History of Du Page County, Illinois

The following pages owe their origin primarily to a resolution of Congress, passed in 1876, recommending to the various State authorities the preparation of Centennial State Histories.

In obedience to which resolution, the Governor of Illinois requested the County Boards of the State to provide histories of their respective Counties.

At a meeting of the Board of Supervisors of DuPage County, held in June 1876, Supervisor Lakey presented the following resolution, which, on his motion, was adopted:

Resolved, That such an amount as shall be necessary, not exceeding five hundred dollars, to defray the expenses of preparing a history of the County of DuPage and the towns therein, in accordance with the proclamation of the Governor of this State, be, and the same is hereby appropriated by the Board of Supervisors.

Resolved, That said sum, or so much thereof as shall be necessary, be expended or used by the Chairman of this Board, in his discretion, who is hereby appointed a committee for that purpose and requested to make his report to the Board hereafter.

To the Board Supervisors of DuPage County —

Gentlemen: — The importance of presenting as full, complete and accurate a history of our County, from its earliest settlement to the present time, as possible within the limits contemplated by the resolution, made it necessary for me to employ some one, not having the time myself, to collect and complete said history, subject to my examination and approval, I secured the services of C.W. Richmond, Esq., for that purpose.

I have the pleasure to say that he has made a highly satisfactory compilation, which is herewith submitted in manuscript. The time spent in gathering and arranging the statistics has been more than I at first anticipated, yet I am satisfied no more time has been consumed than was necessary for the purpose.

The subjoined report of Mr. Richmond gives a general detailed plan of the history.

Very Respectfully,

Lewis Ellsworth, Chairman.
March 20th, 1877.

Hon. Lewis Ellsworth, Chairman of Board of Supervisors: — I herewith submit in manuscript a history of the county as prepared by your request. It will be observed that the plan adopted was to present:

First — An account of the early settlement, with facts and statistics relating to the several industries, schools and colleges, the organization of the county and its political history.

Second — A history of the part taken by the county in the late war, and an account of the services of the soldiers. In this connection an effort has been made to give the names of all who enlisted in the county during the war. This has involved the careful scrutiny of more than two hundred thousand names, and has resulted in bringing together for permanent record some fifteen hundred names, which were found scattered through nearly fifty regiments.

Third — A history of the several towns, with an account of their settlement and progress to the present time.

 

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DuPage County is situated in the north-eastern part of the State of Illinois. It derives its name from that of the DuPage River, a small but beautiful stream, the eastern and western branches of which, rising in the northern part of the county, unite about four miles south of its southern boundary, falling afterwards into the Des Plaines, an eastern tributary, which, in junction with the Kankakee, forms the Illinois River.

Several towns and places in the neighborhood, as well as the DuPage River, retain names seeming to mark their connection with the explorations of early Jesuit missionaries in the State, and in this portion of the country.