Andrea Field

This photograph was taken in August 1983 at the Farmer’s Pig Roast on Marshall Erb’s property at Mill Street and Bauer Road. The circa 1912 Wood Bros. threshing machine was used on local farms to process grains by separating seed from stalks and husks. It belonged to the Hageman and Erb families before the Wheatland Plowing Match Association donated to Naperville Heritage Society in 2014. (Naperville Heritage Society/Naper Settlement)

The Way We Were: Photo at 1983 pig roast features turn-of-the-century threshing machine

October 4, 2024 at 11:35 a.m.

This week's photo is of a 1912 threshing machine that was on display at the Farmer’s Pig Roast on Marshall Erb’s property in Naperville in 1983.

This photo of the Martin family home in Naperville was taken by the Chicago Commercial View Co. circa 1883. The house, known as Pine Craig, was built by George Martin, whose three daughters -- Elizabeth, Catherine and Caroline -- appear outside. (Naper Settlement)

The Way We Were: Martin Mitchell House once served as and ‘advertisement’ for George Martin’s businesses

September 27, 2024 at 3:24 p.m.

The Martin Mitchell house, known to some as Pine Craig, has a long and storied history in Naperville -- and in what the city would ultimately become.

This photograph from the Naperville Heritage Society collection shows the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy station in Naperville. The men include James Hunt, village president of Naperville who became the city's first mayor when the form of government changed, freight agent Abraham Martin and station agent Charles Morey. B.B. Boecker’s grain elevator can be seen in the background. (Naper Settlement)

The Way We Were: Curious about Naperville’s first mayor? Here he stands in front of the old train station

September 19, 2024 at 4:02 p.m.

This photo shows Naperville's Chicago, Burlington and Quincy station as well as Mayor James Hunt, freight agent Abraham Martin and station agent Charles Morey.

Volunteer firefighters pose with the Naperville Fire Department’s International Chemical Engine in 1916 in front of the then-Nichols Library (now the Gia Mia restaurant) on Washington Street in downtown Naperville. The photo was taken by Charles Koretke and is now part of the Naperville Heritage Society collection. (Naper Settlement)

The Way We Were: New chemical fire engine a big deal back in 1916

September 6, 2024 at 12:12 p.m.

Volunteer firefighters pose with the Naperville Fire Department’s International Chemical Engine in 1916 in front of the then-Nichols Library (now the Gia Mia restaurant) and the Naperville YMCA (razed in...

This photograph taken in August 1981 shows the construction of the covered bridge over the DuPage River that connects the downtown Naperville Riverwalk to Naper Settlement. (Naperville Heritage Society)

The Way We Were: Once just ugly, debris-laden riverbanks, Naperville’s Riverwalk now the ‘jewel’ of the city

August 30, 2024 at 2:30 p.m.

The Naperville Riverwalk that delights residents and visitors today wasn’t always such a scenic route. Before it was built, the DuPage River was home to salt piles, an old gasoline...

This aerial view of Naperville Community High School, which would later become Naperville Central High School, was taken in 1955. The city's first high school was built in 1916 at Washington Street and Spring Avenue, and would later be replaced by this building at 899 N. Mill St. in 1950. If you look through the trees, you can see Pine Craig mansion, also known as the Martin Mitchell mansion, and its carriage house, two structures that are now part of the Naper Settlement campus. (Naperville Heritage Society/Naper Settlement)

The Way We Were: Looking back to 1955, when Naperville had just one high school

August 23, 2024 at 11:12 a.m.

Aerial view of Naperville Community High School, which would later become Naperville Central High School, shows what it looked like in 1955.

This glass plate negative shows Benjamin Burgess in his rural mail wagon at the intersection of Main Street and Jefferson Avenue in downtown Naperville. (Naper Settlement)

The Way We Were: Mail carriers had quite the task when they started delivery to rural Naperville residents in 1900

August 15, 2024 at 9:17 p.m.

A look at the history of urban and rural mail delivery in the country and in Naperville specifically.

A group of Naperville residents helping raise a barn at the Schwartz farm take a break for a community dinner in this photo that's part of the Naperville Heritage Society collection. It was common for neighbors to come together in the 1800s and early 1900s to help when one family needed help with a large project, like building a new barn. (Naper Settlement)

The Way We Were: Big community dinner one of the rewards when a barn-raising was needed

August 9, 2024 at 12:35 p.m.

Naperville Heritage Society photo captures an image from a community dinner held during a barn-raising at the Schwartz farm.

Horse-drawn buggies line the east side of Naperville's Washington Street, between Chicago and Jefferson avenues, in April 1909. It would only be a few years before that mode of transportation was replaced by cars. (Naper Settlement)

The Way We Were: Horse-drawn buggies were a big business in Naperville before being supplanted by cars

August 2, 2024 at 1:54 p.m.

Two Naperville men made their fortunes in the horse-drawn buggy trade before cars became the norm in the early 1900s.

This undated photo shows a picnic held at Naperville’s Burlington Park, an entertainment venue that proved a big draw for Chicago residents from 1880 to 1899. It was built by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy railroad company as a way to lure city people out to the country and fill otherwise vacant rail cars on weekends. (Naper Settlement)

The Way We Were: Burlington Park lured city folks out to the ‘country’ of Naperville in the late 1800s

July 25, 2024 at 6:46 p.m.

Naperville's Burlington Park thrived in the late 1800s thanks to a train company that built it as a lure for folks wanting to escape the city for the "country."

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