Illinois' 25 Biggest Cities Today-- Part 2: Aurora, Springfield, Waukegan

Continuing with the 25 largest Illinois cities in 2022.'

12.  Bloomington    (77,725)

11.  Cicero    (81,471)

10.  Waukegan    (81,157)

9.  Champaign     (88,288)

8.  Elgin    (112,062)

7.  Peoria     (112,644)

6.  Springfield     (115,075)

5.  Joliet     (147,323)

4.  Rockford    (147,441)

3.  Naperville    (147,734)

2.  Aurora    (199,326)

1.  Chicago    (2,699,347)

--RoadNumbers

Illinois' Biggest Cities in 1870-- Part 2: Rockford, Aurora and Chicago

#12.  Rock Island:  7,890   (#254 nationwide)

#11.  Belleville:  8,146

#10.  Alton:  8,665   (#228 nationwide)

#9.  Jacksonville  9,203   (#213 nationwide)

#8.  Galesburg:  10,158   (#178 nationwide)

#7.   Rockford:  11,049   (#152 nationwide)

#6.  Aurora:  11,162   (#148 nationwide)

#5.  Bloomington:  14,590  (#108 nationwide)

#4.  Springfield  17,364   (#88 nationwide)

#3.  Peoria:  22,849   (#59 nationwide)

#2.  Quincy:  24,052   (#55 nationwide)

#1.  Chicago:  298,977   (#5 nationwide)

Interesting.  --RoadPop

Next Up. the Lincoln Highway in Illinois-- Part 4

I did a little research on these two murals.

AURORA

In 1900, the population of the city was 24,147. Today, 171,782 call it home. It was one of the first US cities to go to an all-electric street lighting system in 1881. Before that, streets were illuminated by gas lamps or not at all.

In 1908, the name "Aurora: The City of Lights" was officially adopted.

From Wikipedia


JOLIET

Pilcher Park is now called Pilcher Park Nature Center and still exists, offering hiking, biking and cross country trails. It is part of the Joliet Park District which was established in 1922 and today consists of 660 heavily treed acres. You Tube had a feature on a "Ride Through Pilcher Park" on a motorcycle.

Sections of the park can be rented.

I came across nothing about the old tent city, but hope they put up a marker at the site and see if there is anything left of it.

Tenting Tonight on the Old Campground. --RoadDog

Next Up, the Lincoln Highway in Illinois-- Part 3

THE AURORA and JOLIET MURALS

This one shows the city's early electric street lighting system and is scheduled to be installed near the end of this year near New York and Broadway streets. The installation of these caused Aurora to be called "The City of Lights" by 1908.

Work on the Joliet one started a couple weeks ago and will be installed on the side Thayer Brothers Deli & Grill, 738 Ruby Street. This one shows the city's Pilcher Park in 1923 when it was used as a tent camp for travelers. These travel camps were a predecessor of today's motels. In 1923, about 9,000 people stayed there. The deli was chosen because of its busy location.

The murals and gazebos are all part of an effort to increase the Lincoln Highway's presence for townspeople and travelers.

The murals are being painted by Jay Allen, president of Shaw Craft Company in Machesney Park, Illinois and two others. He has spent hours of research looking at newspaper clippings and old photographs to insure accuracy.

Joliet, of course, is also known for its location on Route 66. But the Lincoln Highway goes through it as well, making it one of only two places the roads intersect (the other is in Plainfield, Illinois, on a different Route 66 alignment).

This coming June, the Lincoln Highway Association will be having its national convention in Dixon, Illinois and I am hoping to be able to attend it for the first time.

Looking Forward to Seeing Them. --RoadDog

Next Up, the Lincoln Highway in Illinois-- Part 1

The December 9th Chicago Tribune "Murals to tell Lincoln Highway history" by Patrick Ferrell.

This article is primarily about the two 200-foot long murals in Joliet and Aurora, Illinois. Aurora downtown was a scary place in the early 1900s until the city spent lots of money for streetlights. Travelers camped in Joliet's Pilcher Park in the days before motels.

Both cities were connected by America's first transcontinental road, the Lincoln Highway which ran 179 miles across Illinois from Lynwood on the east by Indiana to Fulton on the Mississippi.

Both Indiana and Illinois were the first states to have what were called
Seedling Miles" which were paved mile stretches to show the possibilities of a national series of "hard" roads (meaning those that were paved).

The very first "seedling mile" was by Malta (west of Dekalb and home of Northern Illinois University as I sit here typing in my Huskies tee shirt). It is located in front of Kishwaukee College.

Back to Lincoln. --RoadDog

Aurora's "Garfield House" Up for Sale

Something else to see while cruising the Lincoln Highway through Aurora, Illinois, and that would be what is referred to locally as the "Garfield House" at 247 West Park.

It was built in 1901 by William Foulke. In the late 1950s, it was owned by Garfield Goose creators Bruce and Clare Newton. The buyer can also qualify for a $15,000 preservation grant and $4,000 for windows. The price has dropped from $250,000 to $224,900 (can anyone say $225,000?).

Now, some of you non-Chicagoland folks might be wondering who this Garfield person is or was. First-off, he is not a person, but a goose who had his own very popular children's TV show on Chicago's WGN TV during the 50s and 60s. I would immediately turn it on when I returned home from school. Also, Garfield Goose was a puppet.

The Newtons lived there for almost fifty years and raised five children in its 18 rooms. It included a workshop and an antique museum after several rooms were turned into set pieces like an old-time ice cream shop, barber shop, and general store.

