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.
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Lost or Found Series – The Northrup House
The final post to wrap up the Lost or Found Series is on the Rev. Dr. George William Northrup House.
This house is “lost,” that is, it was demolished sometime in the past. It was located at 2242 Morgan Avenue, the name of 111th Street before Morgan Park was annexed to the City of Chicago in 1914. Today the location is a vacant lot between 2154 and 2204 West 111th Street.
Northrup is one of the most prominent people in Chicago history to have lived on the Ridge. He was the President of the Baptist Union Theological Seminary, as well as a professor there. He was part of the story of how the “new” University of Chicago was established with an original connection to Morgan Park.
The Baptist church came to Chicago with the earliest settlers. In 1863, a group of Baptist leaders created the Baptist Theological Union, and the Illinois legislature granted the Union a charter to found an institution for theological instruction.
The Baptist Union Theological Seminary was founded in 1865 along with the “Old” University of Chicago, that is, the first attempt to form an institution of higher learning in the city, started by Illinois Senator Stephen Douglas.
The formal work of the Seminary began with the appointment of George W. Northrup as President and Professor of Systematic Theology.
Northrup was born in New York in 1826. He was self-taught, and without formal education, he entered college as a sophomore, and graduated with top honors. He then received a degree from Rochester Theological Seminary and was hired there as a professor.
His reputation spread as an educator and orator, and he was invited to Chicago to take charge of the new Seminary.
Originally classes were taught in buildings near Douglas’ Oakenwald estate at 35th Street and Cottage Grove. The Seminary grew under his leadership and earned a reputation for excellence.
Northrup was personally involved in fund raising for the Seminary, and through this, he met and developed a relationship with John D. Rockefeller, business icon and philanthropist.
In the mid-1870s, the Seminary, and the Old University of Chicago, started having financial issues, and there was talk of having to close.
In 1877, a generous offer of free land (five acres) from the Blue Island Land & Building Co. (BILBCo.) led to the Seminary selling its buildings and land, relocating to Morgan Park, and building new facilities there.
This was quite a coup for the BILBCo., and helped fulfill the plan to establish Morgan Park as a prestigious religious, education, and temperance community. It was anticipated that additional educational facilities would follow, creating a new University of Chicago. Morgan Park Academy, started as the Mount Vernon Military Academy, and the Chicago Female College, were already established in Morgan Park.
The Seminary built an imposing three-story office and classroom building, now long gone, on the north side of 111th Street, just east of Western Avenue. Funding partially came from Rockefeller to do this, as well as from the BILBCo.
The Seminary brought to Morgan Park a considerable number of administrators, professors, clergymen, students, and members of the Baptist church. This led to a building boom for new houses.
Northrup moved to Morgan Park to continue to head the Seminary. Other important names were William Rainey Harper, a Baptist clergyman of Irish and Scottish ancestry who was an expert in Semitic languages and a professor of Hebrew at the Seminary.
There was also Thomas Wakefield Goodspeed from New York, who studied at the Old University of Chicago, was a founder of the Morgan Park Baptist Church, and was the financial officer for the Seminary.
The Old University of Chicago closed in 1886. Immediately talk about founding a new university was started. Public sentiment was in favor of building the school near the location of the original one, partly to honor the legacy of Senator Douglas, but also because people did not want the school in a suburb away from city accessibility.
Northrup, Goodspeed, Harper, and other leaders of the Seminary approached Rockefeller about establishing a new University of Chicago. The proposal was that the main university would be in Hyde Park, with some auxiliary components in Morgan Park.
Rockefeller agreed to the funding, but he was not interested in the Morgan Park part of the plan. His donations, which totaled over $1.5 million, included the stipulation that the Baptist Seminary become the Divinity School of the new university, and move back to Hyde Park. The Board for the new university readily accepted this plan.
In 1892, the Baptist Theological Seminary became the Divinity School of the new University of Chicago, and relocated from Morgan Park. Harper was named the president of the new university, and Goodspeed was a member of the Board of Trustees serving as secretary, registrar, and historian
Northrup, now approaching his 70s and having health issues, declined a leadership role, preferring to devote his time to teaching.
Northrup died in 1900. His personal library, consisting of 1,500 valuable books, was gifted to the university. His body lay in state at the university, and the famous sculptor from the Art Institute of Chicago, Lorado Taft, produced a marble bust of Northrup. He was buried in Oak Woods Cemetery.
