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News
Yesteryear : News : Oswego Ledger-Sentinel : Hometown Newspaper for Oswego and Montgomery, IllinoisFive years ago this month...
Oswego School District Board members got their first look at a new policy that would prevent school district students from being used by the district "in any manner for promoting a political candidate or issue." A few weeks earlier, some district residents had expressed concern when varsity football cheerleaders from Oswego High School and the cheerleading and pom squads from Oswego East High School performed at a $150 per plate political fundraiser thrown by U.S. Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert, R-Yorkville. The event was held before 2,000 invited guests at Northern Illinois University's Convocation Center in DeKalb. The featured guest of honor was Vice President Dick Cheney, who with President George W. Bush was seeking re-election to a second term. The event reportedly raised $350,000 for the Republican Party.
Oswego Police Chief Dwight Baird told the village board's public safety committee that space was growing tight at the police station on U.S. Route 34. Baird noted that there were 49 officers and other department employees working out of the building on U.S. Route 34 that was designed to accommodate a staff of 50. Noting that village staff and the board were moving forward with planning for a new village hall, Baird said police were prepared to "wait our turn" when it comes to a new facility. Baird added he expected that police would stay in their current facility for another seven to ten years and was planning accordingly.
Kendall County Board Member Jeff Wehrli told his board colleagues that a Chicago-based preservationist was willing to pay for roof repairs, caulking and painting of the former county jail building in Yorkville. The old jail was vacated in 1992 after the construction of the existing Public Safety Center on U.S. Route 34 in Yorkville, and had since been used as storage space by the county. However, the building, constructed in 1893, had fallen into disrepair.
10 years ago this month...
An estimated nine percent of the students attending Oswego School District schools at the start of the 1999-2000 school year came from homes in the City of Aurora section of the school district, according to a report presented to the school board. The board was advised to expect that percentage to increase dramatically due to the large number of new homes planned in the Aurora section of the school district.
The Montgomery Plan Commission heard a proposal from an Aurora church interested in locating in the former Hines Lumber Company building at Ill. Route 31 and Webster Street in the village.
An Oswego Village Board committee requested a bid from a local computer consultant to determine the cost of establishing a web site for the village.
Only one person attended a special public informational meeting on the Y2K computer bug hosted by the Village of Montgomery. "It could be that everybody is OK with Y2K and they're not concerned. Or perhaps they are just sick of hearing about the whole issue," said John DuRocher, village administrator.
15 years ago this month...
Some homeowners along Mondovi Drive in Oswego filed petitions with the village board urging the board to take action to correct the steep slope of their backyards. Some homeowners said they were concerned for the safety of their children. Craig Anderson, village building and zoning administrator, commented, "When people call up and say 'I'm afraid my child may fall off the yard,' we have a problem."
Confronted by angry recreational vehicle owners, the Montgomery Village Board voted to approve an amendment to a controversial ordinance they had adopted the previous June regulating the parking of the vehicles in residential neighborhoods.
Contractors for the Kendall County Highway Department completed work on a new section of Orchard Road. The workers extended the road south from Galena Road almost three miles to U.S. Route 34 west of Oswego.
20 years ago this month...
Oswego School District Board members were faced with the prospect of making up to $600,000 in budget cuts after school district voters again rejected a referendum to increase district's utility fund property tax rate. The failure of the referendum also prompted the school board to temporarily close the newly constructed field house at Oswego High School. Board members said the move was necessary since they couldn't justify the extra expense of heating and lighting the facility.
Dense smoke from leaf fires prompted several Oswego residents to complain to village officials.
A development firm unveiled plans to construct an upscale housing development and golf course near unincorporated Bristol west of Oswego to be called "Blackberry Oaks."
25 years ago this month...
At the urging of Oswego Village Board members, Village President Milton 'Les' Penn agreed to send a letter to the Montgomery Village Board apologizing for any misunderstanding that may have resulted from comments Penn had made earlier concerning Montgomery's plans to annex property south of U.S. Route 30 towards Oswego. Penn had publicly warned that Montgomery officials might violate a boundary agreement previously adopted by both village boards. Montgomery officials strongly denied the allegation. "I made a mistake," Penn said later.
