Notable Township Developments

The Important News

of Old Lake View 

One of the local newspapers of the day

image - Ravenswood-Lake View Community Collection

The Township/City (1857-89)
The Township Borders

Van Vechten's map of 1870

Another Lake View Township map with link below

highlighting important areas and streets, if zoomed, in 1879

a development map below

University of Chicago Map 1863-1879

highlights significant areas of development such as the community of Pine Grove (Addison to Irving Park Road)

Sunnyside (Roadhouse) Inn - photo 1890
one of first notable resorts/hotels in the mid 19th century besides the Lake View House/Hotel
1887 Sanborn Fire Map location view

Like the Lake View Hotel, this 'Inn' was meant to attracted Chicagoans to the new township that would be free of Chicago's regulations for vice and real estate transactions.

An Account of the Beginnings
History of Cook County, Illinois 
by A.T. Andreas 1884

"When a number of citizens principally residents of Andersonville and vicinity assembled at the school house which had lately been completed to make arrangements for holding the first township election of Lake View they had unconsciously perhaps commenced to make history for the future I.S. Shippy was moderator of that meeting and John Mauritzen clerk. It was resolved that the election be held April 7 1857 and that $175 be raised for town expenses. The old school house just mentioned still stands at the extreme northeasterly corner of the subdivision called Andersonville. There was something of a contest between Robert Edson and S.H. Kerfoot candidates for the office of Supervisor and both of them filed their certificates of election but Mr. Edson was finally successful. Sixty-four votes were cast. Supervisor Edson feeling no doubt elevated at his good proceeded to purchase the first record book of Lake View wherein to enter the doings of moment had transpired and those which were to happen exact time when Mr Edson reached down into his pocket to accomplish this matter is fixed by an which still appears on the fly leaf of the musty and which reads in this wise. Bought June 16 1857 by Robert Edson Supervisor of Lake View Township. Price $2.50 Dedicated to the Township Clerk of Lake View Township. The town then the township of Lake View was organized under its charter in February 1865. The act was approved by Governor Oglesby on the 16th of that month."

Township Officials
image - Citizen Participation Institute
most of these positions have not changed since the early days of America's townships

THE TOWNSHIP TIMELINE

1854  A Chicago surveyor and real estate developer invest in the Township of Lake View with his Lake View friend Elisha Hundley marketing their 'resort house' to Chicagoans. Elisha's residence would be later coined by a visitor as 
The Lake View Hotel.

This article below tells a tale of the first evening at the  Lake View Hotel - the old Huntley House 

1857 Lake View Township (p.709) was established on February 17th and then by election in April 17th in a school house in Andersonville with 64 male votes cast. Before that date the southern portion of Evanston Township and northern part of North Chicago Township were combined and known as Ridgeville Township (1850-1857). The townships were formed so to organize local administration and for the establishment of school districts. The first political districts were the following - the later to expand to seven districts by 1887 with the formation of Lake View as a city.

below image - Lake View Saga 1847-1985

The State of the Country at the Time

The Civil War:
1861-1865
Lake View's Camp Fry
(1864-1865)

image - LibGuides for Library Schools
Three states remained as slave states

“Pile on the rails! Come, comrades, all, We'll sing a song to-night; To-morrow, when the bugles call, Be ready for the fight. Be ready then with loud hurrah To battle or to die; When Grant shall yield, the Northern star Will fade from out the sky. Hurrah ! hurrah ! hurrah ! Before us lies the rebel host, Their watch-fires we can see; We laugh to hear the traitor boast Of Southern victory. Three cheers for Grant, and one more cheer, Until the woods ring back!”

- The Song of Grant’s Soldiers from a 1864 Harper Weekly

Before war the area was known as Wrights Woods; during the war Camp Fry all once along 
Diversey/Broadway/Clark intersection

Township of Lake View in the Civil War

The State of Illinois contributed 250 thousands soldiers to the Union Army (1861-65); initially 500 hundred from Cook County (Lake View Township was part of). These volunteers mostly served in the Western Theater (primarily along the Mississippi River). The most important battles of that theater were the critical battles of Shiloh, Stone’s River, Chickamauga and the siege of Vicksburg. 

