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HomeMy Public PortalAbout2. Chapters 4 & 5 - Description of the Survey Area and Historic ContextArchiSearch Historic Pr eservation Consultan ts Plai nfiel d’s Histor ic Urbaniz ed Core: An Intensi ve-Level Survey 15 SURVEY AR EA ArchiSearch Historic Pr eservation Consultan ts Plai nfiel d’s Histor ic Urbaniz ed Core: An Intensi ve-Level Survey 16 5. HISTORIC CONTEXT Summary Plainfield had a pivotal role in the early settlement and develop ment of this region of Ill inois. This early period perhaps arguably remains the most significant period in the vil lage’s development, and merits the greatest attention when loo king at the village’s hist ory. What is par ticularly interesting about t his development is that an astonishing portion of it may s till be seen in the v illage’s ex tan t built enviro nment. Bo th the qua lity and quanti ty, especially from the early period o f deve lopmen t,c. 1830 - c. 1855, combi ne for a strikin g repres entatio n in Plai nfield ’s remaining historic resources,t he degr ee to which could be of state wide significance. Architecturally, the Greek Revival and Gothic Revival styles, an d the Upright and Wing vernacular building type date to th is peri od;additiona lly, s ome Gabl ed Ell vernac ular buil ding typ es are a lso fro m this pe riod.Early Settlement When Illinois achieved statehood in 1818, much of the area nor t h of Alton and Edwardsville (in Madison County, along the Mississ ippi River and east) in the new state, with some exception, was a wilderness.2 Howeve r, occas ional e xplore rs, sol diers on their marc hes to the distant outposts, as well as American Indian traders and trappers, had given glowing descriptions of the beauties of this region.3 The Illinois and Michigan Canal p roject h ad been c onceiv ed during the War o f 1812, thus prompting the purchase of the American Indian lands in 1816. Important to note is that American Indians remained in this area as late as 183 5-37, a nd some never left; t hus the earlies t Anglo European settlement of some ten years or more meant the coexistence of the two distinctly differe nt cultures . As early as 1820, an occasional pio neer had explored out into the ne w Northwest lands, including early Metho dist missionaries.4 One of these early Methodist missionaries was Reveren d Jesse Wal ker ,whose journey to this area pre-dates s tatehood. Wa lke r, was born in 1766 in V irginia, joined t he church at ag e twenty , and ent ered the ministry on proba tion in 1804. In 1806, Wal ker wa s accompanied by William McKendree on a trip to this region, then part of the Territory of Indiana.Upon their return back east, the men were appoin ted to the circuit in Il linois, ev entually heading back to Illinois . McKendree College , established in Lebanon, Illino is in 1828 and named after Walker’s colleague, remains the oldest colle ge in the state, so both men made signif icant contributions to the historic devel opment of Illinois.Purported ly a French Canadian, Vetel Vermette , came to the area in 1825 (alt hough som e accoun ts suggest his arrival as early as 1796),5 thus riv aling Re verend W alker as the first Anglo-European settler in the area, but the details of Ve rmette’s tenure in the area are rather sketchy . Accord ing to Plainfie ld: Then and Now , Reuben Flagg stated that when he arrived in the area in 1830, he found Vetel Vermette living “here wit h an Indi an wife.”6 Vermette, a fur trader, evidently did no t remain in the area for long; he s old his claim to Jedediah Wooll ey, Sr., a nd left .7 Anothe r account , also in Plainfie ld: Then and Now , has Ve rmette stopping through the area as early as 1822 or 1823, then returning in 1825 to establish squatter’s rights.8 This account has Vermette marrying Huldah ArchiSearch Historic Pr eservation Consultan ts Plai nfiel d’s Histor ic Urbaniz ed Core: An Intensi ve-Level Survey 17 Walker, daughter of Dr . David Walker of Ottawa , and rel ocating to Ottawa i n 1830. Howe ver,George Forquier (sometim es spe lled Fo uquier, Furq ue, or Furk ee), the son of a Potawato mi Indian woman and a French Canadian man, was also in the area during the same period as Vermette, and may have been in the area ev en earlier than Vermette.Reverend Walker returned to sett le in th e Illino is lands with his family, includi ng his wi fe and tw o daughters, all on horseback with few po ssessions in tow. In 1826, Walker ca me to the vici nity of Plainfi eld, where an American Indian v illage continu ed to ex ist for severa l mo re years.9 In 1827,Walker became Superintendent of the Fox Rive r Missio n, which e ncompas sed a la rge extent of the territory. In 1829, he was in charge of the Des Plaines Mission, and formed the first clas s at Walkers’Grove, where the first settlement was made, just sou th of the presen t vill age of P lainfie ld.10 Reverend Walker’s tenure overlapped somewhat with that of Rev erend Stephen R. Beggs, one of the earliest itineran ts through the region. Beggs settled with his famil y in a log cabin on the s outheast portion of Sectio n 16 in the township , at the s outheast corner of what i s now Fo rt Be ggs Drive and James Street. After th e initia tion of the Black Hawk War in the summer of 1833, the cabin of Reverend Beggs was selected as a tempo rary fortification at which area se ttlers gathered for protection.Realistically the “fort” was no more than Begg’s log cabin surrounded with barricades co nstructed of fence rails and l ogs from outbuildings.11 Reverend Walker died in 1835 at age sixty-nine. His manuscripts were lost to fire . Some had been at the house of James Walke r (Reverend Walker’s son in-l aw); those which were saved from that fire ,were destroy ed in a f ire at the D.C Searle s house sever al year s later . Much of the account of Walker was conveyed from Mrs. D.C. (Harriet) Searles, his granddaughter, and James Walker, the father of Mrs. Searles.12 