Elgin Historic District facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Elgin Historic District
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World War I memorial in Davidson Park, at the corner of Villa and Prairie Streets.
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 Location in Illinois
Location in the United States
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| Location | Roughly bounded by Villa, Center, Park, N. Liberty, and S. Channing Sts., Elgin, Illinois |
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| Area | 206 acres (83 ha) |
| Architectural style | Greek Revival, Gothic Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 83000318 |
| Added to NRHP | May 9, 1983 |
The Elgin Historic District is a special area in Elgin, Illinois. It has 697 buildings, and 429 of them are important because they show the area's history. This district is the oldest part of Elgin. You'll find many old homes and churches here. Other cool buildings include an art museum, a masonic temple, and the Elgin Academy. The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. Some buildings in the district were already famous on their own, like the Elgin Academy, the First Universalist Church, and the Gifford-Davidson House.
Discovering Elgin's Past
The first people to settle in Elgin, Illinois arrived in April 1835. A man named James Talcott Gifford built his cabin where a park now stands. Two years later, a dam was built, and the first map of Elgin was made in August 1842.
Gifford helped create important roads. One road went east from Elgin to a place called Meacham's Grove. Another went west to Belvidere. These roads connected Elgin to bigger cities like Chicago and Galena. This route became a very important path for stagecoaches.
Elgin's first school opened in 1847. Gifford also built a second home in 1850. This house is special because it's made of cobblestones. It looks like houses from his home state of New York. This house is so important that it's listed on the National Register of Historic Places by itself.
Elgin's Growth and Industries
In 1850, Elgin got a connection to the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad. This train line helped the city send goods to other places. Elgin soon became a major supplier of dairy products, like milk and butter, to Chicago.
The Elgin Academy, a famous school, was finished in 1856. It's also listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
A very important invention came to Elgin in the 1860s. Gail Borden, Jr., who invented condensed milk, opened the world's largest condensed milk factory in Elgin. This brought many jobs to the city.
Elgin's first bank opened in 1865. Later, in 1872, the Elgin Board of Trade was created. Their job was to set the national price for butter!
Another big industry came to Elgin in 1867. The Elgin National Watch Company opened its doors. This company became the biggest maker of pocket watches in the country. By 1890, it employed 2,700 people in Elgin. The company's superintendent, George Hunter, helped design the First Universalist Church. This church is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Famous speakers like Lincoln Steffens and Norman Thomas visited this church.
New Buildings and Art
The D. C. Cook Publishing Company, a large publishing house, moved to Elgin from Chicago. This also created more jobs.
Many German immigrants moved to Elgin, and they built a German Evangelical church in 1892. It was built in a style called Richardsonian Romanesque.
In 1924, the freemasons built a large stone temple on Chicago Street. It could hold 2,500 people! Also in 1924, the Laura Davidson Sears Academy of Fine Arts opened. This museum had amazing artworks by famous American artists like John Singleton Copley and John James Audubon.
The Elgin Historic District was officially added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 9, 1983.
