Glen Ellyn Downtown South Historic District facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Glen Ellyn Downtown South Historic District
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Old Glen Ellyn Junior High School
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 Location in Illinois
Location in the United States
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| Location | Main & Duane Sts., Hillside Ave. Glen Ellyn, DuPage County, Illinois, U.S. |
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| Architectural style | Classical Revival, Late Gothic Revival, Tudor Revival, Spanish Colonial Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 13000717 |
| Added to NRHP | September 18, 2013 |
The Glen Ellyn Downtown South Historic District is a special area in Glen Ellyn, Illinois, United States. It's like a time capsule showing how the town grew, especially in the 1920s. Many of the buildings here show popular building styles from the early 1900s. It's a place where history comes alive through old buildings!
A Look Back in Time
Glen Ellyn, Illinois, started to be settled way back in the 1830s. At first, places like Stacy's Tavern helped travelers on stagecoach routes. Then, in 1849, the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad opened a train station nearby. This helped the area grow.
The part of town north of the tracks, called the Downtown North area, began to develop first. South of the tracks, the first non-home building was the Duane Street School in 1859. In 1891, the town changed its name to Glen Ellyn. This happened because a fancy resort, the Glen Ellyn Hotel & Springs Company, opened by a nearby lake. The resort made the town seem like a perfect suburb, which encouraged more people to move there.
Growing the Town Center
In the early 1900s, Glen Ellyn grew very fast. The town's main shopping area started to expand south of the train tracks. The Methodist Episcopal Church was built in 1913, though it was later replaced in 1957.
The first business building in this district was finished in 1923 for I. M. Block. In 1928, a Piggly Wiggly grocery store opened in the Rohm Building. One of the biggest new buildings was the three-story Glen Ellyn Junior High School. It was built in 1929 and took the place of the old Duane Street School.
Building Styles You Can See
The Glen Ellyn Downtown South Historic District has twenty buildings. Almost all of them are important to its history. Only one building, built in 1972, doesn't quite fit in.
The buildings in this district show off several cool architectural styles from the early 20th century. Here are some of the styles you might spot:
- Classical Revival: This style uses ideas from ancient Greek and Roman buildings. Think of grand, formal designs. The Glen Ellyn Junior High School, built in 1929, is a great example of this style.
- Tudor Revival: This style looks like old English Tudor homes. It often has steep roofs, decorative half-timbering, and tall, narrow windows. Buildings like the Rohm Building and the F. T. Tomlins Building show this style.
- Spanish Colonial Revival: This style brings in elements from Spanish architecture, often with stucco walls, red tile roofs, and arched doorways. You can see this at 427 North Main Street.
- Late Gothic Revival: This style is inspired by medieval Gothic churches, with pointed arches and detailed stonework. The First Methodist Episcopal Church, built in 1957, shows this style.
- Chicago School: This style often features steel-frame construction, large windows, and simple, strong designs. Buildings at 429-433 North Main Street and 443-449 North Main Street are examples.
These different styles make the district a fun place to explore and see how architecture changed over time!
