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DuPage Historical Museum celebrates 50 years

When the DuPage County Historical Museum opened in 1967 at 102 E. Wesley St. in Wheaton, it held between 5,000 and 10,000 artifacts.

This year, as the museum celebrates its 50th anniversary, it holds more than 40,000 artifacts documenting the county's history, from objects used by early settlers to a time capsule.

In honor of its anniversary, the museum will celebrate with a free "Golden Birthday" party for the only institution dedicated to preserving the county's history from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 21.

Staff members consider the Adams Memorial Building, the museum's contemporary home, their largest artifact. Commissioned by John Quincy Adams, fourth cousin, twice-removed to the sixth president, to honor his late wife, Marilla Fisk Phipps Adams, the building cost roughly $100,000 when it was built in 1891, or about $84 million today.

"Everything we have concerning those involved in the building points toward all the funding coming from Adams," said Michelle Podkowa, museum manager and educator.

Adams drew money from his coal, real estate and grain businesses to hire architect Charles Sumner Frost to design the building in the Richardsonian Romanesque style, a favorite of many civic structures, involving rough-faced stonework, wide arches, turrets and ornamentation. Frost also designed the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition Maine Building and Navy Pier.

"It had electricity and rudimentary plumbing," Podkowa said, plus gas lighting, reading rooms, fireplaces and 2,800 pieces of stained glass windows in the upstairs auditorium.

Before his death in 1899, Adams bequeathed a trust to fund Wheaton's first library for 30 years, even purchasing its first batch of 2,800 books for $3,000, a value of more than $3 million today.

"The original trustees had to go and look at the books, or at least have an idea of what was inside, to make sure they would be of value to the citizens," said Ashley Downing, museum curator.

In 1965, the Adams Memorial Library moved into its new location at 225 N. Cross St. as the Wheaton Public Library, but its former building wasn't vacant for long. The DuPage County Historical Society, founded in 1929 by volunteers, acquired and developed it over two years into the DuPage County Historical Museum.

"They knew they always wanted a museum," Podkowa said. "When this building became available, the historical society set up the museum and the county agreed to run it. The historical society stayed on as a guiding body until the early 2000s, and since then they've been partners on a lot of programs."

The museum's anniversary celebration will include activities and crafts, presentations and a performance by Sons of the New Amish. The historical society also will have its annual meeting, which will be open to the public.

"It will be quite the event for all of our patrons to thank them for all their support in the past 50 years," Podkowa said. "Some families have traditions for three generations involving our building and museum and we are looking forward to being in their lives for the next 50 years!"

To learn more about the DuPage County Historical Museum or to register for the event, visit dupagemuseum.org.

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