo Buescher, 16, and his friend, Joseph Cissell, age 17, had
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