Naperville Parks -- Pradel Park

In completing 2018’s look at the namesakes of Naperville’s parks, let’s look at Pradel Park, named for Arthur George Pradel, Naperville’s Mayor Emeritus who passed away in September. The park is east of Route 59 and north of 111th Street and features softball fields, a playground, trails and a picnic shelter.

Father Arthur, who immigrated from Germany as a teenager, and mother Virginia bought land at Ogden and Naper Boulevard, about where the Aldi’s is now, to build themselves a house. With toddler George, they moved from Chicago and added rooms on as the family grew. George attended the one-room Bronsonville
Elementary and then Naperville Central High. His first jobs were at local grocery stores and he played in the Municipal Band. A faith-based family, they often visited orphanages and George thought he’d like to run one to care for children when he grew up.

As a young teen, George hitchhiked with a cousin to Wyoming to be a rodeo rider. After seeing cowboys thrown to the ground, they decided it was not for them, but they had a grand adventure. After graduation, he and three friends signed up for the Marines under the “buddy plan.” George served at 29 Palms in California,mainly in the motor pool.

Once back home, sister Grace and her roommate set him up with a
friend named Pat. After an awkward first meeting and a date at the stock car races, George and Pat married exactly one year later in 1960. After a couple years, George, Pat and new son George settled in Naperville where they welcomed two more children, Carol and Gary. George was working in Chicago at a warehouse during the week and volunteering with the Oak Brook Terrace police department. Pat told him that if he like police work so much, why didn’t he just be a policeman? So he attended the law enforcement program at College of DuPage and applied for a job. Unfortunately, George didn’t meet the height requirement, but board member Harold Moser figured “if he’s tall enough for the Marines, he’s tall enough for us” and he got the job. Many of Naperville’s children remember him fondly as Officer Friendly.


Although he never did run an orphanage, as a juvenile officer, George frequently brought home youngsters who needed a home. He and Pat served as long-term foster parents to three teens. To support their growing family, George and Pat ran a little hotdog stand for a while called the PowWow. It was housed in the little building that was recently Lil’ J’s Bohemia until torn down with Russell’s Dry Cleaners last year. George also made donuts at Tasty Bakery before starting his shift with the police department and delivered flowers for Trudy’s since he knew the streets so well.

When retirement arrived, George figured he’d take it easy, maybe be a Walmart greeter, but some local folks asked him to run for mayor. Since he always found it hard to say “no,” George agreed — and won. Without a lot of experience, he worked hard to get up to speed as mayor of a booming city, but his best qualities were his people skills and his enthusiasm for Naperville. He was everywhere from charity functions to ribbon cuttings to council meetings and served an unprecedented five terms as mayor.

George loved Naperville and knew it well. Pradel Park is a fitting remembrance for a man who gave so much to his city and was happy to do so.

Naperville Parks - Kendall Park

Naperville boasts an elementary school, a VFW, a street AND a park named for Oliver Julian “Judd” Kendall. As we just honored the 100th anniversary of Armistice Day, this is a perfect time to talk about Kendall Park’s namesake. 

Judd Kendall enlisted in June of 1917 and attended the Army Engineers School. In addition to his natural talents, having a father who who served as mayor of Naperville probably gave him a leg up and he soon became a First Lieutenant and intelligence officer. 

He was part of the First Division, which in May of 1918 was about to launch the first American battle of World War I in Cantigny, France. Checking up on some suspicious activity in no-man’s-land, Kendall was captured, along with maps of the planned invasion.  

Postponing the invasion was seriously considered because the German forces might now have the information needed to prepare, but the troops got the go-ahead three days later and had every advantage of surprise. Kendall had given nothing away. 

Months later, Kendall’s body was found buried behind enemy lines. He was missing teeth and his throat appeared to be cut. Kendall was 28 years old. 

World War I ended when the armistice took effect on November 11, 1918, on the "eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.” Armistice Day was a resolution by Congress in 1926 and became a national holiday in 1938. President Eisenhower changed the name to Veteran’s Day in 1954 to honor all veterans, living or dead. 