Northrup outlived his two wives, Mary and Naomi, and had four adult children, three sons and a daughter. The daughter, Alice Northrup Simpson, lived her life in Morgan Park. She was employed as a teacher before marrying the Rev. Benjamin J. Simpson, and becoming the mother of five children. Simpson died in 1894 at the age of 39, leaving Alice a widow with five children. Alice died in 1916.
Other institutions used the Morgan Park Seminary buildings for a while, but shortly after 1900, the main building was demolished.
The female college continued for a number of years, but eventually closed as more education opportunities became available for women. The original building, on the Ridge on Lothair Avenue, was demolished in 1911.
The military academy was a preparatory school for the university for a few years, but the university decided to close it, and the school became the independent Morgan Park Military Academy.
Ridge Historical Society
The Connection Between the Ridge and Ukraine
By Carol Flynn
This Saturday, August 24th, is Ukrainian Independence Day.
Ukraine remains in the headlines as that independence continues to be threatened by Russia.
This post is a reminder that the Ridge has a historical connection to Ukraine, as well as a current one.
The historical connection comes through a prominent Ukrainian American family that lived on the Ridge.
Dr. Miroslaw and Bonnie Siemens (Sieminowycz, Sieminowich) owned and lived in the Givins Beverly Castle at 103rd St. and Longwood Drive from 1921 until the Beverly Unitarian Church bought the building in 1942.
At the time of Dr. Siemens’ death in 1967, at the age of 82, the family was living at 9559 S. Longwood Drive.
Dr. Siemens was born in 1885 in Ukraine and came to the USA in 1907. He graduated in 1913 from Bennett Medical College, affiliated with Loyola University.
He was naturalized as a U.S. citizen in 1914, and served in the U.S. military during World War I. He was a major, a regimental surgeon, with the 497th Field Artillery.
He then practiced at Roseland Community Hospital and kept an office in the Castle. He was also the physician for the Nickel Plate Railroad.
Dr. Siemens’ parents, Nicholas and Maria Magdalena Seiminowich, also lived in the Castle. Nicholas was a Ukrainian Catholic priest who rose to monsignor. In this rite, married men can be ordained priests.
Bonnie Veronica Barry Siemens, born in 1890, was Irish Catholic. They married in 1915 and had four children, Miroslaw, Jr., Roman, James, and Patricia.
Bonnie's mother Margaret Branan also lived with the family. Bonnie had tuberculosis and the grandparents did much of the childcare.
Dr. Siemens was very active and important in the Ukrainian American community. One notable achievement was to serve as the planner, fundraiser, and chair of the Ukrainian exhibit at the Century of Progress World’s Fair in Chicago in 1933-34. The exhibit showcased the country’s traditional arts and culture, including pysanky, the famous Ukrainian Easter eggs decorated using a wax-resist method. The tradition of decorating eggs, now associated with Easter, originated in Ukraine and the practice goes back thousands of years, predating the arrival of Christianity.
In 1939, Siemens was called to testify before the Special Committee on Un-American Activities of the U.S. House of Representatives because of a Ukrainian organization of which he was president. This was a precursor of “McCarthyism” when private citizens as well as public employees were investigated for “subversive activities” because of suspected communist ties. No charges were ever laid against Siemens’ group. The group dissolved in 1942.
Siemens was a benefactor of St. Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral in Ukrainian Village on Chicago’s north side.
In the early 1950s he was instrumental in establishing the Ukrainian National Museum and served as honorary president.
Dr. Siemens has been called the “first ambassador for Ukraine in the U.S.” because of his efforts to preserve Ukrainian history and to help refugees from the country. Many dignitaries including the Crown Prince of Ukraine visited the family in the Castle.
The Siemens family is covered in "Chicago’s Only Castle – The History of Givins’ Irish Castle and Its Keepers" by Errol Magidson.
The Ridge community currently has two events going on that relate to Ukraine.