Accounts vary as to the relationship between the two W alkers; for many years t he Walkers were thought not to have been rel ated, other than through marriage, despite the na me.However, recent genealogic al records indicate that a relation may have existed, with the two men possibly being cousins.13 Captain James Walker was a n ative of Tennessee . He had met Reverend Walker in Ottawa an d eventually accompanied him on his mission to Walke rs’ Grove. Jesse Wal ker gained the title of “Captain” on June 25, 1832 when he was made Captain of Illinois Volunte ers, par t of a system of voluntee r militia which had been organized from Chicago to Ottawa.14 Accounts differ as to whethe r the name “Walkers’ Grove” pertained to Reverend Jess e Walker or to Captain James Walker; perhaps more ac curately, th e reference would be “Walkers’ Grove” to refle ct the residency of both earl y settl ers. Jame s Walke r brought al ong a hor se-powe red mill whi ch he set up for temporary use, the n const ructed a s awmill a nd a grist mill al so alo ng th e Du Page River by 1832,providing importan t early servic es to s ettlers in the re gion. Wh e n the W alker Sawmill was establi shed, no other sawmill existed i n northeastern Illinois, with the c losest mill at St. Jos eph ,Indiana. However, by 1833, nu me rous sawmills were operating throughout the region.15 Reportedly,the lumber for the first two frame buildings in Chic ago was hewn at this mill.16 One building was erected by P.F.W. Peck on the southeast corner o f LaSalle and South Water streets.17 The other building, the Dole Forwarding House, was erecte d by George Dole.18 Upon t he formal organization of Will Co unty, James Walker was chosen to be one of the three first commissioners, withou t opposition, and late r repres ented th e county in the s tate legislature.19 (Will County had originally ArchiSearch Historic Pr eservation Consultan ts Plai nfiel d’s Histor ic Urbaniz ed Core: An Intensi ve-Level Survey 18 been part of Cook County, until it was separated off in the winter of 1835-36.) James Walker also served as county commissione r from 1845-48. He died in 1850 at the age of fifty-seven.20 Another of the earliest settle rs was Re uben Flag g, who left Vermont with his family i n the spring of 1830, ending up in the vicinity of Walkers’ Grove; he sett led on the north east quar ter of S ection 10 in the town ship, af ter firs t claimi ng a tract in the n ortheast ern quarte r of Sec tion 20.21 Acco unt s indicate that at that ti me, the v illage which bec ame Plain field i ncluded about a do zen lo g cabins, a block-house, and a stock ade. It wa s surround ed by low, wet pr airie, bar ren sand, and impassable sloughs.22 Flagg’s daughter may have been the first Anglo E uropean child bo rn in Wil l County , but accounts vary. The area which became Plainfield was within the I ndian Boundary, a section of the state which was framed by two parallel line s traversing diagonal ly ac ross the towns hips in what w ould eventually beco me part of Will C ounty. T he twenty mile st rip of l and which was frame d by the Bo undary (Native American lands purchased by treaty), was surveyed in 1821-22 for canal purposes, following statehood for Illinois in 1818. The land lying outside of the Boundary was n ot survey ed until 1837-38. The ea rlier s urvey me ant thos e lands were amo ng the fi rst avai lable f or purcha se. Cheste r Ingersoll is credited with pl atting the village proper i n 1834, which had sometimes been called South Plainfield, and was laid out in a grid. The north div ision wa s laid o ut by Squir e Arnol d,with Main and Oak streets runn ing diagona lly. Ingersoll , on his 18 34 plat of the new town,christened the village as “Planefi eld,” which was changed to “Plainfield” on the pl at of his f irst addition to the o riginal town the follo wing yea r. The name was apparen tly ins pired by the lush table of prairie grass and abundant wild flowers which lin ed the DuPage River, all su rrounded by virgin timber la nd. The community, however, was already well established by the time of the p latting in 1834. James Walker’s log house, the first in what would become the village p roper, easily pre-dated the p latting of th e village, but Ingersoll’s house was constructed shortly there after. James Walker’s house was located on the northwest corner of Fox River and Ottawa str eets; h e had also constructed the first community house i n northe rn Illi nois, but the date of this is not c lear.23 It was located on the corner of 401 Divis ion Stre et.24 At this time, Paul Kingsto n built a cabin and sto re/house which were located just west of the cemetery. The sto re offered such staples as axes, augers, coffee, sugar, tea,blankets, and calicoes.25 Cana l re cords indica te that in 18 30, Pau l Kingston of Walker s’ Grove bought Lot 7, Block 20 for $27.00; James Walker bought Lot 4, Block 10 for $20.00; and Jedediah Wooley bought Lo t 9, Block 44 for $50.00.26 By 1832, James Walker’s mill had been establishe d on the DuPage River, a short distance below the p oi nt w here the River Ro ad cross es the r iver, abo ut a mile south of the vill age; Walker had paid Reuben Flagg $32.00 for digging the mill race.27 Still oth er houses were qui ck to fo llow, wi th Plainf ield an d the surr ounding c ommunitie s using a ll the lumber tha t Walke r’s mill could p roduce. ArchiSearch Historic Pr eservation Consultan ts Plai nfiel d’s Histor ic Urbaniz ed Core: An Intensi ve-Level Survey 19 Plainfield House, also known as Hal fway House or Wight House, was buil t in 1834, with the first incarnation being a one and one-half story building constructed as a tav ern for Squire Ar nold. (T he original s ection exists within the structure of the current building.) It also became the first government franchised post office in what even tually became Will County, with James Walker serving as the f irst pos tmaster.28 The lo cation o f the