Ashelford Hall facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Ashelford Hall
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Ashelford Hall from the west side, the apex of the triangular shape. Note the exterior deterioration.
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| Location | 566 Eychaner Rd, Esmond, DeKalb County, Illinois, USA |
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| Built | 1925 |
| Architect | William Henry Ashelford (Builder) |
| Architectural style | Early Commercial |
| NRHP reference No. | 95000990 |
| Added to NRHP | August 4, 1995 |
Ashelford Hall is an old building in the small town of Esmond, Illinois. It was built in 1925 in western DeKalb County, Illinois, United States. This special building has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1995. Today, people own it privately and mostly use it for storage. Not long ago, it was a store that sold old and interesting items called antiques.
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History of Ashelford Hall
This unique building is made of stone blocks and has a triangle shape. It was built in 1925 near the railroad tracks that go through Esmond. For its first few years, it was a meeting place for a group called the South Grove Grange. The Grange is a group for farmers. They met there for a few years. Then, in 1933, they moved their meetings to the town hall in Creston, which is in Ogle County.
More recently, the building was an antique store. Pam Cunningham ran the store. It closed when she passed away in April 2005. She lived in Fairdale, Illinois.
Early Days of the Hall
The Men's Club
When Ashelford Hall was built in 1925, it was a very important place in Esmond. It was used for many things, like fun events, games, and meetings. On February 17, 1928, a group called the Esmond Men's Community Club started meeting there. The club helped other groups in the community. It also helped the men of Esmond become friends. The men's club met at Ashelford Hall every third Friday of the month. They met there for 24 years. In 1951, a new school was built in Esmond, and the club moved its meetings there.
Three important businessmen from Esmond helped start the club. They were William Greenwood, who worked at the Esmond State Bank, N.T. Gottschall, the pastor at Esmond Methodist Church, and Raymond Duell, the station agent at the Esmond Chicago Great Western train station. Many people came to the club's first meeting. Fifty-two people joined as the first members. Emmett Rand was chosen as the club president. Greenwood became the vice president. Duell was elected secretary-treasurer and kept that job until 1967.
The club later helped organize a popular Fourth of July celebration and picnic. They also helped the community in other important ways. Since 1925, a generator at Ashelford Hall had provided power to the main buildings in Esmond. In the 1930s, the men's club worked hard to bring electricity to Esmond. This meant the generator at Ashelford Hall was no longer needed. The Esmond Men's Community Club stopped meeting on December 11, 1974. Four of the original members were still part of the club when it ended.
Fun and Entertainment
From the very beginning, Ashelford Hall was a community center and a place for fun. In the 1920s, a community orchestra played music at the building. They performed for different community and Grange events. The orchestra stopped playing in the 1930s. But the hall still hosted many fun events. Things like Vaudeville shows, medicine shows, parties, and wedding receptions were all held at Ashelford Hall in its first 20 years. The second floor became known as a dance hall. On weekends, local bands and orchestras would play music. People from Esmond and nearby towns would gather at the hall to dance and have fun.
The South Grove Grange
The South Grove Grange No. 1838 started in 1925. Several members from another Grange group in DeKalb County helped start it. F.A. Jones from Peoria, Illinois also helped. The Grange meetings were held at Ashelford Hall. Farmers who were members of the Grange met there. They talked about new ways to farm and how the farming market was doing. They also watched demonstrations of new product demonstrations. In 1929, a Grange group for younger people was started. By the early 1930s, the adult Grange had 72 members. This made it the largest Grange group in DeKalb County.
Images for kids
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The interior stairwell, Ashelford Hall.