First, the book-signing for a new children’s picture story book, the “Plucky Ukrainian Sunflower,” created by local artist Judie Anderson and her daughter Karen Doornebos, will be on Ukrainian Independence Day, Saturday, August 24, from 2 to 4 p.m. at Bookie’s New and Used Books, 10324 S. Western Ave. Here is a link to an article on that event: https://www.beverlyreview.net/news/community_news/article_ce43cdba-598e-11ef-9490-3f76ccffd4b3.html
Second, the exhibit by Ukrainian artist Valeriia Tarasenko at the Beverly Arts Center, 2407 West 111th St., will continue through September 15th. Here is a link to an article on that event: https://www.beverlyreview.net/news/community_news/article_252dd3e2-4e94-11ef-9901-33b32ad93eb6.html
Ridge Historical Society
National Dog Day – August 26, 2024
By Carol Flynn
National Dog Day occurs annually on August 26 as a world-wide event to bring attention to all breeds of dogs and the importance of dogs in our lives.
Started 20 years ago by an animal welfare advocate, the day also calls attention to the many dogs that need to be rescued and adopted each year.
Of course, there are many stories related to dogs in the Ridge communities’ history. One favorite story, however, directly relates to rescue and adoption.
In the summer of 1945, a small dog described as a “brown toy shepherd” started to be noticed living in Dan Ryan Woods. It was assumed she had been dumped there because many people abandon animals of all kinds in the forest preserves. The animals rarely survive a Chicago winter.
The little dog was elusive with people. She would allow them to get just so close before she scampered away. She was often seen hunting for rabbits and warily searching picnic grounds for half-eaten sandwiches.
She began to be known as “the wild dog of Ryans Woods” but the children in the neighborhood called her Dollie, and eventually the adults started calling her that, also.
In October, as the weather cooled, the neighbors started leaving food out for Dollie at the edge of the woods. Mrs. Northrup, who lived at 8957 S. Oakley Ave., an active charity and “club” woman in the community, determined to capture Dollie and find her a good home.
That proved more difficult than expected. Talking softly to Dollie and offering tasty tidbits of food still brought Mrs. Northrup no closer than 10 to 15 feet from the dog.
Mrs. Northrup called in the Illinois Citizens’ Animal Welfare League, who sent experienced field agent Allen Glisch over to the woods.
While Mrs. Northrup distracted Dollie, Glisch managed to get a leash around the dog’s neck. Little Dollie, still shy, didn’t fight them; she wagged her tail when Mrs. Northrup and Glisch approached her and petted her.
When they started leading her out of the woods, however, Dollie hesitated to go. Instead, she led them to a nearby brush heap. There, in a leaf-lined den that she had dug, they found three puppies, about a week old whose eyes had not yet opened, fast asleep.
Dollie whined and danced around proudly as Glisch gathered the puppies in his arms, and she happily followed him as her puppies were carried over to Mrs. Northrup’s home.
Dollie became a bit of a media sensation, attracting the attention of the Chicago Tribune. In California, Marguerite Doe Ravenscroft, a wealthy socialite and philanthropist who strongly supported humane efforts and was the honorary chairman of the local animal welfare league, saw the article, and in December, sent a check for $15,000 to the Illinois organization to help build a new shelter in Chicago.
Dollie, her puppies, Mildred Fitz Hugh, the founder and president of the Illinois chapter, and Skippy, a terrier mix who got in on the act, posed for a picture with the check that appeared in the Chicago Tribune.
Fitz Hugh, also a wealthy socialite and the grandniece of Mayor Carter Harrison, announced in February of 1946 that the money was used to purchase two buildings at 3138-3140 Walton Street, for a new shelter. There was already a shelter at 6224 S. Wabash Ave.
What became of Dollie and her puppies wasn’t reported in the newspaper, but given their star qualities, and their downright adorableness, it’s probably safe to assume that they found “forever” homes.
Labor Day on the Ridge 100 Years Ago
One hundred years ago, Labor Day occurred on Monday, September 1st.
It was a lovely day – in the mid-70s, partly cloudy, gentle shifting winds: a perfect day to wrap up the summer.
Throughout the Chicagoland area, the holiday was celebrated with activities. The mosquitos were particularly bad that year, especially in the forest preserves, but that did not stop thousands of people from going to the preserves for picnics and sporting events.
The Beverly Preserve at 87th Street and Western Avenue was one of the most popular of the forest preserves because it was the only one accessible by public transportation. Streetcars brought people as far as 87th Street and Ashland Ave., and they walked the rest of the way; or the Rock Island Railroad dropped them off at the 91st Street station, right outside of the forest preserve.
Around 1900, for about a decade, Morgan Park held large “Morgan Park Day” festivals on Labor Day.
In 1923 and 1924, a different kind of program went on, a “chautauqua.”