The Battle of Cantigny so affected Colonel Robert R. McCormick that he named his family’s summer home “Cantigny.” McCormick also served in the First Division and a museum honoring “The Big Red One” has been built on McCormick’s property.

Naperville’s VFW post was chartered in 1944 and almost immediately chose Kendall as their namesake. In 1997, the post started the process to honor Kendall for his valor. He was posthumously awarded the Silver Star, Purple Heart and WWI victory medal.

Kendall Park is bordered by Washington Street, 5th Avenue and the railroad tracks. It’s a lovely swath of green with a children’s playground. Just the sort of hometown scene soldiers go to war to protect.

Naperville Parks - Kroehler Park

Kroehler Park is tucked away between Wright and Sleight Streets on 5th Avenue. The park butts up against some of the properties that are part of the 5th Avenue Development currently under consideration. Also, appropriately enough, it’s just a stone’s throw away from 5th Avenue Station which was once known as the Kroehler Manufacturing Company.

The Kroehler Company was once one of the largest manufacturers of upholstered furniture in the world, employing a large percentage of Naperville’s citizens. 

Peter E. Kroehler was born in 1872 and grew up in Minnesota. His immigrant parents encouraged education and hard work and Peter made the most of that advice. 

He attended North Central College here in town when it was still known as North-Western and was a student of professor James Nichols, the library’s namesake. Nichols was also a founding partner of the Naperville Lounge Factory and they hired young Kroehler as a clerk. 

By 1896, Kroehler was one of the partners and by 1903, he was president of the company, buying out the two remaining partners. (Nichols died in 1895.) Within the next few years, Kroehler also started his own furniture manufacturing firm in Kankakee. 

By1915, he had merged the companies, along with several others he acquired, under the Kroehler Manufacturing name. While the company was dissolved in 1981, you can still purchase new furniture today with the Kroehler name. 

Not only was Kroehler a successful business man and the main employer in town, he also served two terms as Naperville’s mayor. 

The 5th Avenue Station building is actually the second furniture factory. The first was destroyed by a tornado in 1913 so Kroehler built a new one. 

In 1946, a devastating train crash occurred on the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad close to the Kroehler building, killing 45 people and injuring another 125. Kroehler employees were first on the scene and their warehouse was used as an emergency medical station. 

Kroehler park is a charming neighborhood park with play equipment for youngsters in the area. While small, Kroehler Park can claim an impressive amount of Naperville history behind its name. 

Naperville Parks - Miledje Square

Miledje Square is a pleasant little park in the Miledje Square subdivision. The 80-home community is east of Naperville North High School just off of Mill Street.

The neighborhood has an “official website” at www.miledjesquare.com, but it looks like it hasn’t been updated for a while.

Under their “About” page on the website, it says:

“Mr Miledje (pronounced Mill-Ledge) owned the property prior to Naperville being incorporated back in the late 1800s. His farm 
was called "Miledje Farm" which went from Ogden to 6th, and Mill St to Eagle.”

There doesn’t seem to be any mention of “Mr. Miledje” on either the 1869 or 1874 Naperville maps. Naperville was incorporated more than once:  as a village in 1857 and then as a city in 1890. If “the late 1800s” is a clue, that probably means when Naperville was incorporated as a city.

A search of Illinois data bases on marriages, deaths and land records didn’t turn anything up either. There  are however various spellings that might be of same name. For instance: Mlodje, Miledjie and Milledje. Unfortunately, even those names were listed as living in DuPage County but in Cook County.

It would be interesting to know more about “Mr. Miledje,” but that would take a little more investigative work! If anyone else has more information, please share so we can learn more about this little park.

Naperville Parks -- Springbrook Prairie

Springbrook Prairie sprawls between 75th and 87th Streets, enclosing both Book and Naperville-Plainfield Roads. It’s no surprise to learn that Spring Brook runs through the prairie. The vast green space includes Springbrook Prairie Forest Preserve with Springbrook Golf Course in the southwest corner.

