Des Plaines Yesterday and Today

Phat Bao Temple Continues Diverse Spiritual Legacy

The church building at Prospect Avenue and Illinois Street has been home to several congregations.

A humble church with a spiritual history sits at Prospect Avenue and Illinois Street. It has served as an incubator to several growing congregations during its history. The little church grew when 43 members founded Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in 1945. At the time, the meetings were held in a private home. Then, in 1946, the simple, concrete block church was built. The congregation grew, and the church expanded in 1947, again in 1950. The congregation completed construction itself. By 1954 the church was running out of room, and launched a fundraising drive for a new edifice. In anticipation for the new church's 1960 completion, the old church was sold to St. John Greek Orthodox Church in August 1959, and another addition was completed …

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Coffee Talk: Keeping Des Plaines Theatre Alive

Residents watched facility's transformation through the years during Thursday presentation.

The Des Plaines Theatre has endured many renovations, inside and out, over the years and even remained standing after a fire. Now workers are literally peeling back the decades to restore the theater to its original state. With the new remodeling under way, residents gathered at the Des Plaines History Center's monthly program, Coffee Talk, to discuss the evolution of the theater. Brian Wolf, lifelong resident, history preservationist and writer of Revitalize Des Plaines! (he's also a Patch contributor) lead the discussion showing pictures of the theater throughout the years and pieces of the original building. In sharing the history of the theater, Wolf hopes it will remind residents why they love it and why it’s worth saving. “I think we…

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Photo Gallery: Des Plaines Theatre Open House Is Great Success

More than 250 people came by to take tours, watch films, reminisce and donate to the Theatre's renovation.

Sunday at the Des Plaines Theatre was a day for reminiscing--as residents (and a few out-of-towners) fought the cold weather and set foot in the theatre, some for the first time in decades--and rejoicing as more than $1,200 was donated for the still ongoing renovations.  More than 250 people attended the event which included screenings of the 1935 Scrooge and A Christmas Without Snow, caroling by the Willows Academy Choir, guided tours by Project Manager Gay Meizen and complimentary cookies, coffee and hot chocolate. Families like the Klaisners, (Kevin and daughters Katie and Nicole) came out to show support and enjoy some hot chocolate. Kevin has fond memories of attending the theatre as a teen living in Des Plaines. Phil Heller, who …

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Going Back Downtown

Yesterday's Shopping in Des Plaines - Spiegler's

Spiegler's Department Store was a Des Plaines icon for generations.

Chances are, if you were battling the Black Friday crowds this week, it was not on the streets of downtown Des Plaines. Looking around today, it is easy to forget that this was once a major retail center of the Northwest suburbs. For much of that time of retail dominance, the biggest store downtown was Spiegler's Department Store. Although Spiegler's opened its doors June 2, 1900, it was not the first department store in town. Already, there was the Des Plaines Department Store (later Brown's) and the Behrens Department Store at the southwest corner of Ellinwood & Pearson. Spiegler's itself started as a different firm, Curtis & Meyer, run in part by pioneer resident John H. Curtis. At one time, Curtis served as postmaster, with the post …

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Brian Wolf

5:11 pm on Monday, July 23, 2012

Thanks Gerry. Someone told me that was later 3d Brigade, 85th Division National Guard and the Army Reserve, is that right? I had not heard of Kraml Dairy before.   more ›

Going Back Downtown

Welcome to the First: The First National Bank Building

Easily overlooked, the 1957 First National Bank Building is a timeless and handsome part of downtown.

The building at the southeast corner of Prairie Avenue and Lee Street is easily overlooked today, but in its time it was state of the art. It is the 1957 First National Bank of Des Plaines building. Recently sold to the Greek-American Restaurant Association of America, the building stands poised to again play an important role in the community. It will soon house Plato Academy, a small private school that is currently located in Morton Grove. The bank, founded in 1913 and housed since 1937 in the former Des Plaines State Bank building, was bursting at the seams. As Des Plaines experienced dramatic growth and many new subdivisions were created, demand likewise rose for banking services. In particular, First National found a need for more …

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Going Back Downtown

Wright in Maine

Today we take a trip outside downtown to see a little gem.

