Touchstones of Naperville's history inducted into Heritage Hall of Honor

Rita Harvard remembers the early years, when the term "preservation" was a dirty word in Naperville.

More than 40 years ago, Harvard's mother, Grace Fredenhagen, was part of the driving force in establishing what was to become Naper Settlement through a renovation of the Martin Mitchell Mansion into a museum.

"People thought she was a crazy person," Harvard said at Naper Settlement's Century Memorial Chapel.

Both Harvard and her mother were among several groups and organizations inducted Sunday by the Naperville Heritage Society into its Heritage Hall of Honor. Sunday's ceremony was the fifth annual induction of individuals instrumental in the development of Naperville and coincides with the group's 40th anniversary.

"These people put the sweat equity into this town," said Chris Birck, president of the Naperville Heritage Society's board of directors. "They worked behind the scenes to build this community into what we have today. Most of the time, their work was done without any acclaim. It's important that we recognize their efforts."

Fredenhagen didn't live long enough to see the formation of the Naperville Heritage Society 40 years ago, but she made a major contribution in helping restore the Martin Mitchell Mansion that has become part of Naper Settlement, the 19th-century village the heritage society operates.

The mansion had been left to the city by Caroline Martin Mitchell, the descendant of the wealthy Naperville family who built the house. Fredenhagen sat on the original board that converted the home into a museum that opened to the public in 1939.

Also recognized Sunday were the members of the Cress Creek Garden Club, who have spent the last three decades faithfully tending to the gardens surrounding the Paw Paw Post Office, Naperville's first post office and the oldest frame house at Naper Settlement.

"It's so nice for our group to be recognized for something that we love to do," said Carol Sweder, co-chair of the group's garden committee.

About 30 of the club's 80 members care for the gardens at the settlement.

Other notable Naperville residents inducted Sunday into the Heritage Hall of Honor include Harold White, the late publisher of the Naperville Sun, and his wife, Eva; Donald Burney, a retired research chemist who spent more than a decade training volunteers to provide demonstrations of a 19th century printing press at Naper Settlement to visitors and schoolchildren; and Ruth Gamertsfelder, a former Naperville High School teacher who spent her retirement working as the curator of the Martin Mitchell Museum.