 Read more about

The township government of Lake View hosted an encampment during the last year of the war called Camp Fry. Camp Fry (1864-1865) was a muster camp that gathered and trained residents of the area and apparently was a POW camp during the American Civil War. It was located at the intersection of Broadway Avenue (this street was a simple wooden plank path called Lake View or Lake Shore Plank Road), Green Bay Road (Clark Street), and Diversey (Avenue) Parkway – all known during this era as Wright Grove/Woods. The Township of Lake View was established by the State of Illinois seven years earlier in 1857. 

the major battles of the war - red stars

image - Pinterest

According to my online research most of the troops were mustered as Illinois Volunteer Regiment Infantries to be later federalized when Camp Fry was established in 1864. According to my research the troops mustered a the camp could have been been involved in the the ‘Forrest's Defense of Mississippi’ in June-August 1864. This series of battles wins allowed the Union forces protection from Confederate raiders against General Sherman’s drive to Atlanta. The federalize infantry regiments that were mustered from Camp Fry were the following: 132nd Regiment, 134th Regiment Infantry,and the 156th Regiment Infantry among a few. Among the residents of Lake View Township that were mustered from Camp Fry were two brothers, Charles and George Catlin of the 134th. Charles was 20 years old when he entered Camp Fry while George was 22 years old - both born in Carlinville, Illinois – both survived and mustered out 100 days later - length of service at that time.

Report of the Adjutant of Illinois 

Mustered pages that have residents of Lake View Township 

- the Catlin Brothers mentioned. One was a corporal and the other a private in Company D of the 134th Illinois Regiment

 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry drilling at Columbus, Kentucky via the Library of Congress 

An Account of 156th Illinois Regiment 

of Camp Fry by Stephen E. Osman

a Paper Albumin emailed to me in 2018

Camp Fry in Wright Woods/Grove

now the Diversey/Clark/Broadway intersection area

photo copy sent to me by Stephen E. Osman

 (who is a Civil War historian from Minnesota)

The 156th Illinois Volunteer Infantry was a one-year regiment and the last Illinois infantry unit raised for the Civil War.  It was formed at Camp Fry in late February and early March 1865. Once uniformed, equipped, armed and given some basic drill instruction the regiment took trains to the Nashville area where it was broken into small commands to guard the strategic railroads outside that fortress city.  The regiment returned to Illinois in September to be mustered out. This paper albumin photograph originated in the estate of Marcus L. Bosworth, a private in Company F.  Inscribed on the back in very faded pencil is Bosworth’s signature, “Company Picture” and “March 1865.”  Company F was composed of many men from Kane and Kankakee Counties; Bosworth himself was from Manteno.  Following a January 19, 1865 order from Illinois Governor Oglesby Camp Fry was designated an additional camp of rendezvous, and recruits from the first, second, third and sixth congressional districts were to muster there. There is little published information on the mustering and service of this final 1865 unit.  But the Chicago Tribune has been digitized by the Library of Congress on their Chronicling America website.  A search for 156th Illinois, and then Camp Fry confirmed their service there.  On the evening of March 15, 1865, the nearly 1,000 men of the 156th marched out of Camp Fry in a pouring rainstorm to begin their six months of service in the south.  The barrack in the background was no doubt occupied by Company F.  Each vertical board and batten wood frame quarters for a 100-man company had a tar-paper roof and no insulation.  Inside were triple tier bunks, each shared by two men, plus tables and benches. Poorly heated by coal stoves, the barracks must have been drafty and miserable in late winter 1865.  Most of the men are still wearing their overcoats in this early March photo.  Surprisingly many appear to be wearing mounted pattern boots rather than the laced ankle bootie typically issued to infantrymen.  Their uniforms and equipment are new; canteen straps have not yet been shortened and only a couple men have substituted felt hats for the just issued forage cap.  Only two men carry their muskets and they were probably detailed for armed service that day but wanted to be in the photo with their comrades.  The company officers – Captain Henry J. Allen probably flanked by Lieutenants William E. Craib and Narcisse Reeves – are front and center. Scholars are fortunate that one private in that company saved this unique photograph that documents the Civil War camp in Wright’s Grove – now the intersection of Clark, Broadway & Diversey. 

