Enjoy this Sawyer Kelley photo slideshow from the mill in Huntley, IL before it was demolished. The Huntley History Alliance was invited by the Village of Huntley to walk through the Mill and make a photographic record of the building before demolition. Photographs were taken by members of the Huntley Historical Society, the Village of … Read more
The Huntley Area Public Library has an extensive Local History collection. The staff have selected 25 must see items in the local history collection in honor of the library’s 25th Anniversary. 1. Daily Journal from the Fencil Fuze Plant 1944-1945 2. Fuzes & Tubes from the Fencil Fuze Plant 3. Huntley High … Read more
The Chicago Tribune put together this look at the career of Huntley Native Margaret “Midge” Donahue, who became the first female front office executive in the major leagues with the Chicago Cubs. Huntley Library Historian Mary Beth Manning is interviewed in the video. Donahue is credited with creating the concept of season tickets. Huntley Native … Read more
Members of the Huntley Historical Society visited the Huntley Area Public Library on Monday, February 25 to present the Library’s Local History Department with DVDs of oral history recordings from long-time local residents. Historical Society members produced the interviews. Elaine Kadakia and Jim Donohue interviewed residents, and Mark Skaja filmed each session. Below is a … Read more
Huntley Area Public Library Historians Mary Beth Manning and Nancy Bacheller presented “Huntley History: 100 Years Ago” at the library for the monthly program — Local Voices. It was the second time the duo spoke to the community to a packed house. For those that could not make it, and Huntley history buffs, we recorded … Read more
Milk Plants and Milk Processing in Huntley The milk and creamery business in the Huntley area was deemed “An industry upon which much of our present and future prosperity depends” –July 21, 1894 The Huntley News The first cheese factory was established in 1866 by Messrs. Blanchard and Woodworth on the farm of A. W. … Read more
The imposing white building on the south side of Main Street near the town square has been a village landmark since it was built in 1892. The Village of Huntley recently purchased this property, known by local historians as the Sawyer-Kelley Mill. W. G. Sawyer and John T. Kelley actually owned two grain mills … Read more
People, places and important dates in the early development of the Village of Huntley, IL. Grafton Township The terms at the conclusion of the Black Hawk War of 1834 required Native Americans to vacate their land and to move west of the Mississippi River. White settlers began moving into northern Illinois following the war. … Read more
Although the town is named in honor of Thomas Stillwell Huntley, he was not the first to settle in this area. The Whittemore and Cummings families were generally regarded as among the first settlers to make a mark on the area. Prescott Whittemore and his wife, Lucy Geer Whittemore, came to this area in 1838 from New Hampshire. … Read more