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Buy A Piece Of Park Forest History To Help Preserve History

Buy a Piece of Park Forest History to Help Preserve History

Staff Report  /  December 8, 2011  /  Views: 86  /   No Comments

Buying a piece of Park Forest's past will actually help the village historical society preserve more history.

The Park Forest Historical Society is again urging the public to "Make Lemonade" by purchasing a brick from the former Marshall Field's Park Forest Store, which was demolished beginning in October 2010.

"We could not save the store, which in 1955 became the first Marshall Field's in a shopping center. No one was happy about it's being demolished, but we will use proceeds from brick sales to preserve other facets of our history," says archivist, Jane Nicoll.

The Society was helped in obtaining the bricks by Thomas Mick, village manager of Park Forest, who helped negotiate with ECC--Environmental Cleansing Corporation of Markham, which donated the bricks and transported them to a storage location.

"Everyone has pitched in to help the society with this much-needed fundraiser," says Michael Gans, president of the society.

Bricks are available from the society at $15 for one brick; two bricks for $25. Shipping and handling for up to three bricks is $12.

Bricks are being sold at the 1950s Park Forest House Museum, 141 Forest Blvd, Park Forest, IL 60466, during open hours, which in December are Wednesdays 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Saturday December 10 and 17 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.; and by contacting Society President Gans at parkforesthistory3@yahoo.com.

Gans recommends, "If you contact us ahead of time, we will be sure to have enough bricks on hand."

Only cash and checks are accepted at the museum. The Society also has an online store at www.parkforesthistory.org for buying bricks, books about Park Forest, and other gifts through PayPal. Each brick comes with a certificate of authenticity, and a brief history of the store.

Through December, the museum will feature the exhibit, "Step Back into a 1950s Christmas," with vintage decorations in every room. Donation for the exhibit is $3 for adults; children 12 and under admitted free with a paying adult. A tour of the museum is free with the purchase of a brick.

Bricks can also be purchased from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and any evening hours they have, at the Recreation and Parks Desk, Park Forest Village Hall, 350 Victory Drive. For evening hours in December, call Village Hall at 708-748-1112.

"Over the past year, we have sold many bricks and they have been mailed to 17 states. The brick sale is helping us in our mission to preserve Park Forest's unique history, diversity and achievements. The proceeds have been instrumental in helping keep the 1950s Park Forest House Museum open so we can tell the story of how the first fully-planned post-World War II suburb, and 'America's Original GI Town' came to be," says Gans. "The bricks have been popular, not only with former residents or shoppers from this store, but also with Marshall Field's memorabilia collectors."

This year the society is making a concerted effort to get the Park Forest Local History Collection and Archive out of remote storage and accessible to researchers, and to volunteers, for further preservation.

"We need to sell more bricks to reach this goal," says archivist, Jane Nicoll. "Many people are just finding out the bricks are available, and we hope a vigorous public relations campaign will get even more bricks sold to help us accomplish our goal."

The society also can be reached by calling Jerry Shnay at 708-747-3571, or by calling Michael Gans at 708-305-3308.

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