Other News 

Between the years 1859-64 several cemeteries were established along Green Bay Road (Clark Street). 
Rose Hill Cemetery was the first. 

a view of the Northwestern Railroad lines leading to the entrance of RoseHill cemetery. Other cemeteries would be established in the 1860's that would include Graceland, Boniface, and others along this railway or Clark Street.

1863  Rails for the horse drawn public transportation laid on Evanston Avenue (Broadway) from Diversey to Graceland Avenue (Irving Park Road). In 1896, as part of the City of Chicago, this segment of road was converted to electric powered streetcars.

1864  Township School #1 was established to be later known as Nettelhorst School. During the Civil War a military muster (recruitment camp) was established in the area of Diversey, Clark, and Broadway Avenues at the once Wright Grove subdivision called Camp Fry. It also served as a stockade for Confederate POWs from 1864 to the end of the war. The steam engine 'dummy' a form of steam powered means of public transportation replaces the horse drawn carriage on Evanston Avenue only to be reverted back to horse drawn after years of public dissatisfaction.

1865  Lake View Township was finally a functional chartered entity with elected township officials.

1866  The Board of Health was established as well as the police force consisting of 4 constables.

1868  Ravenswood Land Company plans an upper class development along Little Fort Road (Lincoln Avenue). 

Also, 1868 a well-known conservative newspaper, Chicago Tribune, article reported acts of drunken "debauchery" in German beer gardens. The most famous beer garden in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in the city was the Bismarck Gardens established in 1892 located on the corner of Halsted, Broadway, and Grace Avenues.

photo - University of Alabama Digital Maps

1869  The Lincoln Park Commission was established by the State of Illinois so that the commissioners of both the City of Chicago and the Township of Lake View to share are responsibility for the new park along the lakefront. The border of the township was Fullerton Avenue at the time. 

Also, view a map of the area for that year

1870   Lake View Township chartered its first post office to be located at the Old Town Hall building on Addison and Halsted Streets with a map of the township that year. The population of the township was 1,841 folks.

1871    General civic discussion in the town

Also, 1871 petitions for street improvements

Note: Reference to 'town' in articles meant 'township'. 

1871  October 8th through the 10th of that month
 The Great Chicago Fire stops just beyond the border with Chicago on the north side of Fullerton Avenue.

The shaded area indicate the fires reach - 1871 map
University of Chicago Digital Map Collection, zoomed

photo via Chicagology
An Account of the Fire
In 1911 'The Story of Chicago' by Jenne Hall was published. Her book about the City of Chicago as she knew it was also about the fire she knew first hand. 
She devoted an entire chapter on the fire.

This book is part of my personal collection

The only house aflamed in the township

According to the Hidden Truth via the Chicago Daily News dated 10/11/71 " Just here it may be interesting to state that at the same hour, the flames caught John A. Huck’s house, beyond the city limits & located in Lake View Township 

(north of Fullerton Ave was the border) and it was the last house destroyed." According to Chicagology, by 1871 the J.A. Huck Brewery had become one of the largest breweries in the country, both destroyed - the only house destroyed in Lake View Township.

The Day After

The following is another account of the fire that nearly placed the citizens of Lake View at risk and the horrors for Chicagoans who traveled north. This account was published in 1872 and the book is part of my collection

1873  Establishment of Lake View Township (Civic) building to be later referred to as The Town Hall and later in the 20th century the 46th district police district. Police and the post office were located in the same building. Also in that year, township residents discussed annexation to the City of Chicago 16 years before the official annexation of 1889. That meeting was so disorganized that the group could not appoint a permanent chairman for future meetings.