“Chautauqua” was an adult education and social movement of the late 1800s to the mid-1920s. The movement started in 1874 with an adult summer school for Sunday School teachers at an outside campsite on Chautauqua Lake in New York. That program started with Bible studies, but the idea spread to other schools and sites that started offering programs in many different topics.
Schools, and then communities and private organizers started offering chautauquas, as the programs became known, to the general public. The programs were usually a multi-day event, and featured a variety of speeches and educational talks, along with musical acts, dancers, art events, and other entertainment.
In Beverly/Morgan Park, the chautauqua that was offered from August 23 to September 3, 1924, was produced by the concert management firm of Stroup and Phillips, and was held on Hoyne Avenue from 110th to 111th Streets.
Roy Phillips, who lived in Morgan Park and had been the editor of the Weekly Review and Blue Island Sun Standard newspapers, had gone into the business with Harry Stroup in March of 1923. They represented a wide range of musical artists.
We don’t know the programs, speakers, or performers that Phillips presented that year, but one strong possibility was a performer introduced as the Indian princess “Watahwaso, a daughter of the Penobscot tribe of Indians,” that he featured at other programs.
Watahwaso appeared in costume and related “interesting Indian legends and sang beautiful songs of her own and other tribes.”
Another performer that Phillips promoted that year who likely performed in Morgan Park was James Goddard, a bass baritone of the Chicago Opera Company. He was described as “a great big he-man, strong as Hercules and handsome as Adonis,” with “a wonderful voice of great purity and strength.”
Chautauquas were very popular throughout the U.S. This image is from one held in Ohio.
The Ridge History Society
Moving on from Barwick to Waterman
By Carol Flynn
Every fall, the Ridge Historical Society (RHS) looks forward to participating in the Beverly Art Walk and Open House Chicago. These events offer wonderful opportunities to present new exhibits showcasing the fascinating history of Beverly and Morgan Park to much wider audiences.
This post is a last call for viewing the current exhibit, “Louise Barwick’s Lost Ridge,” and the sub-exhibit, “Lost and Found.”
This current exhibit focuses on life on the Ridge from 1893 to 1905 as seen through the watercolor paintings of Louise Barwick, an artist and educator who lived on the Ridge. Another component of the exhibit includes aerial photography of Beverly taken by cameras attached to kites in 1899. A third component features historic images of buildings in Morgan Park taken in 1889, some of which remain and some of which are gone.
The exhibit may be viewed on Tuesdays and Sundays from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. or by appointment. This exhibit will be phased out after Tuesday, September 24.
The first part of a new exhibit on architect Harry Hale Waterman, titled “Harry Hale Waterman, Architect: Unique in Any Style,” will then begin with the Beverly Area Art Walk on Saturday, September 28th, from 12 noon to 5:00 p.m.
Photographer and RHS Board member Mati Maldre will exhibit more than 20 photos he has taken of Beverly/Morgan Park buildings designed by Waterman.
Waterman (1869-1948) was a contemporary, indeed a good acquaintance, of Frank Lloyd Wright. But while Wright concentrated his work on the one style he became so well known for, the Prairie Style, Waterman designed in many different styles, putting his unique “spin” or interpretation on each. He designed dozens of houses and other buildings in Beverly and Morgan Park around 1900.
Mati Maldre is a retired Professor of Art/Photography from Chicago State University (CSU). He initiated the photography program and taught at CSU, as well as the Beverly Art Center for 35 years.
During this year’s Beverly Art Walk, Maldre will discuss the process of taking professional architectural photographs using his wooden Deardorff camera and demonstrate how view cameras operate and why they create such detailed and sharp photographs.
Also at RHS for the Beverly Art Walk on September 28 will be glass artist Sean Michael Felix, the owner of Illumination Art & Design in Humboldt Park.
Felix creates unique hand crafted architectural art glass, glass signs, and stained glass using 19th century techniques. For the Beverly Art Walk he will exhibit samples of his beautiful decorative work and demonstrate the nearly lost art of applying gold leaf to glass the way it was done by artisans in the Victorian Era.
RHS is located at 10621 S. Seeley Ave., in Chicago, and may be contacted at 773-881-1675 or ridgehistory@hotmail.com.
The complete Waterman exhibit will open in October in time for Open House Chicago on the weekend of October 19th and 20th.
Stay tuned to this page for an upcoming Facebook series on Waterman and his structures on the Ridge.
