Articles in the History Category

A couple of weeks ago I was lucky to score two free tickets to Elgin Theatre Company’s production of Are you being served?, a play version of the 1970s British sitcom.  The catch?  That I’d write an honest review online.
It was fun!  And funny!  I really want to check out the original TV show now.  There was a lot of sexual innuendo and bathroom humor, which is up my alley but still surprised me.  I thoroughly enjoyed myself.
The cast obviously enjoyed themselves as well.  After watching the show, my friend …

Awesome. A third volume!

If that weren't enough, Stroud will have his third volume of “There Used to Be: A Look Back at Elgin's Architectural Heritage” out sometime later this year.
via Local author explores city’s architectural heritage :: The Courier News :: Local News.

I was disappointed that the Haunted Elgin website has disappeared, because it had some great stories, very creepy photos and listings of all the “haunted” places in Elgin. I did find a website called the Shadowlands Haunted Places Index, which lists the following haunted places in Elgin, Illinois:

Channing Memorial Elementary School: Everything from cold spots, to apparitions, to footsteps from the upper floor (when you are “alone” in the building)has been reported here. When an addition was built on to the building, over 13 skeletons were found in the ground …

The Gifford Park Associaton’s Annual Historic Elgin Housewalk is Saturday. This is the 27th year:
Each year, the GPA picks a different area of the city to spotlight.
This time around, it’s a northeast part of Elgin, also known as the “Gold Coast” because many of the town’s early, wealthier families erected large homes there as the city grew.
Eight homes are featured and all can be seen inside and out between 9 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 13….
Over the years, the tour has become a labor of love for volunteers. …

Advocates to Revitalize Cultural and Historic Elgin Sites (ARCHES) is holding its inaugural meeting Monday at 6:30 at the Gail Borden Public Library.
The idea came about a few years ago when members of the Northeast Neighborhood Association rallied to save — for now — the former D.C. Cook Communications building on North Grove Avenue from demolition to make way for a condominium development.
ARCHES members want to serve as a resource for others if a similar scenario surfaces.
Betsy Couture, an ARCHES member who also is a member of Elgin’s Heritage Commission, …

Anybody who’s been to Chicago is familiar with Bertrand Goldberg’s Marina City which resembles two giant corncobs–that’s meant to be descriptive not unflattering. They are among Chicago’s most recognizable landmarks. I even know somebody who went out there to paint them while they were still under construction. The Chicago Tribune came out with three stories this week, including one, interestingly, that summarizes the other two stories:
The first of the stories, by E.A. Torriero, chronicles how residents of Marina City (left) are banding together to fight an architecturally-disruptive incursion from …

Jessica points out an Elgin fanatic’s MySpace page (that Elgin bug sure gets around), in which he lists seven architectural wonders of Elgin, which was compiled from a survey apparently. So what are these wonders?
They are:

Elgin Tower Building - 1929
Professional Building - 1927
John Newman (Butterman) Mansion - 1889
Elgin National Watch Company Observatory - 1909
Pratt Castle - 1937
O’Conner - Leetz Funeral Home - 188?
Lords Park Pavilion - 1897

The Elgin fanatic’s MySpace page also lists some great Elgin trivia:

The Elgin National Watch Company was one of the first manufacturing complex’s in the …