 
1893 photo - Art Institute of Chicago

This building housed the post office, police, township/city council

enlarge photo without the staircase
University of Illinois-Urban/Champaign

 a 1887 Sanborn Fire Map of the area

Caption: "Town Hall of the former city of Lake View: Built in 1872 at a cost of seventeen thousand dollars, corner Addison and Halsted streets. Photograph taken by A. W. Watriss". From text: "The name of the Township of Ridgeville was changed to Evanston on February 17th, 1857, accompanied by a change of boundaries. Lakeview Township, formerly a part of Ridgeville Township, was at the same time created, and has since been included within the city limits of Chicago."

1874  The Township Board of Trustees restricted cattle movements in some areas. Township Board of Trustees issued uniforms for police in the hope that "civic morality can be restored" from the visitation of Chicago citizens.

A Chicago Tribune article stated that some local real estate developers were concerned of lower property values of the southeast area of the township due to “moonlight evenings of serenading” and “habit of rehearses” particularly at the corner of Halsted Street and Diversey Parkway. 

Ravenswood Pioneer Grocery 

in the Community of Ravenswood in1874

P.L. Miller Fancy Groceries and Meat Market 

corner of Foster and Wolcott Avenues - 1860's?

1874 Lake View Township High School was established on the corner of Addison & Ashland avenues. View my post called The High Schools for more stories like the one below.

The State of Lake View in 1874

Chicago and its Suburbs by Everett Chamberlin 

"This is a large township extending north from the city limits

[Chicago]. The south boundary [Fullerton Avenue] is but two and a half miles from Clark Street bridge. Its natural features are among the best in the vicinity of Chicago. The wooded section in the southern edge of which Lincoln Park[,the park] is situated extends along the [existing] lakeshore far to the north and many miles beyond the northern limits of Lake View [Devon Avenue]. This gives the place the very desirable advantage of grove lots throughout its length and breadth and affords many very pretty residence sites which have been largely taken advantage of by citizens of Chicago whose means enabled them to enclose large lots and build handsome homes upon them. The place is thickly settled as a consequence of these advantages and its nearness to business centers in Chicago. The area of the township is about ten square miles. The lands in Lake View attracted early attention. The settlement dates back over a period of twenty years and many of the lots having during this long stretch of years been subjected to constant improvement. The place bears something of the appearance of the old suburbs about the cities in the East. Viewed from the observatory of the new United States Marine Hospital [once located between Marine Drive & Clarendon Avenue; Sunnyside to Montrose] the whole village resembles a beautiful park. The government of the township incorporated in 1865 [and founded in 1854] is in the hands of a Board of Trustees who have control of thoroughfares, bridges, public improvements [of] buildings, the police force, and generally of all matters usually subjected to municipal rule. The routes of [to the] approach to Lake View from the city are as follows: One line of horse cars leave Clark Street bridge every twelve minutes running north on North Clark Street to Diversey Street [and] one half mile within the limits of the place and connecting there with a dummy for Graceland [Avenue/ Irving Park Road] which runs once an hour. This trip occupies fifty minutes. A second line of horse cars leave Clark Street bridge at like intervals and run on Clark Street to Lincoln Avenue opposite the principal entrance to Lincoln Park [,the park] and then on Lincoln Avenue in a northwest direction and reaching the southern limit of Lake View at Fullerton Avenue one mile west from the lakeshore. The Milwaukee branch of the Chicago & Northwestern railroad runs through [this] suburb north and south with a daily service of twelve trains each way. In addition to the second track now being laid on this road there are now under consideration [for] two other projects looking to the development of the [Township of] Lake View by new railroads to run out of [City of] Chicago on Sheffield Avenue through Lake View to [Township of] Evanston on a route east of the [Chicago &] Milwaukee [railroad] track [while] the other a branch through [community of] Bowmanville to [Township of] Evanston to be constructed by the Northwestern Railroad Company."

Lake View had a Glee Club 1875

1875  A local newspaper  called the Suburban reports the establishment of a baseball team called the 'Lake View Brown Stockings’  as the first organized team on the north-side; a precursor to the Chicago Cubs. Also, in 1875 one of the first 'stone and brick' churches was constructed and dedicated that year (for mostly the elite of the township). Remember, the township borders were north of Fullerton Avenue until 1889. The building also served as a town-hall meeting place for the citizens of the township and then City of Lake View. Read more of that day with the article below.

