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.
April 2022
Little Blue Flowers
I post this every spring because the topic always comes up:
Springtime is here on the Ridge – finally. And many lawns are covered with a little blue flower. This is Siberian squill (Scilla sibirica), which is not native to the USA but was introduced by European settlers. I find a lot of mentions of this plant in horticulture materials from the 1870s and on (although I am sure it was in the "New World" long before that). It was commonly recommended and used in gardens by that time. I do not know when the first Siberian squill bulb was introduced on the Ridge but many of the fine houses on Prospect Ave. date back to that time. It is considered an invasive plant which has replaced native wild flowers in some areas, but the good news is that bees love this plant. This photo is a past view of the Dr. German House at 10924 S. Prospect Ave., with its front lawn of Siberian squill. The close-up of the plant is from the Ridge Historical Society grounds.
The Ridge Historical Society
Upcoming Events
RHS will be opening its doors once again for programming beginning this month, and there are some exciting events coming up.
Sunday, April 24th, from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m., RHS will host “Collectible Show and Tell with Rex Newell”
While not exactly “Antiques Roadshow,” Rex Newell has been in the antiques and collectibles business for over 30 years. He is returning to RHS to do reviews of items people bring in from their personal collections. Reservations required. Limited to 30 participants and 1-2 pieces each. Call or email to RSVP – 773/881-1675; ridgehistory@hotmail.com. Cost $10.00 for members, $15.00 for non-Members
Friday, May 13th, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., RHS will host a "BAPA Porch concert, featuring the band Leadfoot"
The first Beverly Area Planning Association (BAPA) Porch Concert of 2022 will be at RHS, kicking off the Home Tour Weekend. Join us on the big lawn on the Longwood Drive side for this great event featuring the popular local group Leadfoot. Bring a blanket or chairs and any beverages and snacks you would like. Reps from RHS and BAPA will also have tables there to answer any questions. Free Event. The Longwood Drive address is 10616 S. Longwood Drive.
Sunday, May 15th, from 11:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., RHS will be the starting point for the "Beverly/Morgan Park Home Tour," conducted by the Beverly Area Planning Association (BAPA)
RHS Headquarters, the Graver-Driscoll House, designed by architect John Todd Hetherington, begins the tour this year – participants will come to RHS to pick up their admission packets. The theme this year is the three generations of architects from the local Hetherington family and the homes and other buildings they designed in our community. RHS is complementing the BAPA tour with a large new exhibit on the Hetheringtons . Contact BAPA for tickets (bapa.org).
Sunday, June 26th, details to follow, "50/100 Anniversary Party" – Save the Date
2021 was the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Ridge Historical Society and the 100th anniversary of the building of the Graver-Driscoll House, RHS Headquarters. We’ll finally celebrate this year with a great members event. The plans are still being developed so save the date!
Ridge Historical Society
Breaking News – The Pike House has been awarded “Endangered Status”
By Carol Flynn
April 20, 2022
Today, Landmarks Illinois announced the 2022 Most Endangered Historic Places in Illinois, and the Eugene S. Pike House in Dan Ryan Woods in North Beverly is on the list.
According to Landmarks Illinois, the Most Endangered list is a call to action for historic and culturally significant sites that face serious risk of demolition and/or are suffering significant neglect due to lack of maintenance or insufficient funding for repair.
This is the case with the Pike House, and it was the Ridge Historical Society, working with the Beverly Area Planning Association (BAPA), that submitted the application for Endangered status. The awarding of Endangered status is the culmination of months of work by RHS researchers, writers, and advocates to document the importance of the house to the community and the support for saving the house.
The designation of "Endangered" does not bring any protection with it, but it does call attention to the structure’s situation, and brings with it a commitment to save the house. In this case, that means finding a new purpose and new occupants for the house, which includes coming up with the substantial financial resources needed to restore the house.
The Pike House, at the corner of 91st Street and Longwood Drive, was designed by architect Harry Hale Waterman and built in 1893-94 as a gardener’s cottage on the private estate of Eugene S. Pike.
Pike was a wealthy real estate developer and horticulturist who built several “skyscrapers” downtown as well as residential and business developments in the city. He was a major developer in North Beverly, known for his well-landscaped plots.
The Forest Preserves of Cook County bought the Pike estate in 1921 and added it to the Beverly Woods Preserve, which later was renamed the Dan Ryan Woods. The Pike House was used as a superintendent’s headquarters and watchman’s residence during the 100 years it has been owned by FPCC.
The fairy-tale-like stone, stucco and timber house has been a beloved landmark in Beverly for all this time, but it was allowed to deteriorate badly in recent decades. It has been sitting vacant for years.
This is a major first step in saving the Pike House, but now the real work begins to find new occupants and restore the house. Follow the RHS page for updates on this project.
Ridge Historical Society
Requiem for a Giant
By Carol Flynn
The natural world is as much a part of history as human development. When the white settlers arrived on the Blue Island Ridge, they found a “vast vegetable solitude” that they set about turning into tamed farmlands and landscaped homesteads.
Beverly/Morgan Park has been lucky that so many of the old-growth oak trees that once covered the area remained as a canopy. But these oaks that were here when settlement started almost 200 years ago are now dying off from old age. And no plan was ever made to replace them.
Today the air was filled with the sound of chain saws as another deceased oak giant on the Ridge was cut down. Within the next thirty or so years, the Ridge will lose most of these old giants. The community will look very different for future generations.