The RHS Facebook page is a rich archive of history-related posts by Carol Flynn, RHS Facebook admin and writer until mid-2025. Carol prolifically wrote a wide variety of meticulously researched local history articles for RHS. She continues to write for the Beverly Review and other media sources with articles particularly focused on local Ridge history.
Past Events: 2020
Today the Ridge Historical Society revealed a recent donation and plans for a new exhibit. Beverly resident Joan Regnier O'Connor has donated her family's collection of five original American Girl dolls and numerous furniture items and accessories.
The American Girl dolls, of course, are a well known and beloved phenomenon. They are a line of 18-inch dolls first introduced in 1986 by the Pleasant Company, founded by Pleasant Rowland. The original dolls focused on various periods of American history, with accompanying books told from the viewpoint of the girls. Rowland sold the company to Mattel in 1998.
Joan began collecting the dolls with her daughters Michelle and Christina, who are now in their 30s. They first got interested in the dolls thanks to Joan's mother-in-law, the late Grace O'Connor, who was a children's librarian in Beverly and Mt. Greenwood. Grace shared the books with her daughter-in-law and granddaughters. She used to hold parties for the dolls at the libraries.
Joining the RHS collection are Felicity from the Colonial period, Kirsten the Pioneer girl, Addy from the Civil War era, Samantha from late Victorian times, and Molly from World War II.
RHS will be showcasing the dolls in a new exhibit, "Real American Girls of the Ridge." Three of the dolls, Addy, Samantha and Molly, will be paired with stories of actual girls who grew up connected to the Ridge communities during the appropriate time periods.
Addy will be paired with the story of the late Cornelia Reeves, an ex-slave who settled in Morgan Park in 1885-86. Her descendants are believed to still be in the area and RHS Historian Linda Lamberty, the Curator for this exhibit, is tracking them down for the story.
Samantha will be paired with the late Margaret Gear Lawrence who grew up on the Ridge around 1900. Margaret became very active with the new Girl Scouts organization founded in 1912. RHS Board Secretary Carol Macola, also very active with the Girl Scouts, will help with this exhibit entry.
Molly will be paired with Elaine Spencer, RHS President, who grew up on the Ridge during World War II. Elaine will share first-hand stories of life in the early 1940s during the turbulent war years.
Pleasant Rowland, the "inventor" of the American Girl dolls, has a strong connection to the Ridge. Her paternal grandparents lived at 96th and Winchester and her father spent his formative years here.
All of these stories will be shared in upcoming Facebook posts.
The soft opening for the "Real American Girls of the Ridge" exhibit will be at the annual meeting of RHS members on February 23rd. The following Sunday, March 1, at 2:00 p.m. will be the free grand opening reception for the public at RHS. The exhibit will run through the summer. Watch this page for more information.
The event, "Speaking of Unmentionables: History of Ladies' Underwear," has been cancelled for this Sunday, January 26, 2020. It is being rescheduled for Sunday, February 9, 2020. We are sorry for any inconvenience this has caused. Thank you.
Oh, the weather outside was frightful, but the party inside was delightful …. Thank you to the brave souls who came out tonight during Chicago's first major snowstorm of the season for the closing reception for the "Threads of Imagination" exhibit at the Ridge Historical Society.
Performance artists donned Sandra Leonard's sculptural costumes for an improvised art performance event. Sandra offers a rich visual experience often based on birds and that was tonight's theme. The performers distributed origami birds to the guests which made for a nice keepsake. Some of the birds found a new home at RHS.
Last reminder! Attend this event before we get snowed and iced in for the next few days – the storm is due to get pretty bad during the night, after this is over. Tonight, 7 to 9 p.m., at the Ridge Historical Society, 10621 S. Seeley Ave., Chicago, the closing reception for the "Threads of Imagination" exhibit featuring performance artists wearing the sculptural costumes of Sandra Leonard. Free, great refreshments! Come on over! Reservations not required! Last chance to see this great exhibit!
Tomorrow night, Friday, January 17, 2020 – the closing reception for the "Threads of Imagination" exhibit at the Ridge Historical Society, 10621 S. Seeley Ave., Chicago, from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. The featured artist will be Sandra Leonard who will have performance artists there in some of her sculptural costumes. Free admission, refreshments will be served. Send a Message to RHS with any questions.
Be sure to get this event on your calendars!
It’s been an incredible four months but they say all good things must come to an end. The closing reception for the “Threads of Imagination” exhibit at the Ridge Historical Society will be on Friday, January 17, 2020, from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. at RHS, 10621 S. Seeley Ave., Chicago.
The event is titled “Final Threads with Sandra Leonard.” Sandra creates sculptural costumes that turn the human form into living sculpture. Performance artists arrayed in some of Sandra’s creations will interact with the guests. Sandra’s work appears internationally in performance art productions, improvised theater, alternative fashion shows and installation projects.
This will be the last chance to view the “Threads of Imagination” exhibit, a look at the intersection of fashion, art and business through the creative work of five Beverly artists. Featured are the historic Madame Alla Ripley, a famous fashion designer and savvy businesswoman who lived on the Ridge 100 years ago, and four current artists.
Judie Anderson displays a selection of her fashion illustrations from the 1960s-70s. Nicole Burns of NiBu Design shares her eclectic artwork inspired by vintage fabrics, and her collection of antique sewing items. Maggie O’Reilly showcases items from her two entrepreneurial companies – Maggy May line of girls’ clothing, and The MAYTA Collection of personal and home accessories produced by artisans in Peru and Morocco through fair trade agreements. These three artists have been profiled in recent programs and plan to be at the reception. And the fourth artist, Sandra Leonard, will be profiled this evening.
Admission is free; refreshments will be served. Reservations are requested but not required. Contact RHS at 773/881-1675 or ridgehistory@hotmail.com.