1875  A Storm and the Taverns
(click to enlarge article)

The Congregations as of 1875
(click to enlarge article)

 page 2

collecting revenue from a K. Langland in 1875
image - Ebay
Teachers Code of Conduct 1875

1876  Mention of a baseball team called the 

Brown Stockings & a new community called Summerdale located north of Foster Avenue 

View article below for more

page 2

also in 1876

Social Happenings

1876  The significant railroad stations along the Chicago & Milwaukee within the township were the Belle Plaine, Ravenswood, and Rose Hill per this David Rumsey Collection map that can be enlarged. 

 

 Most of the above photos are either 1888 or 1890

1877  Major industry is developed with the establishment of Northwestern Terra Cotta Company near Clybourn and Wrightwood. The company would employ ten thousand workers at its peek. Read more about this company in my blog post called Manufacturing Dominance.

an 1892 advertisement - Art Institute of Chicago

Township Rules in 1879

This publisher recreates documents for the modern reader. This book has over 190 pages; I have only selected what I regarded the most interesting. More of the pages, not all, are mentioned in an album on LakeView Historical-Facebook.

 Note 1: North Fifty-Nine Street is Foster Avenue

Note 2: Graceland Avenue is Irving Park Road

Prior to 1887 the township had seven districts and when the township became a city that year the districts became wards.

Note: there are more pages but not posted here

view title link above

1880  The residents of Pine Grove (subdivision) along Evanston Avenue (Broadway) filed suite against the stream-driven public transportation train called  'dummy' trains. The residents hated the noise because the engine freaked out the horses. The noisy trains were introduced by 1865. This original plank road was coined Dummy Road by local residents. Legend has it the Lake View District School #1 (Nettlehorst) was briefly called Dummy School due to the location of the school along the roadway.

 The 'dummy' in 1883

It took 17 years for the residents along Evanston Avenue to accept horseless public transportation - 1897

 page 2

Read a Story of Paulina Street in 1881

More subdivisions would be constructed in the township 

From the back of this photo:

"The 1881 view of Paulina Street (1700 W) between Belle Plaine (4100 N) and Berteau Avenues (4200 N). Drainage ditches are being dug in the road, with plank crossovers at the intersections. There is a kerosene lamp-post in the middle of the block. The back of the photo states, "No longer was it necessary to hold a long piece of white chalk between the teeth or carry a lantern to find the way home at night when the moon did not shine."
- from the Ravenswood–Lake View Community Collection

Also in 1881 Each township district could vote on some issues that matter to them. For example, the second district (that must have been located south of Belmont Avenue at the time) voted their district 'dry' not allowing liquor to be sold. The article below tells that tale ... among other developments.

1882  A geographical beer-line was established along Halsted Street - western area meant beer establishments while east of Halsted was to be dry. Also 1882, saloon-keepers became an influential electoral group that had some influence in that years election. 

The word 'town' in all articles refers to 'township'.

 The Township Directory

(Facebook album)

1882 Lots of News

1883   Real Estate is booming ...

from publication called Chicago: growth of a metropolis

photos - Gross Park on Henderson - Facebook
advertisement & cost of property along 
with another photo + a narrative
Typical Township Council News 1883

1884 The first historical society was formed during this time period with meetings held in Community of Ravenswood called the Ravenswood Historical Society. According a local historian Theodore Andreas, the society had plans to construct a public library on Sulzer (Montrose) and Commercial (Hermitage) Streets for the benefit of the community and themselves.

Report from the Township 1885-86
(pdf file)

The township published an annual report about it's status for the year 1885 to March 1886 that included reports/letters from the township supervisor, treasurer, assessor, highway commissioners, town[ship] collector, physician, engineer, & clerk, public works superintendent, water rent collector, captain of police, and fire marshal.

photo - Edgewater Historical Society

1885-89  John Lewis Cochran purchased vacant land to build a subdivision called “Edgewater.” East of Broadway and bounded by Bryn Mawr and Foster, it was the first planned development to have paved streets, electric lighting, drainage system, street cleaning and tree trimming. In 1886, the first ten houses and a commercial building called the “Guild Hall” were built as well as a train station at Bryn Mawr that would connect south to Graceland Blvd. (Irving Park Road).