The land on which the golf course sits was once owned by the Fraley family. Frank and Jenny Fraley were founding members of the Rural Progress Club in 1917 and raised five children on their Wheatland Township farm. It was the the first piece of property owned by the then-fledgling Park District, purchased in 1967 thanks to a matching grant from the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Anticipating the housing boom of the 1970s, the land was intended to preserve green space among new building and help control run-off and flooding. A campground was planned with a beach for swimming on a 200 acre lake shaped like a dragon. The dragon remains in the bronze map of Naperville which is embedded in the sidewalk on Jackson Avenue.

Dragon Lake never materialized, however. A “stream re-meandering” project instead created wide curves to slow water flow during heavy rains and fight erosion.

“Re-meandering” helped improve the habitat for wildlife that lives in and near the water. In fact, the Illinois Nature Preserves Commission designated the area in1993 as the Springbrook Prairie Nature Preserve and Springbrook Marsh Land and Water Reserve.

In addition to all the nature found in Springbrook Prairie, seven miles of pathways are open to joggers, bicyclists, cross-country skiers and even horseback riders. An off-leash area for dogs with valid Forest Preserve District permits is accessible from 83rd Street and there is also a model aircraft field accessible from Plainfield-Naperville Road.

Naperville Parks - Central Park

When the Napers arrived in 1831, the land was part of Cook County. In 1839, Joseph Naper was instrumental in establishing the county of DuPage with the county seat located here in Naperville. Land was set aside and $5000 raised to build a courthouse with jail cells. Outbuildings were later built for additional offices.

Over the next couple of decades, however, Wheaton’s importance grew while Naperville’s waned. Moving the county seat became a highly contentious issue that was resolved - if not amicably, at least without bloodshed - in 1868.

The courthouse was dismantled and sold as salvage. The outbuildings were taken over by the Fire Department to house their engines. And the rest of the courthouse square was improved to become a well-regarded public park.

Walkways, benches and landscaping were added. Monuments were erected such as a Civil War cannon, both Naperville and DuPage County Centennial markers and both the Soldiers and Sailors and Veterans’ Valor monuments.

Dedication for a new sculpture, a young, laughing Abraham Lincoln, is planned for September as part of Illinois’ Bicentennial.

The Fire Department moved out in 1888 which allowed for even more amenities. In the 1970s, some land was turned into parking spaces and landscaping berms were created. A shady children’s playground on one end is one of the more popular features.

The first band stand was erected in 1889 and has been reimagined several times since. The current concert and rehearsal facility was dedicated in 2003. Free concerts are held every Thursday during the summer.

Bring your family (and a picnic!) to enjoy some old-fashioned fun in lovely Central Park any Thursday during the summer and party like it's 1899.

Fourth of July for Naperville’s Founders

Joseph Naper and the first group of settlers didn’t arrive on the banks of the DuPage River until mid-July. Most likely, Naper’s family and friends marked Independence Day during their journey, perhaps even on board Naper’s schooner, the Telegraph, but mark it they surely did.

In the 1830’s people celebrated Independence Day with more enthusiasm than Christmas. Puritan reaction to wanton revelry at Christmas – so extreme they even outlawed mincemeat pie! – passed through successive generations of New Englanders, not to be relieved until the middle of the nineteenth century. But the young United States of America began celebrating July 4 by 1777, years before the War for Independence actually ended.

Even the earliest celebrations featured firecrackers, as well as the firing of guns and the ringing of bells to punctuate a spirited reading of the Declaration of Independence. After the war, festivities grew ever more extravagant, following President John Adams conviction that “it ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more.”

Naper built, owned or captained several ships before the Telegraph, several of them sailing regularly out of Buffalo, New York. A Buffalo Historical Society publication recounts the city’s celebrations on July 4, 1828, which Naper may have attended with his family.

The day started at the Eagle Tavern, where “the uniformed companies of the village were ordered out” to escort the mayor and city officials to the Brick Church, accompanied by “the Buffalo Village Band playing patriotic airs.” At the church, the Declaration was read aloud and an oration was given by a local reverend. Then the parade continued to the Mansion House, another tavern, where dinner was served.