A $68,000 remodeling and expansion project was completed at Oswego Village Hall. The project provided additional office and meeting space for both village staff members and the police department.
After a five-year wait, cable television service came to Oswego's Windcrest Subdivision. Cable service had become available to village residents in 1979, but only in the portion of the village with overhead utility lines. A court ruling allowing cable television companies to place cable television lines in underground public right-of-ways led the way to the extension of the service to the Windcrest Subdivision, the Ledger-Sentinel reported.
30 years ago this month...
Kendall County Sheriff's Department deputies had begun limited foot patrols in Boulder Hill in the wake of a rash of vandalism, Tom Charest, vice president of the Boulder Hill Civic Association, told association members during their monthly meeting.
The Montgomery Village Board voted to approve plans for a 1,250 square foot expansion of Buikema's Ace Hardware on Montgomery Road.
A total of 40,500 United Auto Workers union (UAW) employees at Caterpillar factories across the United States--including the firm's Oswego Township facility near Montgomery--went on strike Nov. 1. The company and the union were again at odds over a new basic contract.
35 years ago this month...
A new weekly community newspaper was born when the first edition of the Fox Valley Sentinel was published by Dave Drier and Steve Keierlieber at Keierlieber's Boulder Hill home. The Sentinel was positioned to compete for local news and readers with the Oswego Ledger, which was launched by Ford Lippold in 1949.
Oswego School District Board members voted to seek passage of a $4.3 million referendum in December to finance the construction of a new junior high school building on Boulder Hill Pass in Oswego and to remodel and expand the existing junior high on Franklin Street in the village.
Oswego High School's first interscholastic girls' tennis team completed their fall schedule, the Ledger reported. The 18 member squad was coached by Linda Corrington. Among those on the roster were Laurie Schmitz, Heather Senn, Janet Van Etten and Nancy Bogda.
In a split ballot the previous month, the Montgomery Village Board had voted to schedule a series of Saturday morning coffee meetings to "hear the complaints" of village residents. During a meeting Nov. 11, board members learned that a "coffee pot and necessary items" had been purchased for the events, according to the meeting minutes.
40 years ago this month...
The Oswego High School football Panthers closed out their 1969 season with a thrilling 20-16 victory over Cary Grove High School. The victory was also the last for Ken Pickerill, who had served as Panther head coach for 18 years. Pickerill had previously announced his plans to step down as head coach.
The Oswego Ledger reported there was a "happening" at Oswego High School when several students decided to test a controversial new dress code. Some girls wearing mini-skirts and some "Hairy Henry" boys (as the Ledger described them) were found in violation of the code and sent home.
45 years ago this month...
By a large majority, the voters of Oswego Township put their seal of approval on a township library to be supported by tax money. In balloting, 2,276 voted yes and 654 voted no, according to unofficial totals, according to the Oswego Ledger.
The Ledger also reported, "When the new Oswego High School is dedicated this Sunday, it will culminate the fourth building project in this community since 1951, Superintendent T. Loyd Traughber said this week. (1) 1951-High school to accommodate 300 students. A-1953 junior high addition of six classrooms; B-1960 music and physical education addition of five rooms; C-1962 shop and classroom additions, four rooms. (2) 1958 East View Elementary School of eight rooms, cafeteria and gymnasium; A-1960 first addition of four classrooms; B-1961-1962 second addition of seven classrooms, music room and two toilets; C-1963-1964 addition of four classrooms. (3) 1960 Boulder Hill Elementary School of 19 classrooms and gymnasium, and the 1964 addition of four classrooms."
Featured musicians at a Nov. 21 Oswego American Legion Post dance were the "Gay 90's Boys" featuring Chuck Reams on the banjo.
The Oswego Ledger reported the entrances to the unincorporated Boulder Hill Subdivision would again be decorated for the upcoming holiday season by members of the Boulder Hill Antique Study Club.
50 years ago this month...