Driscoll Family Visit
The Ridge Historical Society (RHS) loves visits from the Ridge’s “historic families.”
Last Friday, RHS welcomed Michael Driscoll and his girlfriend Tara Moran. RHS is located in the historic Graver-Driscoll House, and Michael is the grandson of James Driscoll, who donated the house to RHS in 1973.
Tara and Michael live in Orlando, Florida, and planned a visit to see her family in Chicago. Michael had told Tara that his grandfather was the Driscoll of the Graver-Driscoll House, and that he, Michael, had spent some time as a child in Chicago.
Tara asked RHS if she could arrange a visit to the house as a surprise for Michael. RHS was happy to oblige, and here are pictures of Michael and Tara at the house.
Perhaps the most important part of RHS’s history is acquiring the Graver House from James Driscoll.
In 1971, residents of Beverly and Morgan Park got together to discuss forming a historical society and museum, and the Ridge Historical Society, or RHS, was born.
Of course, a critical part of forming RHS was finding a place to house the museum and collection that was planned.
In 1972, Justin O’Toole was the President of the Standard Bank and the chairman of the RHS finance committee. Also on the board of the bank was James Driscoll, an electrical contractor, who announced he was selling his house at 10621 S. Seeley Avenue and moving his family to Florida.
O’Toole suggested to Driscoll that instead of selling the house, he donate it to RHS for the remaining mortgage, which was around $10,000. The house was valued at $150,000. Driscoll turned the Graver House over to RHS in January of 1973.
James Driscoll was born in 1930 in Chicago and served in the U.S. Marine Corps. He joined IBEW Local 134 in Chicago and established Driscoll Electric, which specialized in institutional and commercial projects, steel mills, and water treatment plants. Three generations of the family were part of the organization.
When James Driscoll died in Florida in 2008, it was noted that he shared “amusing perspectives on life with a wickedly Irish sense of humor.” He was described as a “visionary who lived life on his own terms and faced success and adversity with grace and dignity.” His remains were returned to Chicago and he is buried in St. Mary's Cemetery at 87th Street and Pulaski Road.
Michael’s and Tara’s visit reminds RHS and all of the Ridge of the very generous gift that James Driscoll gave to the community.
RHS is located at 10621 S. Seeley Ave., in Chicago. It is open to the public on Tuesdays and Sundays from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. or by appointment. Contact at 773/881-1675 or ridgehistory@hotmail.com.
St. Joseph Statues
A homeowner in North Beverly recently told the story that when they first bought their home about 20 years ago, he was digging in the garden and came across what he first thought was a piece of bone but turned out to be a statue, buried upside down.
He was a little startled by the discovery, but many people reading this probably recognized at once that this was a statue of St. Joseph. It’s common practice for homeowners to bury a statue of St. Joseph to aid them in selling their houses.
Where this custom started is not known with any certainty, but sometimes it is attributed to St. Teresa of Avila, a nun who lived in the 1500s. St. Teresa has having difficulty finding land for a new convent, so she and the other nuns buried medals of St Joseph to ask for his help. Soon, the perfect spot became available to them.
St. Joseph, of course, was the humble carpenter who took on the role of marrying Mary, the mother of Jesus, and becoming stepfather to Jesus, creating the Holy Family. He protected and provided for them and found new homes for them when needed.
He is the patron saint of families, fathers, workers, carpenters, emigrants, travelers, and house hunters.
Starting in the 1990s, it became a trend to bury a St. Joseph statue when trying to sell a house. There are no set rules for where and how to bury the statue. Front yard, back yard. By the road, by the for-sale sign, near a flower bed, three feet from the back of the house. Facing outward in the direction you want to move, facing the house, upside down, lying down face up. Wrapped in cloth or plastic or not.
Shoppers used to be able to go into religious goods shops and find an entire section with St. Joseph statues for sale. Most of those shops are gone, but the statues are readily available on Amazon now and go for around $7 for a basic while plastic statue.
Real estate agents used to buy the statues in bulk and give them to their clients to bury.
There are many testimonials from people who claim they were having a difficult time selling their house, then they planted a St. Joseph statue, and the house sold immediately.
This practice started with Catholics and spread to everyone. For the record, though, the Catholic Church does not condone this “superstition.” It’s advised that people pray to St. Joseph to ask for his help, and if a statue is to be involved, it should be kept in a place of honor in the house as a reminder to do this.