But the Mansion House didn’t host the only party. Villagers also celebrated at other public houses, cruised on a lake steamboat, attended one of two concerts, danced at a ball, and marveled at the fireworks display in Mr. Basker’s public garden. And all of this was “less elaborate” than the originally planned celebrations, abandoned, according to the local newspaper, because of “the indifference that was manifested to the proposed arrangements.”

One reason Independence Day celebrations became so grand was to overshadow commemorations of George Washington’s birthday. While he was much beloved as a war hero and our first President, celebrating his birthday smacked of “monarchical” traditions and was unacceptable to Democratic Republicans. The Fourth of July served the celebratory purpose in a more politically correct way.

No party is complete without a feast and Independence Day celebrations often included “much drinking of spirits, and eating of unwholesome food,” as an 1836 publication for the edification of juveniles put it. Toasts were drunk to each of the original thirteen states, then the newer states, then the President, then the Congress, then – well, once they got going, they kept it up until the whiskey ran out.

Orations provided entertainment, a political forum and food for thought. Chief Black Hawk’s final public appearance was on a Fourth of July in 1838 at Fort Madison, Iowa. Over 180 years ago, Black Hawk attempted to regain control of tribal land in northern Illinois. Defeated, his people were forcibly relocated across the Mississippi River and were not even considered U.S. citizens until the next century. The words he spoke that day, however, are eloquent reminders to us in northern Illinois as we celebrate this year’s Fourth of July:

“[It} was beautiful country. I loved my towns, my cornfields, and the home of my people. It is yours now. Keep it as we did." 


Sources:
Letter from John Adams to Abigail Adams, 3 July 1776, "Had a Declaration..." [electronic edition]. Adams Family Papers: An Electronic Archive. Massachusetts Historical Society.

Juvenile Celebration of Independence. Parley's Magazine, August 1836, pp. 250-251

Fourth of July speech at Fort Madison, Iowa. Alexandria Gazette, 7 August 1838, 2
http://www.madison.k12.wi.us/blackhawk/bio.htm

Bingham, Robert W.  The cradle of the queen city : a history of Buffalo to the incorporation of the city Buffalo, N.Y.: Buffalo Historical Society, 1931, 535 pgs.

Naperville Parks - The Wil-O-Ways

Two parks bear the name “Wil-O-Way,” with one distinguished as “Wil-O-Way Commons.” Both are also situated on Jefferson Avenue within the Wil-O-Way subdivision.

As you might imagine, the parks are named for the subdivision — and the subdivision is named for the dairy farm on which the subdivision was built.

George and Dorothy Polivka raised Guernsey cows, starting the Wil-O-Way Farm Dairy in the late 1930s. In 1945, the Polivkas purchased Oakhurst, a gracious home built in 1847 that adjoined their farm. They changed the name of the house to Wil-O-Way.

Naperville’s first big building boom arrived in the 1960s and the Polivka family rolled with the times. Their farmland became the Wil-O-Way subdivision and son James Polivka opened Wil-O-Way Manor restaurant in the family home. Today, the house is known as Meson Sabika.

The Wil-O-Way subdivision was built in several phases, starting in 1967, and is situated on either side of Jefferson Avenue and River Road, about a mile west of downtown Naperville.

Rumor has it that the land on which Wil-O-Way Park sits was reserved as a possible elementary school site, anticipating continued population growth.

Today, the park features a children’s playground, basketball nets and a baseball diamond.

Wil-O-Way Commons Park runs along the DuPage River. There is a children’s playground at this location as well.

In 2011, there was a groundbreaking ceremony for the West Branch Riverway Trail that runs through Wil-O-Way Commons.

The Riverway Trail starts across Jefferson Avenue where the Riverwalk ends and continues under Ogden Avenue to connect up with McDowell Grove Forest Preserve. The
Riverway Trail is maintained as a cooperative effort between the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County, the City of Naperville and the Naperville Park District.

