Built circa 1915 by Orlando Edward F. & Anna Hecht, this home is an excellent example of an American Foursquare. A typical Foursquare has a rectangular footprint, a hip roof (possibly with a dormer on the front), wide eaves, and a front porch spanning the width of the house. A rarity, the owners had the original plans passed down to them when they bought the home, so we know the builder was E. Conrad Carlson. Mr. Carlson immigrated to the US from Sweden in 1903. He married his wife in 1906. We find him running ads in the Chicago area papers for his business starting in 1909.

Mr. & Mrs. Hecht built and owned this home for 37 years. They were married in 1909 in Chicago, IL. Much of their extended family lived in Downers Grove also. This information was confirmed with a letter from a granddaughter of the Hecht’s to the current homeowners. Other memories she shared with the homeowners were Mr. Hecht had a Victory Garden in the backyard. In her grandparents kitchen was a metal enamel-top table where they would eat breakfast. The Hecht’s had an old fashioned Victrola that played metal copper cylinders by winding a crank. And roller-skating in the spring with clamp-on skates was a sure sign summer was on the way.

Research by Chuck Holtzen. Photo by Sydney Musselman.