Grand Prairie railways shaped Chicago Southland growth
In 1823 Lewis Beck mapped the Grand Prairie south of Chicago, noting sparse settlement. By 1895 rail lines filled the region, turning grassy prairie into industrial suburbs. The Illinois Central and subsequent networks spurred farms to markets, towns like Kankakee Joliet and Chicago Heights, and commuter corridors. Dr. McClellan explains ongoing railroad impact in a monthly column for TimeFrame.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
New York City
Lewis Caleb Beck
Illinois
Chicago
Lake Michigan
Grand Prairie
Cook County
Will and
Kankakee
Beck
Illinois Central
The
Railway
Southland
Joliet
Chicago Heights
McClellan
St. Paul Community Church
Homewood
the Star
Otto Blvd
Harvey Land Association
Harvey
Rookery
LaSalle Street
Harvey Bank
Beecher museum earns national award for Fifth Anniversary Show
Washington Township Beecher Museum, recognized by the American Association for State and Local History, for its 1994 exhibition The Ehrhardt family donated this Civil War commemorative window. The award highlights local history preservation and interpretation with a ceremonial Sept presentation in Saratoga Springs New York.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Beecher
Washington Township
American Association For State and Local History
Ehrhardt
Virginia Bath
AASSH
Saratoga Springs
N.Y
Bath
Beecher Museum
Association of Illinois Museums and Historical Societies
Beecher School
August Ehrhardt
Vivian Ehrhardt Wehrenkamp
Beecher Community Historical Society
Grand Army of the Republic
Will County
Beecher Community Library
Russell Bath
Arnold Cooper
Jeanne Cooper
Art Institute of Chicago
Indiana Jones generation strikes pay dirt in Illinois
Sylvia Davis and 41 SIUC field school students uncover Mississippian village remains on a Union County hilltop. The site yields chert hoes, pottery shards, billet tool fragments, a deer mandible and hundreds of chipped flakes. SIUC leads with NSF and National Geographic support. artifacts will be cataloged under federal guidelines.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Illinois
Sylvia Davis
Shawnee National Forest
Davis
Tennessee State University
Southern Illinois University At
Carbondale
Union County
Charles R. Cobb
SIUC
Oklahoma
West Virginia
Michigan
Alabama
Cobb
State University of New York At
Binghamton
National Geographic Society
National Science Foundation
Drew M. Jonas
Chicago
Hyde Park
SIAC
Center For Archaeological Investigations
Also Mentioned on This Page
Larry McClellan
National Historical Unit
Paula Anderson
Comfortmaker
MINTO
Chicaae
Eis. Chicasy
Worlits Luma
Orl Eynk
Harve
EPA
Division of Water Pollution Control
Churchill Road
P.O. Box
Springfield
Thorn Creek Basin
S.D
Thorn Creek
West End Dr
NPDES
ASB
Regency Savings Bank
Flossmoor
Clecasse
FDIC
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!