bui l ding–half way between Chicago and Ottawa,on the Chicago and Ottawa Trail (later Main Street)–was ideal. The Dr. John Temple Stage Line,later the Frink and Walker Stage Li ne and th e Hinto n Stage Line, us ed Half way Hous e from 1834 -1852. In 1836, Dr. E rastus G. Wight of Naperville leased Arnold’s Tavern and s ome adjoining property; but Plainfield Then and Now also states that Squire Arnold co ntinued to keep the post o ffice at Halfway House until his death in 18 45, so the information seems contradictory.29 Dr. Wight enlarged the buil ding to its present configuration ci rca 1836 - 38 with lumber hewn at James Walker’s saw mill.30 The fir st floo r of the house c onsiste d of the tavern, dining ro om, and kitchen;sleeping rooms were on the second f loor, but two fireplaces in the attic meant that was usa ble space available for sleeping also . Purportedly, a ballroom was also o n the se c ond story.31 Wight had “Plainfield House” painted on the east side of the building, but the estab lishment bec ame popularly known as “Halfway House” or “Wight Tavern.”32 A large horse barn was located west of Halfway House, providing space fo r the stage line horses.Dr. Wight, l ike many others who sett led in P lainfie ld at thi s time, wa s from th e east– Philadelphia.Wight was reportedly the first practic ing physic ian in northern Illinois, travel ing a circuit from Plainfield to Bourbonna is Grove to Chicag o Heights, ba ck through Western Spring s and occasiona lly across the stat e to Roc k Islan d.3 3 In 1838, Wight built a two story frame drug store across from Halfway House on Main Street; the e xact location is unknown, but it is thought to have be en where the apartmen t building is now, at the northeast corner of Main and Illinois s treets. He continued his practice until hi s death i n 1845 and the family continu ed to op erate the inn as l ate as 1886. The building was a focal point of activity for the region, as a hotel, tavern, and post off ice; a number of the 1834-35 Cook-Will County land grants were also administered at Halfway House, as wel l as being a favo rite mee ting pla ce for t he p ioneer Methodist circuit riders.34 The building also served as milit ia headqu arters an d artill ery park for the Plainfi eld Ligh t Artill ery and U nion Gre ys. Plain field’s significant location on the early road system was crucial to the village’s succe ss as a regional draw. The Chicago and Ottawa Trail is the basis for Main Street/Route 126. Dr. John C.Temple of Chicago received a United States mail contract in 1833 for a seventy mile route between Chicago and Ottawa with Arnold’s Tavern (later Halfway House) at 503 Main Street becoming a regular stop, half way between the two d estinat ions. Th e practic al use o f trails was faci litated by the state legislature, when a law all owing the con structio n of pl ank roads was pas sed in 1849. Prior to this time, th e early roads were bottomless dirt roads which in wet weather became impassable at times. The con structio n of pl ank roads meant gra ding the dirt and l aying wo oden str ingers be neath wood planks, for a sturdier, drier road about eight feet in width. The Oswego & Indiana Plank Road Company formed in 1849, opening to traffic in December 1851. Fee for a round trip to Joliet was twenty-seven cents. The road terminated in Plainfie ld; it closed in March of 1869.35 The failure was substant ially due to th e fee s ystem; farmers would drive miles out of the way in good weather to avoid ArchiSearch Historic Pr eservation Consultan ts Plai nfiel d’s Histor ic Urbaniz ed Core: An Intensi ve-Level Survey 20 paying the tol l. 36 A sec ond tollhouse was locate d at the northeast corner of Lock port Street and Wood Farm Road (Old Van Dyke ), but was dest royed l argely by the 1990 to rnado and event ually razed.37 Currentl y, Joli et Road/Ro ute 30, ref lects this early trail. A pl ank road toll gate was locate d on the northeast corner of what is now Renwick Road and Ro ute 30. The Lockpo rt, Plain field &Yorkville Plank Road Company was formed in 1855, and was located along Lockpo rt Street. It was never completed to Yo rkville.38 The location on popular trail s meant an increas ed need for acc ommodatio ns. Root Kent’s house on the east side of DesPlain es j ust south of Lockport Street, was purchase d by Jim Beggs in 1865 and turned into a hotel. The house had been built in 1845. Beggs operated the hote l for about twenty-five years. Supposedly the south section of the building had been the Chittenden Store which had been locate d at the corner of Division and Comme rcial s treets, then mov ed and co nnected to the hotel to enl arge the establi shment. T he Chitten den Store building had prev iously been the Corbin General Store an d dated to circa 1852.39 The hotel changed ownership a number of times following Beggs’ tenure, then cl osed aro und 1920, afte r which the building was use d for a variety of other purposes. When Paul Birthisill of Park Ridge cl eared the lot in 1945 for construction o f a Fo rd garage, the Root Kent building was moved to the S tuhlman E ngineer ing prop erty at t he east edge of the village along Main Stre et, where it was used as a storage building until the late 1990s when it was raz ed.40 Plainfield was a hub of milling activity fro m the days of Walker’s mill to near the turn of the century.The location of mills in Plainfield meant farmers coming in to the village with their grains inc reased hotel, tavern, and stor e busine ss. Jame s Matthew s built a mill in 1835, operating it until he moved to Califo rnia in 1844.41 Yet another easterner, Matthews came from Massachusetts in 1831. After getting land along the DuPage River, he construc te d the mil l, dam, an d mill ra ce by 1835. T he McCallister Brother s bought th e mill from Matthews in 1844, adding a new saw mill which was operated by Burrel l, Hagar, and Goo dhue, then re nted and operated by Alonzo Hemstreet