I moved to Yorkville before Cobblestone was even a bakery. Before they tore down the historic building across Van Emmon Road from Cobblestone. Before Chapel on the Green had its own historical society.
I know there are people who have lived in Yorkville much longer, though. People who remember it when it was a much smaller town. People who had a hand in making it the town it is today.
For me, Yorkville still has that feel, the people who live here want to make it better. It feels like we all want to come out and play: Want have a craft beer and music festival by the river? Sure, we’ll help. Want to celebrate yoga and gong meditation? Sure, we’ll come, and we’ll help you find more vendors. Want to experience the magic of hundreds of sky lanterns floating away simultaneously? We’ll do it in the high school stadium.
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My good friend, Jillian Duchnowski, has another opportunity for Yorkville. With help from Howard Manthei and Thomas Milschewski, she’s compiling a Yorkville history book for Arcadia Publishing. It’s like a giant photo essay: It will have at least 180 historic photographs from Yorkville, all from before 1980. It’ll feature the Fox River, the old Game Farm, the downtown business district, and much more. She wants you to be in the book, too. She’s looking for vintage photographs she can scan and send to the publisher.
Getting involved is easy. E-mail her at jillianduch99@gmail.com, call her at 815-529-1300, or bring your vintage photographs to the Chapel on the Green, 107 W. Center St., between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. Saturday (Feb. 22). You can drop off the photos and she’ll return them to you safe and sound, or she can scan them right then while you wait.
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The finished project is expected to be released by the holidays. Some of the proceeds will benefit Chapel on the Green Historical Society, whose members are still working to upgrade this historic building. Come, be a part of it. Help show what makes Yorkville special.
What: Yorkville history project photo day
When: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Feb. 22
Where: Chapel on the Green, 107 W. Center St., Yorkville
For more information: Call 815-529-1300 or e-mail jillianduch99@gmail.com