Naperville Parks -- The Riverwalk

The DuPage isn't a super impressive river. It's not deep enough for commercial transportation. When the Napers arrived, they had to dam it to make a pond to run lumber and grain mills. Today, of course, Naperville is well-known for its beautiful and bustling Riverwalk.

Eventually, the mill pond dam was removed and the city grew. Too shallow for commercial transportation, land near the river attracted businesses that didn’t mind the threat of floods
such as storage lots, junkyards and gas stations. Mayor Emeritus Pradel remembers guys from his youth driving their cars into the river to wash them, a story commemorated in one of the Century Walk murals.

As the Naperville’s 150th anniversary approached, civic leaders took a fresh look at the river running through downtown. Inspired by the riverwalk in San Antonio, Texas, they wondered if building something like it here would bring shoppers back from the new mall that had opened on Route 59 in Aurora.

Fundraising started in 1980 and folks donated both money and in-kind materials. A timely slowdown in the economy prompted businesses to contribute skilled construction crews as well. Anniversary fervor provided even more hours of unskilled volunteer labor.

The banks of the river were cleaned of trash. The ground was cleared, graded and planted. Paths were marked out and bricks laid. Lighting, bridges and fountains were installed. The Free Speech Pavillion, right across from the library, was built on the foundation of an old gas station.

These first two blocks of the Riverwalk were officially presented to Naperville’s citizens during the 175th Anniversary celebrations in June of 1981. Since then, it has expanded west, east and south, giving folks 1.75 beautiful miles to stroll, run on and enjoy year round.

Naperville Parks - The Pioneers

Some of Naperville’s parks are named in honor of our city’s earliest history.

Pioneer Park, which is a popular stretch of woods along the DuPage River near 75th Street, is “dedicated with grateful reverence to the pioneer men and women of DuPage County.” The monument, which includes two millstones, is erected on land that belonged to the Hobson family, but on the other side of the river is Bailey Hobson Woods Park, named specifically for them.

The Hobsons arrived in the area just months before the Napers. Bailey and wife Clarissa ran a grist mill along the river. Since mills were few and far between in the early years, farmers might hang around for days waiting for their turn to have their corn ground. The Hobson home then served as a tavern and hotel as well. The Hobson homestead was eventually annexed into the city, retroactively making them the earliest inhabitants of Naperville.

Farther south past 104th Street is a park called the Clow Creek Greenway, named for another early family.

Robert Clow emigrated with his children from Scotland to New York and eventually to Illinois. Between Robert, his six sons and his two daughters, the Clow land once encompassed a full square mile.

Located in Will County, most of the Clow dairy farm has over the years become homes. Fortunately, some of the old farmstead has been preserved. The mid-1800 Limestone House was moved to McDonald Farm and is now part of the Riverview Farmstead Preserve. Also on-site are two old barns as well as the Conservation Foundation and The Green Earth Institute.

Just last month, the City Council approved a plan that will build houses on one of the last tracts of the Clow farm. Ninety-six-year-old Betty Clow sold thirty-some acres to a local builder that included a couple of 150-year-old limestone houses. It’s been determined that the structures are not sound enough to be saved, but the builder plans to reuse the stone in a monument commemorating the Clow family. 

Perhaps the monument will be in a new neighborhood park.

Naperville Parks -- Named for Community Women

As March is Women’s History Month, let’s look at the women for whom these three Naperville parks are named.

A neighborhood park near North Central College is named for Sally Benton. Benton and husband Lou were very involved in community pursuits such as the Heritage Society. In the early years, the Bentons chaired an annual Antiques  Show that raised funds for what would become the Naper Settlement.

Benton’s sudden passing while helping to develop this park prompted the dedication in her name.

Dorthea Weigand swears in Commissioner Ward Shiffler

Dorothea Weigand was another local who devoted herself to community service.  She served as secretary to the Mayor, to the City Clerk, to the Plan Commission and to the Police and Fire board. She was herself named Naperville City Clerk from 1959-1963 and was the only woman on the first Board of Park Commissioners when the Park District was formed in 1966.

A lovely swath of park on south Washington Street along the DuPage River is named for Weigand.