after that.42 Their s tore was locate d at what i s now 203 Mai n Street . In 186 6, Noah Sund erlin and Walter Burch bought the mill. Sunderlin bought out Burch and operated the mill until his death in 1886, after whi ch the mill was abandone d.43 The mil l was dis assembl ed by Sid ney Gra y in 1894, with the lumber and timbers being used to build his machine shop at 612 Lockport Street, later Wagner’s Shop.44 The other remains of the mill compl ex were destroyed in 1934 when the concrete bridge was constructed on Route 59, but some of the sto nes had b een sav ed by Mil es Harto ng.45 In more recent history , Matthews ’ mill be came kno wn as “the old red mill.”James Matthews laid out the north part of the v illage in 1835 which was united with the original town as laid out by Ingersoll when Arnold recorded his 1845 plat, kno wn as Arnold ’s Addition.Chester Ingersoll gave the v illage g round fo r a park (although the loc ation ch anged bet ween the 1834 and 1835 plats), under the condition that no permanent buildings should be erec ted upon it,with the park becoming t he Vill age Gre en.46 New England in character, the Vill age Green is a significant contribut ion to t he charac ter and de ve lopmen t of the villa ge. More over, th e Vill age Green, along wi th the ea rliest period o f archite cture fro m c. 1830 - c. 1855, illustrat es the great ArchiSearch Historic Pr eservation Consultan ts Plai nfiel d’s Histor ic Urbaniz ed Core: An Intensi ve-Level Survey 21 influence of the settle rs of the villa ge, near ly all of whom were from New England, rather than immigrants . Signifi cantl y, James Matthews also built a large house on the northeast corner of Naperville Road and Mill Street in 1837. Part of the original Matthews House wa s moved to and in corpora ted into this house; a th ird se ction o f the or iginal M atthews H ouse was moved a nd incor porated into the McCallister Store, wh ich was ra zed in 2005.47 The house was damaged by fire in 1912, and the front entrance and windo ws were al l repl aced.48 The Matthews family used space in their home for an inn and tavern to serv e patron s of the mill and others coming to the village. Lorin Burdick also occupied the house, be tween 1838 an d 1840. Burdick is thoug ht to hav e been o ne of th e carpenters who actually did the c onstruct ing of t he house ; he far med the Ma tthews p roperty for a while.49 The house is extant and continues to have a high degree of integrity. It is an excellen t exampl e of the vernacu lar build ing and ar chitectu re of th is earl y deve lopmen t period .The first schoolhouse was built in North Pla infiel d in 1837 and b urned in e ither 1846 or 1847, with a two story f rame build ing repl acing it at a cos t of $1,500.50 In 1851, the villa ge was divi ded into two districts, with a two story frame schoolhouse erected in the “lower district,” or South Plainfie ld, at a cost o f $1,200.Early Settlement - Industries Early industries played an important role i n vill age lif e througho ut the mid-ninetee nth cent ury. The John Bill Wagon Shop was locate d at 511 DesPlaines in 1834. Like many other settlers o f the time,Bill was a Ne w Englan der, from Woodbury, Vermont. As also was typical of the time, the building housed a mixture of uses , with a sc hool op erating a t one ti me on the upper s tory. Bil l made th e wagon that carri ed the first lum ber from Walk er’s Mill to Chicago, re portedly for th e first house bu ilt there. As a wagonmaker, Bill was also a mechanic of sorts, doing substantial repair work on wagons,and also de velop ing a rep utation a s a furni ture make r.51 Bill sold the business sometime around 1841. Also in 1841 , William Sanf ord Keene, a nati ve New York er, set up a blac ksmith sh op on th e lawn of his home at 506 F ox Rive r Street.52 It was the f irst blacksmith shop in the vill age, and it established a family business and trade that would sp an a century.53 Blacks miths made a variety of hardware and implements, from latches and hinges, and tools, to kitchen utensils and ice skates.54 Keene left hi s shop in 1849 and he aded wes t to Cal ifornia , but return ed to Plain field in 1852 and reopened his shop. His son, Anson, took over the busin ess whe n he retu rned fro m the Civ il War,moving it to 613 Lockport Street; his residenc e was at the corner of Ottawa and Des Plaines streets.55 As Plainfield approached the mid-nineteenth century, the Dillman Foundry became an important industry in the community. Lewis and Andrew Dillman, together with Cornelius A ultman, began manufacturing hand ope rated co rn shel lers, o ffering horse p owers and gene ral repa iring, und er the firm name Dillman & Company beginning in 1847, becoming the first such operation in the state.56 The foundry was located at the southeas t corner of Joliet Road/Route 30 and Divisi on Stree t/Route 59. The com pany ev entuall y relo cated to Jolie t for bette r shi pping s ervice s, but Robe rt D. Webb then opene d a wagon shop in the foun dry buildi ng. W ebb, fr om Yorks hire, Eng land, had a very ArchiSearch Historic Pr eservation Consultan ts Plai nfiel d’s Histor ic Urbaniz ed Core: An Intensi ve-Level Survey 22 success ful establi shment, e mployi ng twelve workm an at one point du ring the Civil War. The company manufactu red 150 wagons i n 1854.57 This bus iness w as so s ignific ant to the community that when the buildi ng was destr oyed by fire on Jan uary 28, 1877, a $3,00 0 loss, the tow nspeople raised $300 to purchase timbers for a new building since the o wner had no insurance.58 A native of Connecticut, Miles Royce came t o Plainfield and established a fanning mill factory. In 1834, his firs t yea r in operation, Royce manufactured fifty fanning mills, the first manufactured in northern Illinois.59 Fanning mills of fered gr ain sep arating s ervice s, sepa rating the chaff f rom the grain.The Naperville-Plainfiel d Road area was a busy thoroughfare. With