December 9 & 10, 2024
7:00-9:00 pm
Central School (103 S. Maple St.)
Cost: $50
Instructor: Jill Tumberger
Join us for a fun evening out while creating a beautiful winter evergreen arrangement!
All supplies will be provided but please bring your own gardening clippers/shears.
*Please note: Class is non-refundable. Bathrooms are located in the Education Center located behind Central School.
Both classes are sold out. Please email info@mtphistory.org to be added to a waitlist.
Saturday, August 19, 2023
Depart from 101 S. Maple Street (Dietrich Friedrichs House Museum) at 9 a.m.
Return at 5 p.m.
Join us on a bus trip to the Eighth Annual U.S. National Straw Sculpting Competition, also known as “Strawfest,” in Mt. Morris. It is promoted as “Fine Art in Straw” and was inspired by former Arlington Heights resident/artist Fran Volz who now lives nearby in Rockford.
Participants will ride a luxury coach, leaving Mount Prospect at 9 a.m. After arriving in Mt. Morris, tour-goers will have plenty of time to enjoy the large, unique straw sculptures, arranged around the picturesque town square only two weeks each year; vote for their favorites; and then tour the Encore! Mt. Morris Old Sandstone Art Gallery which is filled with local artwork.
After perusing the artwork and straw sculptures, bus tour participants will enjoy boxed lunches from Jen’s Artisan Breads, in the air-conditioned Pinecrest Grove Auditorium.
Fran Volz, the one who inspired this contest, will speak during lunch about his first exposure to straw sculptures during a trip to Germany; his fondly-remembered “Chicago Snow Competition” event which premiered at Randhurst Shopping Center in 2004 and then moved to Navy Pier where teams of artists from Spain, China, Germany, Canada and Russia competed; and his other well-known artistic endeavors while living in the Northwest Suburbs. Many recall his gorgeous snow sculptures entertaining drivers along Arlington Heights Road each winter.
Following lunch, Jeff Bold, steering committee chairman of “Encore! Mt. Morris” which is working to revitalize the community, will board the bus for a guided tour of local points of interest including White Pines Forest State Park with its rare, picturesque grove of native white pine trees, and “The Eternal Indian” or “Blackhawk” statue along the river in nearby Oregon, IL which has recently been restored. It is a local landmark by famed sculptor Laredo Taft. Stops for locally-produced maple syrup and locally-grown corn-on-the-cob might also be possible if tour-goers are interested.
Comfortable clothing and shoes are strongly urged.
MPHS Member Cost: $80
Non-Member Cost: $90
Lunch Options:
All lunch options include coleslaw, chips, water and dessert.
Trip highlights:
Registration is now closed.
Join us in months with a fifth Saturday for a brand new program, Five Dollar Fives. This series will feature fun, history-related programs presented by local speakers.
Each program begins at 10 a.m. in Central School (103 S. Maple Street) and costs $5.
April 29, 2023 – Genealogy Research with Anne Shaughnessy: Learn how to get started researching your family history and get some answers to your research questions during a chat with Anne Shaughnessy, MPPL Genealogy and Local History Librarian. Registration is closed.
September 30, 2023 – With its transmitter and antenna tower located in Mount Prospect, WJAZ was one of the big players in the very early days of broadcast radio. Long before television dominated evening entertainment in American homes, families tuned in their radios. Entertainers traveled the country performing “live studio broadcasts” from the few radio stations that were beginning to fill the airwaves. Join Frank Corry, Mount Prospect Historical Society Board President, for his talk about Mount Prospect’s WJAZ Radio, it’s impact on the emerging radio broadcast industry, and its connections to Ham radio.
December 30, 2023 – Archival Crafting with Annette Wegener
Space is limited and reservations are required.
Get out your needles and thread. The Mount Prospect Historical Society will be hosting Monthly Needle Craft Nights. Join us the second Wednesday of each month in Central School (103 S. Maple St., Mount Prospect) from 7:00 to 9:00 pm.
Bring your own knitting/crocheting/embroidery project or try our spotlight project each month. All experience levels are welcome. Advance registration is recommended and a $5 donation is suggested.
Join us for the last class of the year on December 13, 2023! We are offering TWO time options in December; 10 am-12 pm or 7-9 pm. We will be making no-sew stars.
We look forward to seeing you at this fun monthly program where you can learn a new skill, chat while working on your own project, or share your knowledge with other needlecraft enthusiasts.
The Mount Prospect Historical Society will soon offer a fascinating program about America’s favorite fictional teen sleuth – Nancy Drew.
Join expert Susan Becker to discover the story behind Nancy Drew at 1 p.m., Saturday, October 29, 2022 at the Society’s Central School, 103 S. Maple St., Mount Prospect.
First bursting on the scene in 1930, Nancy was an immediate success with girls yearning for a feminist role model before they even knew they wanted one. Nancy Drew Mysteries continue to be read today more than 80 years since her creation, mostly by granddaughters encouraged by grandmothers with fond memories of their time spent with the iconic girl detective.
“A magazine article spurred my interest in Nancy Drew several years ago,” says Becker. “I was intrigued
to discover the true history of Nancy and her creator.”
And don’t think that you are going to learn about Carolyn Keene! Nancy Drew’s true creator was Edward Stratemeyer, who took the pen name of Carolyn Keene when writing his Nancy Drew stories. Stratemeyer was the most prolific author of 20th century juvenile literature of whom you have never heard!
During his lifetime he developed over 125 different series, which in addition to the beloved Nancy Drew, included Tom Swift, the Bobbsey Twins and the Hardy Boys. Books and other items of interest will be on display.
Becker, who read her first Nancy Drew book at the age of eight, added, “I wish I hadn’t given away my own collection to a younger cousin.”
Tickets are $12 per person. Space is limited and take note that Society programs have sold out in the past. So, reservations must be made in advance. Light refreshments will be served.
For more information or to reserve your spot, please visit the Society’s website: www.mtphist.org or
phone 847-392-9006.
We’re right in the neighborhood. Come see what we have to offer!