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.
September 2022
The Ridge Historical Society will be open to the public today, Tuesday, from 1 to 4 p.m. Admission is free, and everyone is welcome. Enter at 10621 S. Seeley Avenue.
The current exhibit is Hetherington Design Dynasty, telling the story of three generations of the Hetherington family of architects, who designed over seventy buildings in the Beverly/Morgan Park community.
The exhibit is currently being expanded for the Beverly Art Walk. A new section is being added that will feature Mildred Lyon Hetherington.
Mildred joined the Hetherington family when she married Murray Duncan Hetherington in 1924. They had met when both were students at the School of the Art Institute. Murray became an architect and Mildred became a portraitist and illustrator of children’s textbooks, story books, and craft projects.
A nice sampling of Mildred’s portraits will be on display for the Art Walk, as well as some of the books and craft products she illustrated.
Getting ready behind the scenes for the Beverly Art Walk. Carol Flynn photographed Linda Lamberty photographing Russell Ingram photographing Tim Blackburn for the Ridge Historical Society exhibit.
Linda is the Historian for RHS and the community. She knows just about everything about the history of this community and what she doesn't know she'll research until she finds the answer.
Russell is the official photographer for the Art Walk, hired by the Beverly Area Arts Alliance. His work is amazing – check out his website at russellingram.com.
Tim is the new and very-welcomed member of the RHS team, a superb researcher and the creator of much of the current exhibit on the Hetherington Design Dynasty. The future of RHS is in good hands.
Mark your calendars for September 17 for the Beverly Art Walk!
It's going to rain all day today – a perfect day for an inside visit to the Ridge Historical Society to see the Hetherington Design Dynasty exhibit. The address is 10621 S. Seeley Avenue, Chicago, and RHS is open from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. on Sundays, free admission.
The 2022 Beverly Art Walk
The Ridge Historical Society will be doing what we do best, something no one else will be doing, for the 2022 Beverly Art Walk – connecting the past with the present.
“The Ridge” has had an art community going back to its earliest days. Once the railroads started making the area accessible, artists came to seek inspiration from the natural beauty of the Ridge.
On August 23, 1884, the Inter Ocean newspaper, one of the Chicago newspapers of the day, published an article about Washington Heights, which included today’s Beverly, and Morgan Park. The article reported on the unique attractiveness and engaging panorama of the Ridge, the forest so dense that to get lost in it was an easy thing, the wild cherries, the twilight shadows, the deep ravines, the hooting owls ….
The Ridge woods were visited that day by “young Landeau,” an artist who was in mourning because he had recently lost his friend and mentor, landscape artist Henry Arthur Elkins. Landeau was quoted as saying, “These very woods gave Elkins his inspiration, I verily believe, and I happen to know he often visited them.”
Landeau took solace that he was experiencing the same “wild
scenes” that so inspired his friend.
Artists soon began moving to the Ridge. In the 1890s, John Vanderpoel and William French from the Art Institute of Chicago made their homes in North Beverly. Hundreds of artists have called the Ridge home during the last one hundred and thirty years.
One of these was Mildred Lyon, whose family moved to Beverly in 1914, the year she graduated from the Art Institute. Although Vanderpoel was gone by then from the Art Institute, Mildred’s instruction would have been strongly influenced by him and his famous book, The Human Figure, which guided countless students on how to draw features of the human body from foreheads to toes. Mildred certainly knew Matilda Vanderpoel, the younger sister of the artist, also an instructor at the Art Institute and resident of North Beverly.
Mildred married Murray Hetherington in 1924, joining the family known for designing some of the outstanding architecture that shaped Beverly/Morgan Park into the show place it remains to this day. Mildred became known in her own right for her portraits and illustrations of children’s books and craft projects.
Mildred Lyon Hetherington will be the focus of the exhibit that RHS will premier for the Beverly Art Walk on Saturday, September 17. This week, we will offer some glimpses into Mildred and the upcoming exhibit.
The Beverly Art Walk, brought to us by the Beverly Area Arts Alliance, concentrates on the present-day artists in the community. The Alliance founders, Sal Campbell and Monica Wilczak, are commended for revitalizing the arts on the Ridge. RHS concentrates on the history of the community and this exhibit provides a link from the past to the present.
The Beverly Art Walk – Final Countdown
We’re in the final countdown – it’s less than two days until the Beverly Art Walk, which will take place on Saturday, September 17, from 12 noon to 5:00 p.m.
At the Ridge Historical Society, the Hetherington Design Dynasty exhibit has been expanded to include a new section on Mildred Lyon Hetherington, the local artist who was very active in the Beverly/Morgan Park arts community from the 1920s through the 1970s.
Mildred married architect Murray Hamilton, and they lived in the beautiful home Murray designed at 8918 S. Hamilton Avenue. Unfortunately, they lost that home during the Great Depression. They moved in with her father at 10153 S. Prospect Street, converting some of the space into studios, and creating an outdoor area for entertainment.
Mildred’s portrait painting was the major source of family income during the Depression. By her own account, she painted or drew over one thousand portraits during her career.
Another major component of Mildred’s career was illustrating children’s books and craft projects. This brings in an important connection between art and education.
Illustrations in children’s books serve many purposes. They delight the eye, they stir the imagination, and they foster an appreciation for art. They are valuable education and child development tools. By visualizing events, children can better understand words and concepts and the world around them, helping them to develop analytical and interpretive skills. Children learn how to model their own behavior – helping others, sharing – more from examples, like illustrations, than from being told what to do.
Mildred Lyon Hetherington created illustrations for dozens of children’s storybooks and textbooks. She also developed posters for craft projects that were fun activities while educating about history and helping children develop their fine motor skills.
All this, and more, is covered in the RHS exhibit. Plus, for the Art Walk, performances by the Weber School of Irish Dance will take place every hour on the half hour on the driveway near the Seeley Avenue entrance. There will be beer tastings from Horse Thief Hollow on the veranda where visitors can experience the great view down to Longwood Drive.
The RHS grounds are entered at 10621 S. Seeley Avenue. Parking is available on the street.
All ready for the Beverly Art Walk – TODAY – Saturday, September 17, 12 noon to 5 p.m.
Be sure to stop by the Ridge Historical Society, 10621 S. Seely Ave., Chicago.
Exhibit: The Hetherington Design Dynasty featuring the artwork of Mildred Lyon Hetherington.
Other highlights: Coloring activity for children, beer tasting from Horse Thief Hollow, performances by the Weber School of Irish Dance.
If you couldn't make a stop at the Ridge Historical Society (RHS) yesterday for the Beverly Art Walk, you'll have plenty of other chances to see the exhibit The Hetherington Design Dynasty, which now also features the artwork of Mildred Lyon Hetherington.
RHS is open on Tuesday and Sunday afternoons from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m., free of charge. Join us.
Location: 10621 S. Seeley Avenue, Chicago. Free admission.
Join RHS this Sunday for a wine and mead tasting event with Wild Blossom Meadery and Winery. Tickets available through Eventbrite at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/rhs-special-tasting-fundraising-event-tickets-416378067007.
The address is 10621 S. Seeley Avenue, the cost is $40 for RHS members, $50 for non-members.
The Ridge Historical Society is open today from 1 to 4 p.m., free of charge. Enter at 10621 S. Seeley Avenue. At 4 p.m., the mead and wine tasting fundraiser begins, and there are still tickets available.