the railroa d coming in the 1880s, it meant many cattle and sheep were unloaded, with the animals driven in herds by men on horseback to area farms.60 Adding t o the activity in the area was the c heese factory. The stone and timber two sto ry buildi ng stood jus t east o f the ol d Red Mill , adjacen t to a la rge ice house. T he factory was constructed in 1880 by an organization of local dairy farmers who needed a market for milk and related products.61 The busi ness p roved to be yet a nother re gional draw to Pl ainfiel d,bringing custom ers fro m Joliet, Lockport, and the exten ded Plainfield area for the fac tory, which produced cheese and butter, and sold cream and milk.62 The factory changed ownership a number of times, in rather short termed succes sions o f five or ten y ear owne rship, c losing around 1903. The remains o f the fa ctory e xisted i nto the m id-nine teenth c entury un til it wa s demol ished.Early Settlement - Government From 1834 to 1861, the villa ge had no formal govern mental n etwork o perating the vil lage. Th e village was incor porated und er special act of th e legislature on F ebruary 2 3, 186 1, but it may have only include d North Pl ainfiel d. In Ap ril 1869, Pla infiel d was agai n incorp orated by specia l act,including both the north and south divisions, and on June 30, 1877, it was incorpo rated unde r the general law of the state.63 The fir st Board o f Trustee s of the villa ge incl uded J. Mc Callis ter,Presiden t; Georg e N. Chit tenden, clerk; Robert We bb; Jonath an Hagar; and John D. Shref fler.64 The early business for the newly establishe d government dealt with the laying of wooden sidewalks,fencing since livestock roamed, and election procedures. Lic ensing for exhibitions, shows, and fairs,as well a s liquo r li censing and dealing with disorderly c onduct were also early top ics.65 Utilities became an issue toward the turn of the c entury, wi th a water system for the vill age established in 1895. In 1907, the Wester n Unite d Gas Co mpany of Aurora was granted a franchi se to l ay their mains; the Economy Light and Power Company was granted a franchise to install poles and string lines in 1909.66 Churches Plainfield gained a reputation for having an unusual number of churches given the community’s size,earning the name “Vil lage of Churches .”67 With the influence of Rev erend Walker and his success or Reverend Beggs, the Methodists erected the first church in Plainfield in 1836. It was replaced by a second build ing , constructed on Lockport Street, about 1845. Their third building, the extant ArchiSearch Historic Pr eservation Consultan ts Plai nfiel d’s Histor ic Urbaniz ed Core: An Intensi ve-Level Survey 23 limestone building, was con structed in 1866 at a c ost of about $22,000. By 1878, the congregation had more than three hundred members.68 The Bapt ist con gregatio n was org anized on Octobe r 16,1834, building their first church in the fal l of 1836 at a cost o f $2,500; by th e writing of the 1878 History of Will County , that building was being used as a bla cksmith’s shop. T he congregatio n built a new church in 1857 at a cost between $4,500 and $5,000. By 1878 , the membership was 131. The Congregational Church was organiz ed in Se ptember 1834 by Reverend N. C. Clarke, who had been preaching in the v icinity as earl y as 1832 and 1833. The congregation’s church, which remains extant, was constructed in 1850 at a cost of $2,200, “exclusive of the foundation,” and was dedicated i n June 1851.69 Membersh ip was ne ar eighty by 1878. The Evange lical C hurch was b uilt in 1855 at a cost of about $3,000. Membership was 113 at the t ime of t he 1878 History of Will County . That congregation operated the Northwestern Coll ege which located in Plainfie ld in 1851. The frame,two story C ollege building cost $10,000 to construc t. In 1869, th e Coll ege was reloca ted to Naperville, leaving the building vacant until 1871, when the Fox River Union Co llege opened under the ausp i ces of the Congregational Church. However, by 1872, it changed ownership again,becoming the Plainfield Academy; the building was later destroyed by fire.70 The Universalist Church was built in 1868 at a cos t of $6,000. Commer ce & the Cent ral Busine ss Distr ict Plainfi eld’s commerci al deve lopmen t c ontinued to prosper. John Sargent and J onathon Hagar opened the firs t store in Plain field.71 After 1850, George B ennett (a lso Bennitt) m oved twelve buildings from various parts of the community and set the m on eve ry other lot to create the original central business district. The lots in between required only the construction of front and rear walls,as well a s a flo or and a roof, which accounts for the dive rse architec tural fo rms in the original frame construction.72 By the late nineteen th century, the scene along the Lockport Street business district was one of a bust ling co mmercial area, pa cked with buildings . The 1878 History of Will C ounty lists the following business establi shments in Plainfield at that time: two gene ral dry g oods and grocery stores, two groc ery and h ardware stores , two drug store s, one bo ok and s tatione ry store , one fu rniture store, one hot el, one restaura nt, tw o live ry stabl es, fiv e blacks mith shop s, three wagon sh ops, fo ur practicing physic ians, two cider mills, barber shops, meat markets, harness shops, tailor sho ps, paint shops, millinery shops, etc., “but neither saloo ns nor l awyers.”73 Romanes que Revi val and Italian ate style buildings date to this pe riod, a time of substantial growth in the mid-late nine teenth century.Railroads eventually came through Plainfie ld, considerably later than for many communities. Rail lines had been opened the entire length of the Santa Fe Trail befo re Plainfield got rail serv ice. The Joliet , Aurora and Northern Railway was founded on March 22, 1884. After a survey between Jolie t and Aurora, th rough the