If a homeowner decides to bury a statue of St Joseph as a house-selling strategy, it is advised the statue be removed once the house is sold. Otherwise, the house will be resold and resold….
The homeowners who found the statue in North Beverly tossed it away, and they have lived there now for about 20 years.
But this does make one wonder … how many statues of St. Joseph are buried on the Ridge?
Beverly Art Walk on Saturday
Everyone is gearing up for the 11th Beverly Art Walk on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024! Events will be set up all around Beverly and Morgan Park.
The Ridge Historical Society will be open from 12 noon to 5 p.m. that day, and featured will be:
– Photographer Mati Maldre's collection of photographs of houses and buildings designed by architect H. H. Waterman. Mati will be there in person to demonstrate his Deardorff 4×5/5×7 view camera, which he used to take these photos.
Mati said, "The large format 4×5, 5×7 or 8×10 view cameras are the professional standard for architectural photography because of the clarity of image afforded by the use of large positive transparencies or negatives, utilizing less magnification when printing."
He would know – Mati is a retired Professor of Art/Photography from Chicago State University and has an extensive and impressive bio. He taught photography at the Beverly Arts Center for 35 years. He is on the RHS Board of Directors and chairs the Historic Buildings Committee.
This is an introduction to the new exhibit that RHS is mounting, "Harry Hale Waterman, Architect: Unique in Any Style," which will open for Open House Chicago on October 19 and 20.
In the meantime, visitors can also still catch the current exhibit, "Louise Barwick's Lost Ridge," which shows lovely water color paintings by Miss Barwick, an art teacher in the neighborhood, from around 1900.
– Also at RHS for the Beverly Art Walk will be glass artist Sean Michael Felix, the owner of Illumination Art & Design in Humboldt Park.
Felix creates unique hand crafted architectural art glass, glass signs, and stained glass using 19th century techniques. For the Beverly Art Walk he will exhibit samples of his beautiful decorative work and demonstrate the nearly lost art of applying gold leaf to glass the way it was done by artisans in the Victorian Era.
RHS is located at 10621 S. Seeley Ave., in Chicago, and may be contacted at 773-881-1675 or ridgehistory@hotmail.com.
More on the Beverly Art Walk – Irish Dancers
Tomorrow, Saturday, September 28th, will be the Beverly Art Walk. The Ridge Historical Society (RHS) has a spectacular day planned for the public – it will be entertaining and informative, with a true "historical" flavor that will not be captured anywhere else!
In the previous post, the artists who will be at RHS from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. were introduced – Photographer Mati Maldre, and glass artist Sean Michael Felix.
Dancing and musical acts will also go on all around the neighborhood, but the only place visitors will be able to experience traditional Irish dancing will be at RHS.
The Weber Irish Dance company will appear at RHS from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., with regular, short performances every 10 minutes.
Weber Irish Dance has been a South Side Chicago presence for 60 years. Many people associate Irish dancing with St. Patrick's Day, but folk customs from all cultures should be shared and celebrated throughout the year.
RHS thanks Weber Irish Dance for participating in our event!
RHS is located at 10621 S. Seeley Avenue. Park on Seeley and walk up the driveway to the house.
The Beverly Area Arts Alliance's annual Beverly Art Walk is about community, and yesterday's 11th Art Walk proved once again that the Alliance has done so much to revitalize the "modern" Beverly/Morgan Park.
Events went on all over the neighborhood, and the Ridge Historical Society (RHS) was fortunate to have glass artist Sean Michael Felix "assigned" to us by Alliance leader Sal Campbell.
Sal always does a great job of matching artists with venues, and this is a perfect example – an artist who uses old-world processes to create beautiful images on glass, using etching, paints, gold leaf and other techniques, matched up with the one place in the community you are able, even encouraged, to be "old school" and think about the past!
RHS also had its own Mati Maldre, photographer and RHS Board member, with a display of his award-winning architectural photos of buildings in the community designed by architect H. H. Waterman. The day was rounded out with entertainment by Weber Irish Dance company, a South Side Irish institution for 60 years!
Plus, a new term has entered the community's lexicon – several people said yesterday they were out and about "art walking." That's how language evolves.
Here is a picture of Sean and Sal together yesterday at RHS, with just some of Sean's wonderful work.
Now RHS is on to preparation of the new exhibit, "Harry Hale Waterman, Architect: Unique in Any Style," which will premiere for Open House Chicago on October 19 – 20.