The Mount Prospect Historical Society has advanced the discovery, preservation, and dissemination of historical and current information related to Mount Prospect, IL since 1967. FOLLOWING THE VILLAGE’S 50TH ANNIVERSARY celebration in 1967, six people (Meta Bittner, Gertrude Moehling Francek, Edith Freund, Dolores Haugh, Doris Weber Norris and Jack Weber) gathered around a kitchen table and formed the Mount Prospect Historical Society. From these humble beginnings, the organization has grown into the full museum campus and archive that the community knows today, run by a professional staff. Directed by a volunteer Board of Directors, it operates year-round and offers a rich and varied schedule of activities and events for members and the community. The first home of the Historical Society (established in 1968) was a small space in a municipal building that stood in the shadow of the water tower at 112 E. From this location the Historical Society developed a small office and began its collection of artifacts. IN 1976, with the excitement of the national bicentennial and a growing interest in local history, the Historical Society moved to its first full museum in the 1901 Saint John Lutheran Schoolhouse, at 1100 Linneman Road. They never owned the site, however, and soon after began to look for a more permanent location. Coincidentally, at the same time the First Chicago Bank of Mount Prospect was trying to have the property they owned at 101 and 103 South Maple Street re-zoned and approved for a gated executive parking lot. If approved, the venerable old Dietrich and Lena Friedrichs House, built in 1906, would have been razed. Neighbors were irate and many made impassioned pleas at Village Board meetings, including the home’s neighbor to the north, Rev. Eventually, the bank’s rezoning request was denied and in 1987 the Bank offered to sell the deteriorating house and property to the Village. The Village, in turn, offered to rent the property and the historic home sitting on 101 to the Society. The Dietrich Friedrichs house is typical of many of the Midwestern frame farmhouses of the early 20th century. Situated in one of Mount Prospect’s oldest neighborhoods, it was the thirteenth house to be built in town. Consequently, the Society’s Board jumped at the opportunity and decided to fundraise; restore the house; and then gradually (over the following 13 years) move Society operations to the new location. THE SOCIETY OPENED its downtown museum in 1992, after five years of restoration. The site has now been restored and refurbished to reflect life in the early twentieth century. Its beautifully restored garden also replicates vegetation of the era. Aware of the difficulties that a house museum can pose for individuals with physical and environmental challenges, the Society looked for possible solutions. Modifications to the house would have severely compromised the historical significance of the site, so a solution was created that would both accommodate individuals with restricted movement and advance the Society’s mission. An ADA-approved Education Center was built in 1995. This center provides wheelchair accessibility, a video tour of the museum and a site for programs and temporary exhibits. With the construction of the Education Center the Society created a small campus for historical activities in downtown Mount Prospect. IN AN EFFORT TO FURTHER PRESERVE LOCAL HISTORY, in 2002 the Society purchased the community’s first public school from a local congregation which had purchased and moved it during the 1930s. The one-room Central School was built in 1895 by William Wille and served as the only public school in Mount Prospect until 1927. Also used as a meeting place, the Central School was the first home to the Public Library, the Women’s Club, the Fire Department, Saint Paul Lutheran Church and a host of other organizations. In 1917 the Mount Prospect Improvement Association met in the schoolhouse and signed the papers that officially incorporated Mount Prospect as a village. In 1939 the school was sold to Saint John’s Episcopal Church and moved three blocks. In 2001 the church and the Society began discussing the fate of this building. The church’s needs had changed over time and the schoolhouse was no longer appropriate. Concerned with the preservation of the building, the Society and Saint John’s worked out an agreement in early 2002 in which the Society purchased the building for $1 with the agreement that they would move the building from this location. After six years of fundraising, the building was moved to the Society’s museum campus in 2008 where it underwent an adaptive restoration. The building re-opened to the public in 2017 during the Village’s Centennial celebration and today it again fulfills its historic roles of education center, community gathering space and historic treasure. In 2019 the historic campus was further enhanced by the addition of the John Meyn Blacksmith Shop replica in the southern half of the campus’ existing carriage house. Funds for the historic transformation were provided by members of the Meyn family and periodic blacksmithing demonstrations are held on the campus. The Society and Village have partnered to care for the campus and its buildings since 1987. Collection: The Mount Prospect Historical Society preserves, organizes and makes available materials which describe, illuminate or demonstrate the history of Mount Prospect. This material will be presented or made available to advance the understanding of regional history. Building Preservation: The Society preserves and makes available buildings of significant historical meaning to the residents of Mount Prospect. Education: The Society provides educational opportunities through programs, events, classes and exhibits related to Mount Prospect. Funding: The aim is to annually raise sufficient funds to support efficient and effective operations including staffing, building maintenance and programming through fundraising events and by solicitation of direct monetary and in-kind donations. Management: The Society is a fiscally sound and responsible organization administered by trained and competent staff under the direction of an informed and active board of directors. Membership: The primary objective is to maintain a viable, renewable membership to support the endeavors of the Society through dues, attendance at events and volunteer work.