Village of Plai nfield , the land was purchased and a contract was awarded to Milton Wood and George Edwards of Evanst on; the railroad was comp leted o n August 15, 1886.74 By 1888, the li ne was l eased to the Elgin, Joliet and Easte rn Railway Company. It became the main hauler of freight from the Joliet steel mills.75 The El gin, Jol iet and E astern Ra ilway C ompany F reight Depot and Passenger Station remains from this era; it was moved in 1999 from its original location along the trac ks, eas t of Main Street, to Lock port Stre et/Route 126, at the n orthw est cor n er with the DuPage River. The E.J. & E. Railway, however , was primarily a freight line, with irregular ArchiSearch Historic Pr eservation Consultan ts Plai nfiel d’s Histor ic Urbaniz ed Core: An Intensi ve-Level Survey 24 schedules and a si ngle pa ssenge r car con nected t o a strin g of fre ight cars . With the coming o f the Aurora, Pl ainfiel d and Jol iet Rail way, the tenure o f the E.J . & E. Rail way ende d.Fire and weather have unfortu nately done muc h to shap e the fa ce of Pl ainfiel d’s built enviro nment.A fire in 1881 occurred mid-block of the south side of Lockport Street, causing substantial damage.The fire of 1891 destroyed much of the business district, with new construction drastical ly changing the appeara nce of Lockpo rt Street, ushering in a modern era.76 Most of the buil dings lo st to the fire were frame in construc tion; two out of the three whi ch survived (a ll on the n orth side of Loc kport Street) were brick,77 and separated the frame Corbin & Chitten den Dry Goods a nd Groce ry Store (l ater the A.C. Steine r Shop) f rom the f ire. Rathe r uniquel y, many o f the buil dings whi ch were destroyed were gable front two story commercial buildings which reflected the G reek Revival and Gothic Revival styles of the earlier devel opment period in the vill age. Varying substantially i n h eight,despite all bei ng two st ories, t he buildi ngs were intersp ersed among la ter “False Front” vernacular buildings with the Italianate style, con cealing lower gable front roo fs behind . A raised wooden sidewal k united the bloc k. In 1892, the Mas ons purc hased two lots f or the co nstru ction of their ne w lodge along L ockport Street. Plans f or the two story metal roofed building were drawn by J.E. Minott, an architect from Aurora. Mall and Doane, contractors f rom Aurora, won the construction b id, just u nder $8,000.The building was comp leted by Decembe r 1892 and has always been distinctive for its onion shaped corner dome.78 Wylie and Whitley’s Busy Corner occupied the first sto ry of the building at one time.A new buil ding for th e P lainfield Academy was compl eted in 1882, erected upon the stone foundation of the college building which had burned. The cost was estimated at $10,000.79 The school included elementary grades as we ll as high school. In 1915, a red brick high school was built on the corner of Division and Lockport streets at a cos t of $25,000. It was desi gned by Herbert Cowell, a Will County native an d architect, who also designed a number of o ther buildings in Plainfi eld. He was one of the most prolific architects in the village.80 The bu ilding was loca ted directly in front of the earlier building, set in close proximity in a rather odd siting. By 1920, six country school s conso lidated with Plai nfield school s, with the country landm arks bei ng sold .81 When the new elementary school was built, the block bordered by Division, Lo ckport, and Bartlett incl u ded a succes sion of th ree sch ool bui ldings built over more than sev enty years; the old high s chool and earlier grade school/high school remained with the rear/west reentrant angle of the new buff brick grade school.The replacement buildings, all brick, were handsomely in place before the 1898 82 fire destroyed much of the south side of the same bl ock. Included was the Opera House, which had just been constructed in 1889, on the southwest corner of Lockport and Il linois streets, and two adjacent buildings. Much of that side had also been frame in construction. A water tower was constructed in 1897, looming over the south side of the Lock port Street commercial buildings, then streetcar tracks were added in 1904, with the tracks running down the center of the dirt Lockport Stree t. In 1898, C.W. Marcks of Chicago , owner o f the famous race horse “Joe Patchen,” and also a shoe company , rebuilt on the ArchiSearch Historic Pr eservation Consultan ts Plai nfiel d’s Histor ic Urbaniz ed Core: An Intensi ve-Level Survey 25 foundation of the old opera house . The Evarts bank relocated in the corne r of the down stairs;upstairs was a theater with a stage on the south end, and little balconi es (pe rhaps lo ge boxes) to each side.83 The “clock tower” building remains extant. The Sennitt Building was als o rebuil t, with the Enterprise newspaper operating in the back f or twenty years.84 Early Twen tieth Cen tury Industry Grain continu ed to pl ay an imp ortant ro le in v illage life. The Barr E levato r an d the Kirsten and Smiley Eleva tor were on the south side of Main Street, just west o f the rail road track s. Aroun d 1910 - 1912, owners hip of t hose two eleva tors cha nged, with the deat h of Jame s Smile y in 1910 and the subsequent formatio n of a s tock co mpany in 1912; th en the Plai nfield Grain co mpany bou ght out the Kirsten Elevator shortl y thereafter, accumulating other regional e l evato rs in addi tion to the Plainfield facilities.85 The company constructed the ext ant ele vator, we st acros s from th e earlier site,in 1921. In 1922, the brick office building, now occupied by t he Plain field Historical Society and Museum, was con structed. The el evator had a cap acity of 100,000 bush els. I t operat ed until 1970 when the company was liq uidated.86 Lockwood Dairy may very we ll hav e one o f the mor e intere sting his tories o f deve lopmen t a m ong businesses in