“Finding Freedom in the Grove”
10th Annual Founders Day Celebration!
Since 2014 the Downers Grove Historical Society and the Downers Grove Museum have been hosting an annual event to honor one of our founders. This year we invite you to join us in honoring Downers Grove founder Isrel Blackburn at the 2024 FoundersFest Celebration. The ceremony will take place at 11:30 AM on Saturday, May 4 at the Main Street Cemetery.
Several Downers Grove organizations have joined together to offer FoundersFest events throughout the week of April 27 – May 4. Whether you enjoy local history, U.S. history, golf, biking, hiking, gardening or petting animals, ALL are welcome and there is something for everyone. Most of the events are free and family friendly!
FoundersFest will kick off on Saturday, April 27 with 3 separate events! At the Belmont Golf Club, you can take part in the annual Pine Hollow Golf Tournament. Learn more here. Another event available to you that same day is the Pierce Downer’s Heritage Alliance Wildflower Walk at Lyman Woods from 9:00 – 11:00 am. Learn more here. Does gardening pique your curiosity? The DG Museum is offering a class Farm to Table: Heirloom Gardening from 1 – 2:30 pm at the Montrew Dunham History Center. More info here.
On Tuesday, April 30, the DG Library offers the program “Setting the Record Straight: What Caused the Civil War”. Immerse yourself in the time of our Founder of the Year as we investigate the causes of the Civil War, presented by an Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library Museum historian. Since the Civil War began, there has been confusion and misinformation about its political and social causes – yet these conversations often leave out what people actually said and did at the time. Join Christian McWhirter, Lincoln Historian for the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, for an examination of primary sources from the Civil War and what they tell us about the causes of America’s greatest conflict. For more information, click here.
On Wednesday, May 1 at 6:00 pm, the DG Historical Society presents the premiere viewing of Jim Toth’s Node Films “The 1846 Blodgett House”, a documentary about the Blodgett family and their home and the underground railroad and abolitionists in Downers Grove. Interested in seeing backstage and below stage of the Tivoli? Tours of the Tivoli Theater will also be available that day SOLD OUT. Learn more and get tickets here.
Prior to the presentation of the film Jim Toth will be recognized by the Downers Grove Historical Society as the Historian of the Year 2024, an honor the society uses to recognize individuals who have significantly promoted and preserved Downers Grove History.
Saturday, May 4 will see many events for you to attend. At 11:30 AM, at the Main Street Cemetery, Isrel Larry Blackburn will be honored as DG Historical Society’s Founder of the Year. Isrel Blackburn was born into slavery on a plantation in Kentucky in 1818. In 1865 he was sold to the Union Army and assigned to Company C of the 124th U.S. “Colored Infantry”. There he served as a sergeant until his discharge in 1865. Isrel and his family arrived in Downers Grove in 1866 where he was able to purchase 2+ acres of land located at Forest Ave and Curtiss Street. It was there that he farmed the land and grew produce, including celery, which he sold to local families. For information about this event, click here.
At 9:00 AM you could be Walking the Grove with the Windy City Walkers as they venture out on a Self-Guided 5K or 10K Walk. Meet at the Montrew Dunham History Center. Registration is on site. Cost is $4.The walk will take you past historical sites and will finish at the Main Street Cemetery by 11:30 AM, in time for the Founder of the Year ceremony.
But wait! There’s more! Also on Saturday, May 4, the Downers Grove Park District and Museum, along with the Downers Grove Historical Society and the Downers Grove Public Library, will be hosting Country in the Park at the museum campus from 12:00 PM to 3:00 PM. There you’ll find a petting zoo (sponsored by The Grove Foundation), hear live music featuring songs from the Civil War, and various booths and children’s games. All 3 museum campus buildings will be open for you to enjoy. For information, click here. At 2:00 PM, at the 1846 Blodgett House, the Downers Grove Historical Society will present the Downers Grove Museum with a Blodget House Plaque given in honor of the recognition of the 1846 Blodgett House has received as being a part of the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom. For information, click here. Both of these events are free and no registration is necessary.
