Walking through our home in Forest Park, I sometimes wonder about the folks who previously lived between these same four walls. Who was here before we moved in? What were their lives like? With the help of Jill Summers of Ordinary Houses, the history of our house was revealed through newspapers articles and public records. It was so much more fascinating than I could have hoped for.
Santa beards on fire? Fist fights? Abbott and Costello? Apples in January? An inventor? What interesting people slept under the same roof as I do now! Summers also provided me with copies of the materials, which really brought the history of the house to life.
I asked Summers about her process. She usually starts with the Chicago Public Library’s interactive fire maps, online newspaper articles, Ancestry.com, and then goes “…where those lead me.” She looks for building notices and building permits to establish build date, builder, and architect; names of former owners and interesting bits and pieces about their lives. And in a perfect world there are old photographs of the house or occupants. She said a lot of information is available online, but it’s best to get a copy of the house’s tract sheet from the Cook County Recorder’s Office archives, which can sometimes require an in-person visit. (The tract sheets for my house are fascinating – with some familiar Forest Park names like Dunlop and Roos.) Depending on the house, Summers said there may also be collections with specialized information based on the neighborhood. She also recommended reaching out to neighborhood historical societies…