the v illage . When Mrs. Roy (Es tella) Lockwoo d was wido wed in 1909 an d left w ith two small sons to raise on her o wn, she decided to make the most of her smal l farm on James Street and go into the dairy business.87 Reportedly, Mrs. Lockwood tend ed to the cows, while her two sons delivered milk to houses in a child’s wagon. By 1922, they were able to purchase pasteurizing eq uipment and delivered the milk by hors e and wagon.88 The successful ope ration even tuall y expanded to produce cheese and butter, with milk supp lies being picked up from Model T box type trucks.89 The new modern plant was ope ned in 1950. The busin ess was operate d by Mrs. L ockwood ,her son Cecil, then her s on Zerrell, then his son Jerry.Electric Park In 1904, the Joliet, Plai nfield and Aur ora Railwa y Company (Aur ora, Pla infiel d & Joliet Railway Company after 1 905)develop ed the twe nty-acre Electr ic Park. T he purpo se of t he park w as to stimulate business for the electric line, but the park obviously prov ided ye ars of enjo yment fo r the region as well. Located alo ng the Du Page River near the west end of the business district , the par k encompassed twenty acres which had formerly been the cow pasture of John Sennitt .90 It featured a toboggan slide, a large tent, and the s team engine which powered the merry-go-round on the west side of the river; o n the ea st side were the bandstand , the boat hous e and la nding, and the restauran t. Curvi linear wal kways lined with benches between broad grassy areas gave plenty o f opportunities for picnicking and relaxatio n. An internat ional gasol ine engine display, two-l ane bowling alley, dance pavil ion, and a concession stand were also among the park’s f eatures, in addition to a grand stand and athleti c fiel d, and a 5,000 s eat audito rium. Swimming and boating wer e also included, with bath ers carrying small, flat-bottom toboggans up a steep flight of stai rs to sl ide down the adjac ent chute , usuall y two to a tobogga n. The river wa s about five feet de ep at El ectric Pa rk, workin g well f or swimmer s as wel l as bo aters al ong the one-mile ArchiSearch Historic Pr eservation Consultan ts Plai nfiel d’s Histor ic Urbaniz ed Core: An Intensi ve-Level Survey 26 course.91 The park was a great attraction to the village , drawing visitors from a wide area including both Jolie t and Auro ra. The p ark included more than eighty cottages and a substan tial camp ground.A tunnel facilitated pedestrian traffic under Route 30. As was typical of such de velopments of this time, t h e cottages were for seas onal use only; howev er, the cottages of Elec tric Park were rather unique. The gable front, one story cottages had wood fl oors, wit h board sides built up about fifteen inches from the ground. Rather than wood walls, the remainder of the cottage cons isted of canvas sides with scr een doo rs and windows. Naturally, each cottage had el ectric lights, gas, and sewer/wat er.92 Shed roof front porches extended off the gable fronts and p rovided relaxing space f or social izing. Rows of cottage s faced each ot her, with an ample grass all e !e between, lined with trees.The park’s a uditorium wa s used f or Will County Chautauqua s which we re held annually for se veral years during the last week of July and the f irst wee k of Augu st. In ad dition to ample s eating, t he auditorium include d a stage and pip e organ. The Aurora, Plainfield and Jolie t Elect ric Comp any went out of bu siness in 1923, as t he era o f the automobi le was well initiated. Lawrence “Butch” J. Crowley purchase d the par k prope rty in 1923,and began to divide the cottage area and sell lots.93 The Auditorium continued to be used as a dance hall and roller skating rink and by 1975, it was the only original building s tanding. In the late 1970s,it was use d as a ware house an d school bus garage , then was eventu ally de molishe d.94 Recreati on in the area ev entuall y inclu ded Lake Rewick. The location of the lake was originally a small gravel pit for township use. The first gravel was strippe d off in the l ate nine teenth c entury, bu t the water did not appear until sometime late r, around 1915, thus forming Lake Renwick.95 The resulting lake meant that some early structures were moved elsewhere, incl uding to the village, for continued use.From Trail s to the Automo bile Era Roads continu ed to be part of Plainfi eld’s developmental history into the early twentieth century, as the Lincoln Highway Association included Lockport Street in its plan for the first transcontinental route from New York to San Francisco. The road was the vision of Carl G. Fisher of Indianapol is,who created the Indi anapol is Motor Speedwa y, p aving it with bri ck and in augurating the Indianap olis 500 i n 1911.96 Fishers’s comprehensi ve in terest in automobiles included founding Pres t-O-Lite Company, which made carbide headlights, providing the only reliable lig ht for night driving before the all -electric car.97 Others had contemplated a coast to coast road; the American Automobile Ass ociation had suggested one as early as 1902. What was unique about Fis her’s ef forts was that he wa s the fi rst to propose a road with a real improvement plan and the means to finance i t.98 In Septe mber 1912,Fisher began pr omoting t he Coast-to-Coast Highway, a gravel highway th at he had proj ected could be built fo r about te n milli on doll ars, a lo w figure e ven fo r 1912.99 Fisher’s plan provide d for t h e money to be used for basic road building materials, with labo r and machi nery bei ng prov ided by th e counties, towns, and cities along the yet undetermi ned route . His v ision ha d perfe ct timing: the automobil e was wel l establ ished by 1912, but roads were not. Winter and wet weather had meant ArchiSearch Historic Pr eservation Consultan ts Plai nfiel d’s Histor ic Urbaniz ed Core: An Intensi ve-Level Survey 27 that the some 180,000 automobiles which were