The Northwest suburbs aren't necessarily known for their architecture, but it's there if you know where to look for it. There are even buildings designed by famous architects, or architects that worked with famous ones. A Chicago Sojourn features this distinctive building just outside of Des Plaines. Maine Township Town Hall was designed by Lloyd Wright and Eric Lloyd Wright, the son and grandson of Frank Lloyd Wright, and built between December, 1958 and May, 1961. The church was sited on two acres set aside from the Ballard Gardens subdivision by builder Godfrey Lindstrom. The design was evidently inspired by Lloyd Wright's famed Wayfarer's Chapel. The church displays an interesting break with the signature Wright connection to nature. …

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Photo Opp: Preservationist Gets Des Plaines Theater Ready For Reopening

Des Plaines Patch shot this photo of author/blogger Brian Wolf working on the marquee at the newly renovated theater.

Brian Wolf, historical preservationist and author of Revitalize Des Plaines! and Going Back Downtown gets the Des Plaines Theater marquee ready for Saturday night's Hip Hop 'Til Hunger Stops. The event is an evening of music and dancing that begins at 7 p.m. Tickets are $10 or $7 with a donation of two non-perishable food items.

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Christopher Brinckerhoff

9:04 pm on Friday, November 12, 2010

Good job Brian!   more ›

Going Back Downtown

An Exclusive First Look at the Des Plaines Theatre

The dividing wall is down and the drop ceiling is gone. Here's what it looks like.

Workers today removed the last pieces of the drop ceiling and wall that have divided the Des Plaines Theatre into 2 screens. Brian Wolf was there to capture what was discovered. Much work remains ahead, including extensive plastering and painting.

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Laurie Whitman

7:28 pm on Thursday, November 11, 2010

Lisa - Hi - I am answering for Owen - you have to understand that what Phil said is true - going to the show on Saturday afternoon was truly like a war zone. Kids were running around, up and down the aisles, no one was watching the movie - the movie was incidental to our adventure. There were cat calls, things being thrown at the screen continually and Owen thinks he was kicked out for fighting…   more ›

Going Back Downtown

Space Age Littelfuse Crashes Back to Earth

Once a major local employer, the old Littelfuse building on Northwest Highway is now being demolished.

A little while back, I covered the demolition of the old Chevrolet dealership on Busse, which I called an unexceptional example of mid-century architecture. Today, I'm disappointed to report on the demolition of an excellent example. These are what preservationists call "recent past" resources, and they're the buildings most vulnerable to the wrecking ball - too new to be old, too old to be new. Littelfuse's old facility on Northwest Highway was perhaps the best example of Mid-Century Modern industrial architecture in Des Plaines, and it is now being torn down at less than 50 years old, having been vacant less than a year. By all outward appearances, this was a very well-maintained building. And certainly, it was a quality building. It was…

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Going Back Downtown

The Des Plaines Theatre's First Rebirth

As the Des Plaines Theatre comes back from the dark, we look back at its early years and first renovation.

I'm a 24-year-old lifelong Des Plaines resident, and I'm excited to be a contributing to Des Plaines Patch. I've always been fascinated with the deep roots in Des Plaines - including my own family, here since 1915. As I learned more about our history, I realized how hard it could be to casually discover our history, especially the history embodied in our buildings. So I started a blog, Revitalize Des Plaines!, in March 2009 to share what I found. To my surprise, it caught on; Revitalize Des Plaines! now has over 1,400 fans on Facebook discovering and sharing our history. I am a preservationist. I believe the way to a thriving, stable future is by building on the strengths of the past. I'll be providing previews of history articles one week…

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Brian Wolf

2:29 pm on Tuesday, November 9, 2010

The current plan is to use the lobby during the day as a sort of coffee/candy shop. It will be run by Stage One initially to see how it works out, but they hope to find an independent operator ultimately.   more ›