Oswego Ledger Editor Ford Lippold, in a front page editorial, wrote that the paper had successfully completed 10 years of publication, having starting in November 1949. "Much has happened in the last ten years," he wrote. "The population of Oswego Township has doubled due to the numerous subdivisions; a comprehensive development plan for village and township has been adopted; a new high school and a new grade school have been built; a junior high wing added; a new fire barn; new water tower and well; a new Catholic church; a Lutheran congregation has been formed; several new business buildings have been built; ornamental street lights have enhanced the business area; the Oswego Park District was formed; Caterpillar Tractor came into the township with its huge new plant; Oswego celebrated its 125th anniversary with Oswegorama; and many other events have livened up the past decade. All indications point to much expansion during the next ten years. New schools and churches will be built. New subdivisions will be platted. A public park and recreation area is needed. New businesses and light industrial plants would be a boon to the community. We hope to be around to bring you news of the things to come that will keep Oswego Township alive and growing."
The Oswego Days promotion by downtown Oswego retailers was to be held Nov. 13-14. "Shop in Oswego," the Ledger urged. "No parking meters and you do business with a friendly local merchant who is really interested in serving you as a friend and neighbor."
55 years ago this month...
The Oswego Ledger reported that nearly 1,000 votes were cast in Oswego Township's two precincts during the off-year election. "Probably the one interesting item of the election was the strength of Democratic vote in both precincts, but particularly in Precinct 1," the Ledger reported. "This could indicate a possible trend in future years as the population of the community becomes less rural with the influx of new homes and families."
"The special policemen on duty during the Halloween weekend lost a lot of sleep but did a real good job of keeping track of what was going on and kept local youngsters out of mischief," Ledger Editor Ford Lippold wrote in his weekly "All Around the Village" column. "Two new stop signs have been erected in the village, one at the corner by the Saxon Clinic and the other on Jackson and Main St....Three new houses have been started on the Pichik property about a mile south of Oswego on Rt. 34. Plans are to build quite a settlement in that area."
Oswego Postmaster George C. Bartholomew reported several mail thefts from rural mailboxes in the area of Ill. Route 31 and Mill Road. "If this depredation is not stopped voluntarily, it will be necessary to report this to the Inspection Service for investigation, which might be embarrassing for any involved in this illegal practice," the Ledger warned.
60 years ago this month...
India Prime Minister Nehru, with a delegation that included his daughter Indira Gandhi, completed a fact-finding tour of several farms in Kendall County. The Nehru delegation also stopped for a "threshers' dinner" at the home of W.A. Mitchell on U.S. Route 34. The Kendall County Record reported that Nehru seemed "pleased by what he saw and the manner in which he was treated" by Kendall County residents. The Record also noted that "storing surplus crops was not a problem in India."
The Record cautioned motorists driving through Montgomery that if they wanted to see village board member and Police Officer Bob Woodard "real quick" all they need do is run a stop sign in the village.
The Record also contained this item: "Have you noticed the new Oswego school that is under construction and how swiftly it is being erected? Why not plat a new subdivision along Route 71?"
The Fox Valley Amateur Movie Club met Saturday at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Kinley La Dew in Montgomery. Mr. Slauf and Mr. Heffelfinger gave an account of their visit to the Bell & Howell company plant in Michigan, the Record noted.
80 years ago this month...
The Record's Oswego correspondent reported there were "many Halloween pranks played in the village and outlying areas, some amusing, others causing expense to property owners."
The Record also noted that "greed claimed several more victims" in what it described as the "latest Wall Street crash" in October.
J.R. Marshall, Record publisher, wrote in his weekly column: "Sunday, the booming of guns told us of the opening of the hunting season, bringing with it hordes of our city cousins who come out to visit us. We would welcome these sportsmen (?) more if they would observe some of the rules of courtesy they seem to forget when they get out here..."
90 years ago this month...
Following the election, the Record offered this editorial comment, "The vote in Kendall County was surprisingly big. The one disappointment was that the women failed to turn out in any numbers. They have demanded the ballot and then refuse to exercise their franchise. There were only about 130 women to vote in the county."
The Record also editorialized on the condition of the Fox River: "The State of Illinois has caused to be placed 65,000 small fish in the Fox River from North Aurora to Yorkville last week. They were all fish sought by fishermen and consisted of catfish, bullheads, sunfish, crappies and pickerel. More are to follow. It seems a useless expenditure of money to place these fish in Fox River. The water is so filthy from the sewage and drainage of the upriver towns and cities that it makes the eating of these fish far from a pleasure. The law enforcing septic tanks for the cities should be enforced and the waters of the river cleared before it should be stocked with game fish. The law was direct in the order of the stopping of dumping sewage in the river but to date nothing has been done. One look at the river would turn the average person from desire to consume fish taken from its waters."