registered by 1910 would s pend subs tantial time out of use. And with the Panama-Pacific Exposition only two and one-half years away, San Francisco would make a logical destination.100 The network of adviso rs alon g the pro posed r oad was e xtensiv e and inc luded Pl ainfiel d’s own U.S.G.Blakely, owner and editor of the Enterpr ise . The net work of “c onsuls ” numbered 263 and Blake ly’s tenure lasted an astonis hing twen ty-six years, i ncluding being se lected as a dire ctor.101 Blakel y’s efforts to faci litate the new modern highways passage through th e vill age were extens ive. He wrote letters , printe d many ed itorial s in his newspap er, and even traveled to Detroit to examine the new concret e road that had been used there.102 Blakely even helped convince Illinoi s Governor Dunne to create a state highway department. Plainfie ld’s portion of the road, named Linco lnway, followed the main stre ets of the vil lage. I t was pav ed in 1921 by the Ralp h H. Newkirk Const ruction Company of Jol iet.Perhaps surprisi ngly, Il linois and Iowa had prov ed to be the most difficult states in which to de velop the best route. The route was to eventually pass through Omaha and because of Illino is’s flat terrain,the normal adher en ce to rail lines was not as essential. Reportedly some fi fty routes wer e possible across the state. The route that was finally sele cted was a route which had already been used by cros s continental drives which had occurred , first i n 1903. In 1908, t he Great Race came through th e same route.103 One of the last acts of the Lincoln Highway Ass ociation was to mark the highway;the Association chose concrete markers to o fficially dedicate the highway to Abraham Lincoln. In a rather unusual event, the 3,000 markers were erected on September 1, 1928 at 9:00 A.M. by boy s cout troops across the country. A pparently only 2,436 of the 220 pound markers w ere actuall y erected , with the fate of the extra markers unkno wn.104 On June 15, 2000, the Lincoln Highway was designat ed as a N ational Scenic Byway. The highway u shered i n a new e ra of automobile dominance, with auto-related buildings to fol low.One such building was the Standard Oil Gasoline Station at 600 West Lockport Street. Constructed in 1932, the station had a prime corner location. It was l isted in the National Register of Hi storic Places in 1984.In the early twentie th centur y, Plain field e xperie nced ex pansion along i ts easte rn border. Hartong ’s Subdivision was approved on July 1, 1926, and consisted of the area bounded by Lo ckport, Miles, and Ottawa streets. Despite the later subdivision date, extant buildings from Plainfield’s earliest e ra of development still remain in this are a, even at the e asternmo st ends of both L ockport and Ottawa streets. In 1925, the library was established, with the Nimmons and McCles ter families endowing the library. Initially the library was in a small building just east of the origi nal part of the P lainfield National Bank , unti l the new library was constructed in 1941. Local builder and designer Clifton Brown con structed the Geo rgian Rev ival bui lding.105 America’s “mother road,” as author John Steinbeck c alled it, ev entuall y found its way t hrough Plainfield as other less modern trails had in the past. In 1940, an alt ernativ e route t o Route 66 ArchiSearch Historic Pr eservation Consultan ts Plai nfiel d’s Histor ic Urbaniz ed Core: An Intensi ve-Level Survey 28 offered travelers the choice o f driving to Joliet or taking the other route a little farther to the west to go to Plainfield. Both choice s in the fork in the road were sti ll Route 66, eventually linking up in Gardne r. Howeve r, since the route through Pl ainfiel d was not part of the orig inal sy stem,inaugurated in 1926, this particular spur is not widely vie wed as being particularly significant within the road’s history. In fact, The Route 66 Travele r’s Guide and Roadside Compani on by To m Synder,the founder of the Route 66 Association, doe s not even recommend follo wing this spur on a modern version of the exp erience of traveling the route.106 Into the 21 st Century Plainfield continu ed to ex perienc e industr ial growt h even after the 1960s, i ncluding Continental Ca n (later Kerr Gl ass), Mc Laughlin Manufact uring, Radi ation Po lymer, a nd the an nexatio n of the industrial park area near Van Dyke Road. Resi dential areas such as Newkirk/Pratt/Highview/Union developed in the l ate 1950 s and after, as well as o ther cul-de-sac areas such as Penn Road and Lakeside. Ar chitect urally, the per iod revival styles su ch as Tudor R evival and Colonial R evival,were supplanted by Ranch houses, ushering i n a modern era of residential c onstruction.On August 28, 1990, the Village of Plai nfield was hit by yet ano ther torn ado, its most ser ious devastation from weather. In a swath whic h cut across the southwestern sectio n of the village, just west of the Village Gree n, across James, Fox River, and Commercial stree ts, th e tornado caused extensive da mage and dem olition, including Plainfield Hi gh School. The resulting new c onstruction along James, Ottawa, and Fox River, changed the appearance and feel of that sectio n of the village,affecting historic district potential to the western extent of the village.Plainfie ld’s hi story may realistically be most affected by the current conte xt of growth and develo pment. Be tween 1990 an d 2000, the v illage ’s popul ation in creased by 186%, fro m 4,557 to 13,038. In 2002, a special census was c ompleted and the population was 21,000, prompting yet anothe r special census at the e nd of 2005. T he vil lage po pulatio n is now 30,314, with the Northeas tern Illino is Plann ing Commi ssion p rojectin g a popul ation of 65,774 for Pla infiel d by 2030. In one of these y ears alone, the vill age experience fou r tim es the number of building permits as it had extan t building s at the time.