Roller skates, ice tongs and other summer-themed artifacts are currently on display at the Des Plaines History Center, 781 Pearson St., in an exhibit called “Keeping Cool in Des Plaines.” The exhibit is open to the public during regular hours, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Tuesday through Friday.

Enough popsicles for two baseball teams! You could make 18 flavorful icy treats at one time with the “Apparatus for Making Frozen Confections” (or, in other words, a popsicle maker; pictured above). The patent for this device was awarded in 1934 to Stanley Isenberg of Frozen Sweets, Inc., Chicago.  Isenberg designed this popsicle maker for retail dealers of ice cream and confectionaries as an inexpensive alternative to buying pre-made, mass produced popsicles from large wholesalers. Using this device, ice cream sellers could create their own popsicles right in the store.

For more information about this and other programs, visit the Des Plaines History Center’s website.

Berlin Airlift Lecture

Come join us at the history center Thursday, Aug. 9, from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. for a presentation about the Berlin airlift of 1948. Historian Anette Isaacs states, "It was perhaps one of the greatest adventures in American military history."