northern part of the township 

- Edgewater Historical Society

1886  View an annual report (narratives) from the Town(ship) of Lake View online from the University of Illinois-Chicago. The township only had 15 policeman and 9 firemen that year covering a territory from Devon to Fullerton Avenue, the natural shoreline west to Western Avenue. 

 map of the township in 1887 

via David Ramsey Collection

zoomed views below

 Fullerton to Belmont Avenues

 Belmont to Wilson Avenues

and then Wilson to Devon Avenues

Township to Annexation - No
Lake View would have been annex in 1887 if it was not the desire by citizens to only annex part of the township south of Belmont Avenue. Instead the entire township voted for a city charter and won the election to be a city, 
per this September 1887 editorial. 

From a Township to a City in 1887

1887 map - Historic Map Works

1887  The township became a city; districts became wards - two alderman per ward with the 4 wards south of Belmont Avenue - the most densely populated. The city must have been the largest in the in Illinois until the City of Lake View was annex by the City of Chicago in 1889. 

 Formation of city wards from township districts 1887

All the township communities would become city communities or subdivisions until annexation of 1889.

both images - Lake View Saga - Merlo Library

1887 David Rumsey Map

Also in 1887  The Council members of the City of Lake View approved rail lines for the North Chicago City Rail Line to build on their territory even though the company had be constructing the line on township land since 1861 without permission from local authorities. View these two maps of Lake View that year with this link from the David Rumsey Collection and this link from Historical Atlas that has a sheet by sheet view of the area. 

1888  The first full service real estate office is established more or less replacing the old Lake View Hotel as the unofficial location to meet and negotiate for land purchases.

Note: 'truck garden' were farms used to transported their product to market. - Lakeview Saga, Merlo Library

A Fire Department Tower in the Ravenswood area

Dieden Brothers Goods along Foster Avenue

From City to Annexation to Chicago

1889 Before the annexation of the City of Lake View, the State of Illinois legislated The Sanitary District Enabling Act of May 29, 1889, established the a district with the purpose of managing water supply and waste-water issues. The two most important early projects included the reversal of the Chicago River, designed to carry waste water away from Lake Michigan, and the construction of the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal which aided in the flow of water out of Lake Michigan. (The project was completed by 1900)

This legislation (clean water) would have been in the minds of some enlightened voters of Lake View when residents voted for annexation that November. 

After the annexation the former City of Lake View was divided into two Chicago wards, the 25th & 26th. The borders between the wards was Clark & Halsted Streets.

photo below - 1893 Rand McNally map edit

A Post Annexation issue in 1896

While this Chicago Tribune article was published after the annexation of Lake View this article does tell a tale of integration of townships that the city annexed that year. Both Lake View and Jefferson Township were annexed the same year. Apparently, the officials of Lake View still controlled the water supply from their Lake Michigan along with their crib and pumping station. This issue almost start a major problem for the City of Chicago per this article below ...

The Northwest Corner

These photos were provided by a historical site called 

Living History of Chicago & Illinois-Facebook. While these photos were apparently taken in 1914 one can only image the openness of the area during the 19th century - its vastness. Devon and Western avenues was the northwest corner border of the Township/City of Lake View 1857-1889

a 1887 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map of the area 
with the X marks the spot with the German Orphanage 
to the right of the map

a 1894 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map 
with the X marks the spot

photo below - Ravenswood-Lake View Community Collection, via Explore Chicago Collection

After the annexation of 1889 the newly formed District 

of Lake View was still regarded rural north of Irving Park Road (Graceland Avenue). This 1891 winter scene highlights a forest of trees at the intersections of Broadway (Evanston Avenue), North Sheridan Road (Sheffield), and Montrose.

Memories of Old Lake View in 1928

Post Notes:

Read more about the importance of townships in the 

United States particularly in the State of Illinois.

Important Note:

These posts are exclusively used for educational purposes. I do not wish to gain monetary profit from this blog nor should anyone else without permission for the original source - thanks!