May Watts Park adjoins May Watts School and both are named for the woman who started the “rails to trails” movement that includes our local Prairie Path.

Watts was an educator, scientist and author who collaborated with famed landscape architect Jens Jensen, spent years working at the Morton Arboretum and published botany books with husband Raymond.

It was after her retirement from the Arboretum that she inspired the movement to retain old, unused railroad tracks as green spaces for hiking and biking.

Watts was 70 years old in 1963 when she wrote a letter to the editor at the Chicago Tribune laying out her plan for the Chicago, Aurora and Elgin railroad right of way, launching a movement that continues to spread across the nation and the world.

Naperville Parks - Recent Names

We are lucky to have a number of neighborhood parks and fields to enjoy. Park names refer to many aspects of the our city’s history. These four parks honor four figures from recent times.

A. George Pradel park was dedicated in 1999 on the south side of town. (The “A” stands for “Arthur,” as  he was named for his father.) Pradel served five terms as mayor, from 1995 until 2015, the longest service in our history.

In addition to mayor, Pradel also served as a Naperville police officer starting in 1966 and was Officer Friendly to many local kids when he became the first Safety Town teacher in 1977. Known now as “Mayor Emeritus,” Pradel is still active in our community.

Harris Fawell park is located near 75th Street and Route 59. It was also dedicated in 1999 to honor Fawell who served in the Illinois Senate from 1963 to 1977 and then in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1984 until 1999.

Fawell graduated from North Central College before pursuing his law degree and today his Congressional papers are held on campus. Now retired, Fawell still calls Naperville home.

The Bill Young athletic fields are on West Street near Central High School and are used for Park District and school athletic programs.

Young is an appropriate namesake since he served both as a Park District Commissioner and as Park District Police Chief. In addition, Young was also a dean and wrestling coach at the nearby high school. Young passed away in 2014 and the park honoring him was dedicated in 2016.

In the same area are the Ron Ory Community Garden Plots, renamed in 2015. After 21 years in the Army, Ory retired and started working for the Park District’s golf courses where he learned about the garden plots and got interested in gardening.

His interest was serious enough to earn an associate degree from College of DuPage and then get certified by the University of Illinois Master Gardener program. In 2013, he was also certified as a Master Naturalist.

In addition to his own personal gardening, for several years Ory led the group who work the Master Gardener plots. The Master Gardners provide Loaves & Fishes with fresh produce every year for their clients. You might run into Ory if you stop by this park during the growing season!

Naperville Parks - The Burlingtons

Our community is blessed with a number of parks, forest preserves and other green spaces. The names of these parks reflect their attributes or their developers or our local history. Since the significance of a park’s name can be lost as our population grows and ages, over the coming months we’ll highlight a few parks as a reminder. 

There are two parks named for the Burlington Northern Railway Company. As you might imagine, both will be found along the tracks. 

Burlington Square is a small park right in front of the 5th Avenue station. It features a statue of an American “doughboy” from World War I. Through the years since the War to End All Wars, the doughboy got a little beat up and had his rifle stolen, but the Century Walk art group restored him 2003 and placed him in Burlington Square. 

There’s also a Burlington Park between the railway and the DuPage River. Currently, Burlington Park in under the care of the DuPage Forest District — again.

A referendum was passed in 1966 to create the Naperville Park District and in 1969, the Park District took over several Forest Preserve properties, including Burlington. The lease just lapsed in 2016, giving the park back to the Forest Preserve. 

Originally, Burlington Park was a holiday destination created by the railway late in the 19th century. Chicago city folk could take the train out into the country during hot summers to picnic and party. The DuPage River was dammed to make a lake for boating and dancing, concerts and ball games were also offered. Revelers often brought kegs of beer with them or visited the town saloons. By 1899, Naperville’s citizens had had enough of those shenanigans and the park was closed. 

In 1920, Naperville’s Association of Commerce, the forerunner of our current Chamber, worked with the Chicago Burlington and Quincy Railroad to purchase the property for Naperville’s citizens as part of the DuPage Forest Preserve District.