115 years ago this month...
"The Congregational Church is progressing nicely; the rafters are in and the enclosing of it is underway," the Record's Oswego correspondent reported on Nov. 21, 1894. "Besides the carpenters from out of town, Harley and Will Richards are at work on it, about seven in all. The mason work is nearly completed, the tower part of it is built of boulders, which were furnished by John Russell." The church, located at Main and Van Buren in Oswego, burned to the ground in July.
In the same issue, the Record's Oswego correspondent reported: "Oswego High School note: Miss Kate Cliggett, teacher in the grammar room, being sick, her place was filled by Miss Anna Robinson of the senior class. The senior class, consisting of 12 members met at the home of Miss Stella Shephard last Tuesday evening. Arthur Wormley, of the senior class, was surprised by a party by his friends last Saturday night."
120 years ago this month...
"Charlie Dano and Gordie Hopkins, two of the small boys, got into a quarrel about the throwing of an apple core of the one at the other during which the former stabbed the latter with a pocket knife in the arm, and touching an artery caused it to bleed profusely before a stoppage was effected," the Record's Oswego correspondent reported.
The Record announced that, "A.N. Beebe's map of Kendall County will be drawn on a scale of two inches to the section and will be a complete township and sectional map showing the ownership of farms with names on all tracts large enough to print same; all public roads will be traced out and all railroads running through the county will be located. In addition to this the boundary lines of all school districts will be shown on the map by a district color line, a new and very desirable feature which no other map of Kendall county has ever contained. The publisher is sparing no labor or expense to make this a most complete map."
125 years ago this month...
New York Governor Grover Cleveland, a Democrat, narrowly defeated his Republican rival, James G. Blaine, a U.S. Senator from Maine, in a bitterly contested election for president. Blaine carried Kendall County, but lost the national popular vote to Cleveland, 48.5 to 48.2 percent.
The Record's Oswego correspondent offered this assessment of the local political atmosphere following the Cleveland victory: "The past week was one of extraordinary quietude for Oswego; the lamentations of the Republicans were expressed in a subdued manner and their grief born silently while the Democrats seemed to be scrupulously avoiding to hurt anybody's feelings.
"Among the reasons given for the detraction of the Republican vote, it may also be said that the most sensitive spot of the average man is his pocket; to say anything that is calculated to touch that, will at once excite apprehension and cause a deep impression no matter what foundation there may be for it. If the payment of the rebel debt had been taken up and pushed as in former campaigns the result might have been quite different; but Mr. Blaine himself, by his book, had spiked that gun."
The correspondent added, "Those of our people who were bound to believe that Blaine is the greatest statesman on earth and that Cleveland is a mere lankhead feel now like the boy kicked by the mule, who between sobs blubbered out. 'Bad enough to be kicked anyway, but to be kicked by a goll darned jackass.'"
The correspondent later filed this report on the local Democratic victory celebration: "The Democratic jollification here transpired last Wednesday evening and consisted of emblematic display, illuminations, bonfire, instrumental and implemental music, marching, cannonading, fireworks, enthusiasms, etc. Mark Chapman had a tri-color white, blue, and red streamer waving during the day over his residence, containing the numbers of 401, 219, and 182, the electoral vote and as divided between the two candidates. Some of the fireworks were the best ever brought to town. A rope was stretched from the big willow at Bartlett's across the street to the top of the Whitman house, the residence of Charley Hawley, and hung full of Chinese lanterns, which looked very pretty."
135 years ago this month...
"Oliver Hebert has transferred his entire blacksmithing business to J. H. Sinclair," the Record reported on Nov. 12, 1874. Hebert previously ran the business from his wagon factory at Van Buren and Madison streets in Oswego.
145 years ago this month...
The former Oswego courthouse was sold at auction on Nov. 5, 1864, and purchased for $750 by John S. Seeley for the town [township] of Oswego, the Record reported. The building was built of stone and measured 40x60 feet.
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