This is just the beginning! Our collection holds over 300 years of history, including rare newspapers, obituaries, marriage records, birth records, and so much more—most of which you won’t find anywhere else!
Snowbound Christmas of 1950 reshaped Oak Park holidays
A nine-inch storm on Christmas Day 1950 left drifts, blocked roads, jammed phones, and stalled plows in Oak Park. Yet children welcomed sleds and skates as merchants boosted sales with new televisions. Local groups hosted charity events, parks hosted ice skating, and the district held a flower show. The year saw wage raises, a draft holiday, a court payout over a hole accident, and CTA trains still bound to ground operations. Concordia Teachers College reported record enrollment of 559 students amid a nationwide Lutheran college surge.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Oak Park
Lyon and Healy
Trage Bros
RCA
Kiwanis
Oak Park Arms Hotel
Rotary Club
Hines
Vaughan
Scoville Park
B.L. Smith
Oak Park River Forest High School
Board of Education
Oak Park Selective Service Board
Margaretta Pierson
Selective Service
Chicago
Madison Street
Humphrey
Austin
John Petermann
CTA
Central Avenue
Kenilworth and
Lake
Garfield Line
Oak Park Avenue
Concordia Teachers College
United States