Articles from the 'Quintessential Hinsdale' series


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  • Dickinson Field place to be Friday night

    Pamela Lannom|Updated Aug 16, 2023

    Brian Griffin remembers playing games under the lights on Dickinson Field at Hinsdale Central when he was on the team. "I still get the same feeling that I got as a player waiting to walk from the school out to stadium," said Griffin, who played at Central from 1999-2003 and is now head coach of the varsity team. "It just fills you with a sense of pride and a sense of community and just being part of something which is cool to experience on both ends of the spectrum." The fact...

  • Uniquely Thursdays had humble beginnings

    Sandy Illian Bosch|Updated Aug 9, 2023

    As a business owner in Hinsdale, Lynette Lovelace was always looking for new ways to provide for the people of Hinsdale - and new ways to attract those people to the village's downtown. Lovelace was at a meeting of the Hinsdale Chamber of Commerce when she suggested the idea of a downtown concert series to draw people to the business district. The events would be held on Thursday nights to coincide with the later hours of several downtown merchants. "Everybody looked at me...

  • There's no place quite like Kramer Foods

    Pamela Lannom|Updated Aug 2, 2023

    During the 2004 Community Revue, Joel Nelson and Tommy Harris made a cameo appearance during a skit about Kramer Foods. "A day without Kramer's is like a day without sunshine," they said, and the place went wild. Audience members were on their feet, cheering and applauding. Who knew people could feel that strongly about a grocery store? But Kramer's is an institution in Hinsdale, a place where generations of family members have shopped and where some things - like the toy...

  • Library remains cornerstone of community

    Sandy Illian Bosch|Updated Aug 1, 2023

    With the creation of audio recordings and ebooks, the experience of reading no longer is defined solely by the turning of paper pages in a bound volume. Likewise, the local library is home to collections that offer far more than traditional books. Yet Karen Keefe, executive director of the Hinsdale Public Library, said old-fashioned paper books are still the most sought-after objects among library patrons. "About 20 percent of our circulation is now digital," said Keefe, who...

  • Hospital has deep roots in the village

    Updated Jul 26, 2023

    Fresh air and rest were the primary medicines administered in the early days of the Hinsdale Sanitarium. Created in the early 1900s as a place for people to rest and heal in a quiet country setting, historians have said it resembled a spa more than a medical facility. Well over a century later, that facility, now known as UChicago Medicine AdventHealth Hinsdale, continues to keep overall wellness at the center of its care, said Adam Maycock, chief executive officer of the UCM...

  • Early Hinsdale thrives in Robbins Park

    Sandy Illian Bosch|Updated Jul 12, 2023

    The picturesque neighborhood known as Robbins Park has been part of Hinsdale since the beginning and remains home to some of the village's most historically significant homes, three of which have been owned by preservation enthusiast Mimi Collins. "I've restored them all," Collins said of the trio of houses, all of which were among the 139 homes considered "significant" in the village's efforts to have the neighborhood declared a National Register Historic District in 2007....

  • Fourth generation of Fullers carry on

    Pamela Lannom|Updated Jul 5, 2023

    It's practically impossible to spend time in Hinsdale without seeing the impact of the Fuller family, whose influence on the community began with the platting of Fullersburg Woods in the mid-1800s and continues today with a host of businesses. Doug Fuller Jr. is the oldest son of Doug Fuller Sr., whose father, Lloyd Fuller, started the family business with a service station and car wash at the corner of York Road and Ogden Avenue in 1946. Today, the heirs of the company's foun...

  • July Fourth parade highlight of summer

    Sandy Illian Bosch|Updated Jun 28, 2023

    The Fourth of July parade has been a summer tradition for generations of kids growing up in Hinsdale, including Tim Balster. From the time he was in elementary school, Balster said he always found a way to not only watch the parade, but to participate. He pulled a model of the Liberty Bell behind his decorated bike and at age 11 traversed the entire parade route via pogo stick. After a few years of juggling while riding a unicycle, Balster landed on his most notable mode of...

  • Memorial Building honors past, present

    Sandy Illian Bosch|Updated Jun 21, 2023

    The stately brick structure known as the Memorial Building sits atop a hill in the heart of Hinsdale. Built nearly a century ago as a standing, living tribute to those who fought in the first World War, it serves as a hub for the workings of the entire village. After a call to action from the editor of The Doings newspaper in 1927, the community quickly came together to form the Hinsdale Memorial Building Committee. The committee of Hinsdaleans designed the plan for the...

  • Downtown area is 'heartbeat' of Hinsdale

    Pamela Lannom|Updated Jun 9, 2023

    On a quiet spring evening, when stores and restaurants are closed and no cars line the streets, it's not hard to imagine what downtown Hinsdale looked like in its early days. Residents could pick up their prescriptions at William Evernden's drugstore at 40 S. Washington St., purchase a few necessities (and later hardware) from J. Bohlander & Sons at 42 S. Washington, have their shoes repaired by Emanuel Karlson at 52 S. Washington St. and their tailoring done by John...