Welcome to History in the Headlines!
This is our page dedicated to sharing stories from the Joiner History Room and press releases about upcoming events at the DeKalb County History Center, and county-wide with our history partners.
September 1, 2026
The History Center's
Property Research 101 is upcoming and one of the most unique sources we use is the 1892 plat book. It shows owners' names, boundaries, and acreage like most other plat books before and since, but unlike others, it shows every built structure in the county at the time. Compared to the 1871, 1905, 1929, and 1955 books, it is the best "undertaking" of all the plat books. We know very little about the publisher of the map, yet we know a great deal about how the book came to be.
In mid-December 1891, the Sycamore True Republican reported that "representatives of the Boston publishing house of D. W. Ensign & Co. are in Sycamore beginning operations for publishing a new atlas of DeKalb County. It has been twenty years since the last DeKalb County atlas was issued [in 1871] and a new work of this kind will be appreciated."
On January 9, 1892, the paper said that the "reliable publishing house," to accomplish this, "will have a force of artists, civil engineers, and writers at work in this county for several months engaged in getting accurate data for their important undertaking."
For the company to sell the book, "a canvas will first be made through the county, the work explained and orders taken. The solicitor will call on you and ask your encouragement for this undertaking."
In a motion at the January 11, 1892, Sycamore City Council meeting, "the mayor was instructed to make contract with the D. W. Ensign Co. for five copies of their DeKalb County Atlas containing [a] map of the city of Sycamore, as per their proposition to furnish the same for $50." This was the equivalent of more than $1,800 today.
On February 6, 1892, The DeKalb Chronicle published the same description printed in January by the True Republican, likely the general plan of work--what the book would look like--provided by the publisher. The paper declared that the plat book "is a work which the Chronicle believes will be beneficial not only to each individual resident but to the county generally."
After nearly a year of work, the True Republican reported on January 7, 1893, that the plat book "has been completed, and was delivered to its Sycamore subscribers this week." But they pointed out an unfortunate discovery. "In the plat of the city of Sycamore the big prominent numbers with which the wards are designated have been transposed in the Third and Fourth wards." Because of this, the city council "will probably not care for them now." The True Republican suggested that "the only way to remedy the error would be by changing the numbers of their wards to correspond with the books," instead of the obvious choice of writing the correct numbers into the books by hand.
Still, even with these errors, the paper stated that "these new maps of DeKalb County will be of great value as references to almost all classes of business men, although many errors in boundary lines are made."
In 1959 the Chronicle singled out the 1892 plat map to point out, "If you think maps are a permanent thing, a look at this one would prove that ownerships change through the years and make new maps necessary, too." If History is the study of change over time, the 1892 plat book is extremely useful for getting a comparatively full and exact picture of your property at that instant.
August 4, 2026
World War II came to the neighborhoods of DeKalb County in a way that touched almost everyone but is nearly forgotten.
Soon after the attack on Pearl harbor on December 7, 1941, many of the towns in DeKalb County assembled units of air raid wardens.
With as many as two air raid wardens per block, the wardens' main role was to oversee blackout exercises. Wardens signaled the start of nighttime blackout drills by blowing whistles for up to two minutes. The town residents extinguished or shaded all artificial light to make the town virtually invisible from air—a precaution against potential enemy air raids. The whistles sounded an all clear at the end of the blackout. Besides these whistles, air raid wardens were known by their white doughboy helmets and armbands bearing the air raid warden insignia.
Before August 1941, the Office of Civil Defense had created insignia for proposed Civil Defense roles, including air raid wardens. By December 10th, Indiana, Michigan, and Illinois estimated that the air raid warning system would require 60,000 volunteers, not counting the Chicago region. But activities didn't begin in earnest until January of 1942, a month after Pearl Harbor. One or two men in each township were selected as county air wardens by A. J. Shultz, chief air warden for the county. Towns selected their wardens based on neighborhood. All air raid wardens met regularly and received training. At one point, DeKalb had so many air raid wardens that the Methodist Church postponed at least one board meeting that conflicted with warden duties "since nearly half of the official board members are air raid wardens. "
The air raid wardens also helped with organizing war-related tasks. On one occasion, they presented surveys to neighborhood residents concerning the availability of women and men to fill wartime manufacturing jobs.
Though no reason is given publicly, the work of air raid wardens ceased before the autumn of 1943. The threatened enemy air raids never emerged during World War II. It's interesting to note that little mention of air raid wardens appears after the comic duo Laurel and Hardy's 1943 film Air Raid Wardens appeared at DeKalb's Egyptian Theatre on the first weekend in July 1943.
Image: Embree Coal and Lumber office window, South Second Street in DeKalb, 1944.
July 2, 2026
July is traditionally a month associated with flags, which often carry significant meaning and symbolism. Beyond their typical uses, flags can also offer valuable clues when examining DeKalb County history. A notable example in the collection is a 1938 photograph of the DeKalb County Infirmary, once located on Sycamore Road at the intersection with Barber Greene Road. The image, looking west along Sycamore Road, shows the building framed by trees and shrubbery. Above the front entrance, a 46-star American flag is prominently displayed.
But this detail raises questions about the photograph’s date, as the 46-star flag was only in use for four years, until July 3, 1912—over twenty-five years before the photo’s caption.
The 46-star flag had been adopted July 8, 1908, when Oklahoma joined the union. It flew until the 48-star flag was adopted when New Mexico and Arizona were admitted July 4, 1912. In 2007, our 50-star flag used today became the longest-running, unchanged version of the flag, flying since July 4, 1959, when Alaska and Hawaii joined the union. Since 1818, by law, we have adopted new stars only on July 4th.
