Helen S. Myers
Helen Myers was born and raised in Downers Grove. Never one to sit still, she started working part-time at Lucille’s Cleaners while still in high school. She later left to […]
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May 2026
New Shrubs Add Beauty to Main Street Cemetery
Have you taken a good look around as you walk through Main Street Cemetery lately? Visitors may notice several newly planted shrubs adding beauty to this historic resting place in the heart
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The Carl and Janet Kjeldsen House
A Queen Anne Home with Deep Roots Located across “the lane” (now known as Lane Place) from Henry Carpenter’s General Store, 1101 Maple Avenue was built in 1893 and remains
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Pillar of the community, John Mochel Jr., celebrates 100!
The Downers Grove American Legion and VFW Posts honored World War II veteran and businessman John Mochel with a color guard on May 16th to celebrate his 100th birthday. John
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Gordon Goodman
Dr. Gordon Goodman has lived in Downers Grove since 1965. He is a retired chemical physicist who worked at Argonne National Laboratory. He has an amazing passion for historic preservation
The Men on the Monument: Honoring Downers Grove’s WW II Heroes
As Memorial Day approaches, communities across America prepare to honor the men and women who gave their lives to the nation in military service. In Downers Grove, one meaningful place
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Capt. Raymond H. Gansberg
Captain Raymond H. Gansberg was a courageous World War II fighter pilot whose service and sacrifice reflected the bravery of the young men of the Greatest Generation. Born to John and
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Harold Walker Frazer (Fraser)
Harold Walker Fraser was born on March 19, 1917. He enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Force on May 13, 1941, becoming part of the growing air forces preparing for
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Ken Lerner
Early Life and Education Downers Grove Historian of the Year for 2025, Ken Lerner, was born in 1956 and raised in Park Forest, Illinois. His father worked as a chemist
Elmer E. Fox
Born on April 30, 1913, First Lieutenant Elmer E. Fox gave his life in defense of his country on his 32nd birthday, April 30, 1945. He graduated from Downers Grove