There was also a mass of other antiques like 46 heating stoves, 35 pieces of old telephone equipment, 85 oil lamps, and literally thousands of knick-knacks.

Clare died in 2006 and Bruce in 2007. Unfortunately, most of the antiques were sold in an estate sale.

From Dec. 9th Daily Herald.

Good Old Garfield, Beauregard, Rhomberg Rabbit, and Frazier Crane. --RoadDog

Lincoln Highway in Aurora, Illinois

AURORA, ILLINOIS PUSHING LINCOLN HIGHWAY-- The April 24th Fox Valley Villages Sun had an article about what Aurora is doing to tout its role in the first transcontinental highway.

It said that many people don't even realize the road runs through their town. They only think HEAVY TRAFFIC. Tourism leaders want to get folks interested in it.

This summer, a Lincoln Highway gazebo will be erected outside the visitors center and a 10 by 20 foot mural painted on the La Quinta De Los Reyes restaurant on New York Street in downtown Aurora, one of 34 murals planned for the country.

They also mention that the first White Castle and A&W Root Beer stores opened along the Lincoln Highway. Wikipedia showed the first White Castle at Wichita, Kansas, and first A&W in Lodi, California.

Another LH site is Moosehart between North Aurora and Batavia. In the early 1900s, Moosehart raised $12,000 to pave the section of LH in front of it.

There is hope that all this will get people to cruising the Lincoln Highway like they are Route 66.

Sure Can't Hurt. --RoadDog

Spring Grove Fish Hatchery Now #12!!!

I voted this morning for American Express' Partners in Preservation Chicago Initiative where they'll be giving out $1 million to projects in the Chicagoland area. You are allowed to vote once a day, but for only place. I have four I'm really interested in, but now have only been voting for my hometown Spring Grove Fish Hatchery.

One of the others is in nearby McHenry, the Petersen Historical Farmstead. The other two are in Lincoln Highway towns: the Viking ship in Geneva and the GAR (Grand Army of the Republic from the Civil War) Hall in Aurora.

Of course, all 25 nominated sites are worthy, but not everyone will get all the money they're hoping for. The first place vote-getter is guaranteed their request. Ever since the beginning of voting, that has been the Leong Merchant Building in Chicago's Chinatown which has 15% of the vote. These folks are mighty organized. Second place is Chicago's Von Stuebben High School with 12%.

The voting for my favorites:

#3 Viking ship with 9%
#7 GAR Hall with 4%
#12 Spring Grove Fish Hatchery with 3%-- that's up from #19 last Sunday.
#22 Petersen Historical Farmstead with 1%

You can vote once a day until October 10th at http://www.partnersinpreservation.com/

Vote Fishy if You Can. --RoadDog

GAR Hall in Aurora, Illinois

I am a Southerner and a member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, but when it comes to the Civil War and preservation, we are all brothers. The Grand Army of the Republic Hall in Aurora, Illinois, is in dire need of repairs.

This was built between 1877-1878 and was a meeting place for Union veterans of the Civil War. It was funded by "popular subscription". It is an octagonal Gothic Revival structure constructed of locally-quarried limestone and  features arched stained glass windows and has a Union soldier on guard duty standing on the top.

In the late 1960s, public outcry prevented it from being torn down and turned into a parking lot.

American Express is donating $1 million toward preservation projects in Chicagoland, but only those with the most votes will getbthe dough.

You can vote for it at http://www.partnersinpreservation.com/

I'd Definitely Appreciate Your Vote. --RoadDog

Get Out There and Vote for Preservation

American Express has a million bucks that they would like to donate to various preservation projects here in the state of Illinois. They have selected 25 potential sites. The only catch is that you have to go online and vote for the ones you want. You're allowed to vote once a day until October 10th.

I read about it in the Chicago Tribune, then received an e-mail from my SCV, Sons of Confederate Veterans organization which had been forwarded from the Sons of Union Veterans requesting votes for their GAR (Grand Army of the Republic) Hall in Aurora. How about that, almost 150 years later, the two groups locked in that four year struggle are cooperating!!!

I have also notified other organizations that I belong to.

I'm begging for votes for the Spring Grove Fish Hatchery here in my hometown, the Peterson Historical Farmstead in nearby McHenry, the Viking ship in Geneva, and the GAR Hall in Auror(the last two are along the Lincoln Highway.

If you would help us out and do some voting, I'd sure appreciate it.

You will have to register to vote, however.

Go to http://www.partnersinpreservation.com/

You can also find out about the sites requesting funds. Most are in Chicago, so we suburbs need all the help we can get.

Vote Early, Vote Often. --RoadDog

Taking Shelter on the Lincoln Highway

The Illinois Lincoln Highway National Scenic Byway website, under Recent News, said that an original LH shelter on Hill Avenue in Aurora has been completely restored and will serve as a regional interpretive center.

It was originally constructed around 1923 by the Aurora Automobile Club, to provide tourists with a place to camp. In the Official 1924 Lincoln Highway Guide, it was described as having "two fireplaces, two ovens, a sink, and a good well of pure drinking water."

This was before the advent of motels, when motorists would camp out alongside the road more often than not. In order to attract business and keep an eye on the type of people passing through, some municipalities started establishing these tourist camps and by the mid-1920s over 5000 had been built.

The last-known people to use it were gypsies in the early 1940s. In World War II, it was enclosed and used as a Civil Defense Shelter. It came close to being demolished, but now has been restored to its 1924 appearance. Photographs accompany the article.

Looks like WE won this One!! --RoadDog