Further research revealed that the DeKalb County Infirmary building was not completed until March 1914, nearly two years after the 46-star flag was retired. This confirms the accuracy of the 1938 caption and suggests that the 46-star flag displayed at the entrance likely belonged to someone at the infirmary.
Taking the time to look and ponder can help resolve historical mysteries and encourage a deeper appreciation for the stories that flags can reveal.
June 4, 2026
The DeKalb coal chute has been in the news in April and May.
Yet perhaps the most significant account of the coal chute’s history appeared nearly 40 years ago in a national magazine, more than 30 years after the structure had ceased serving its original purpose.
In the personal collection of DeKalb County History Center researcher Harlan Hawkins is a 1988 issue of American Heritage Magazine, a general-interest publication featuring articles on American history.
That issue included an article by noted local historian Ivan E. Prall titled “A National Monument to the Great Depression.”
The article briefly recounts the history of the coal chute while also exploring Prall’s experiences after his family moved to a house near the structure in 1937, when “30-40 [steam] trains a day sought service there.” He describes his Depression-era boyhood in the coal chute’s shadow, as well as later brief stops there during World War II as a soldier traveling on troop trains, leaving for and, gratefully, returning from war.
Prall’s article reflects on what the coal chute came to mean for this area. More than that, it tells a story of families—his Prall family, the Burdick family who operated the chute, the families who at times traveled the rails with the countless transients of the Depression, and the Quarnstrom family, whose children played music for the troop trains.
As the DeKalb coal chute is demolished and passes into memory, Ivan Prall’s writing reminds us of the significance this everyday structure came to hold in the life of the community.
May 5, 2026
When you think of 1854-1855 DeKalb County, what, if anything, comes to mind?
The Illinois and Missouri State Directory for 1854-55, published in St. Louis by William L. Montague helps shed a little light on this time.
When this source appears, DeKalb County was still developing from its pioneer days. The county's population was 7,540 people living in 13 townships. This book precedes formal plat maps, County histories, and even local newspapers.
But the county, as represented in the book, is on the verge of a much more prosperous time and an economic boom. By 1856, the value of DeKalb County's taxable property will jump and we will formalize all 18 townships a year later. By 1860, the population will rise more than 150% to 19,086.
The directory as it appeared was broken up by profession. But it was abstracted by Pat Riley Groves for the DeKalb County Genealogical Society. In this form, the 504-page book is five pages long, listing the 25 occupations and professional capacities where DeKalb workers were listed. These include things like attorneys, dry goods merchants, general merchants, implement dealers, and physicians. Notably, the directory gives a list of County Postmasters and the Post Offices listed for DeKalb County include places that are scarcely recognizable, for example, Blood's Point (in Franklin Township), Dorset (in Clinton Township), and Line and Williamsburg (in Cortland Township). There are also eight listings for Geneva. This is interesting because the arrival of the railroad in 1853 made it both easier to reach Geneva but also would lead to less economic dependence on places outside the county.
The Illinois and Missouri State Directory for 1854-55gives us one of the few sources that show the kinds of work that is happening here to support the largely farming economy. It highlights a moment immediately before the county catapulted from its struggling beginnings to a prosperity virtually unimaginable to its pioneers.
April 1, 2026
The DeKalb County History Center Archives is home to numerous photographs and negatives, a portion of which have made it into exhibitions. But what happens when some faces in those pictures are unidentified and remain a mystery?
Dr. Edward L. Mayo (1843-1905) of DeKalb is likely less well known than his massive stone mansion at First and Lincoln. In the exhibit right now, there is an image that shows Dr. Mayo and another man armed and wearing hunting clothing. The original image shows Mayo and four other hunters with a huge batch of ducks and geese they've taken. Yet only Mayo was identified.
Recently, in an email exchange with John Paris, Associate Professor of History at the College of DuPage and J. F. Glidden Homestead and Historical Center board member, we discussed aspects of Dr. Mayo's life. John is a superior researcher and always a fun and enlightening collaborator. He mentioned long hunting trips that Mayo took to Minnesota, Wisconsin, and the Dakotas with Mayo's friend William McAlpine. McAlpine was the architect for the Mayo mansion as well as the John Cook mansion and the general contractor for NIU's Altgeld Hall. We compared a photo of McAlpine and quickly found he is the hunter to the viewer's right of Mayo.
John pointed out that one article mentioned Mayo was accompanied on a hunting trip by John L. Pratt "of Minneapolis." Pratt was an early lawyer in DeKalb County, the first County States Attorney, and later said to be "one of the best-known men in the county." Comparing a photo of Pratt, we found he is the hunter at far right in the photo.
Then John delivered another surprise. When I asked if he had the text of the newspaper articles covering hunting trips, John replied, Yes, 11 of them.
And there it was, appearing in September of 1898 in both the DeKalb Chronicle and the Sycamore True Republican: "George Gurler in company with Mr. [George] Hawthorn of Elgin left last night on a hunting expedition into Dakota. They will be joined next week by Dr. Mayo of this place, John L. Pratt of Minneapolis and W. J. McAlpine of Dixon."
This then took us back to a photo of George Gurler, who, with his brother, ran the Gurler milk and creamery business. Gurler appears on the viewer's left of Dr. Mayo. And we can say with confidence that the photo was taken in late-September 1898.
This left the unidentified man—potentially George Hawthorn—an Elgin man and long-time friend and hunting companion of George Gurler. No picture of Hawthorn has been located yet.
So, as the current exhibit is poised to come down, one image is identified that wasn't fully identified when the exhibit started. And one of the close, ongoing working relationships with one of our History Partners made it all possible.
