Downers Grove’s history is
mostly unwritten
The public archives hold just one old photo of Downers Grove. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.
The story
from WikipediaRead it all ↗Downers Grove was founded in 1832 by Pierce Downer, a farmer who traveled to Illinois from Rutland, New York, but was originally from Vermont. Downers Grove was named for a lush grove of old-growth bur oak trees surrounding the village, which stood out from the local savanna landscape. Its other early settlers included the Blodgett, Curtiss, Blanchard, Stanley, Lyman, and Carpenter families. The original settlers were mostly migrants from the Northeastern United States and Northern Europe. In 1839, Reverend Orange Lyman, a presbyterian minister, and his wife Maria Dewey Lyman arrived, and built what is believed to be the first home in Downers Grove. The first schoolhouse was built in 1844. In 1846, the Blodgett house was built by Israel and Avis Blodgett. It was the second (or third) home built in Downers Grove. Both the Lyman and Blodgett homes are of cultural significance, as they wer…
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Timeline
built from the dates on the items belowStart Downers Grove’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Downers Grove’s history is told.
1 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 🔁Retake an old viewUntitled - Sports (NBY 3183), 1950: stand where they stood+15 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10Famous people from Downers Grove
See all 41 →
Downers Grove, decade by decade
1990s
Then & now
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as Untitled - Sports (NBY 3183) (1950) and it appears here side by side.
🔁 Retake this view · +15Stories next door
nearby towns’ historyFrom Wikimedia Commons (6). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.