The Hinsdale Historical Society celebrated the 150th anniversary of the village’s incorporation last weekend with a museum exhibit and light show chronicling the settlement turned suburb.
The exhibit featured artifacts, trinkets and memorabilia from the Hinsdale History Museum, and personal collections of current Hindalians; 19th century sketch portraits share the room of old gowns, war uniforms and sportswear, maps and newspapers, silverware and photographs, curated to show the village’s progression decade by decade.
Hinsdale became an incorporated village on April 1, 1873, a former Pottawatomie campsite turned farmland in the early 19th century, the village grew as a result of its proximity to the west bound trains coming out of Chicago.
“The Hinsdale Historical Society team has worked for many hours to bring this show to life,” Hinsdale Historical Society trustee Alexis Braden said during April 20’s inaugural show.
The creative director Matt Stockmal, a 2017 graduate of Hinsdale Central, took center stage as the leading force behind the exhibits light show.
“What we have been trying to do is render the entire room in the most influential art styles of that era,” Stockmal said during the event. “Nothing like this has ever been done before [in Hinsdale].”
Work on the exhibit began in late 2022 according to Hinsdale Historical Society administrator and exhibit curator Katharine Korte Andrew.
The exhibit and show was put together primarily by volunteers, Andrew said. “The people who helped, who did a lot of the nice design for the exhibit, are completely volunteers.”
While many of the items featured belong to the Hinsdale Historical Society the project took months to complete.
“We started brainstorming around December, pulling all the objects and then picking which ones would actually fit,” she said.
While there is no final date for the anniversary exhibit yet, the Hinsdale Historical Society has plan for future projects this year including a look at the influential women of Hinsdale, according to Andrew.
“I think that women are often overlooked in history, and I think it’s wonderful to be able to curate an experience that brings these women back to life,” she said.
