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The collection is arranged chronologically and consists of 11 series: City Clerk’s Office, City Council and Mayor’s Office, City Treasurer’s Office, Comptroller’s Office, Water Department, Pavement, Public Library, Police Department, Street Lighting, Elections and Board of Health.

A large part of the collection consists of correspondence to the City Clerk and to the Mayor’s Office, providing an excellent insight on the local issues and daily life, except for the years of 1923-1924. The collection includes the original resignation letter from Mayor William W. Boyington, dated March 27th, 1876. Notably interesting is a letter denying citizenship to a socialist in October of 1921, and a Jens Jensen letter. The City Council and Mayor’s Office series is also rich in material related to city ordinances and resolutions. Abundant financial records, statements and reports from the City Clerk’s Office, Mayor’s Office, Comptroller’s Office and City Treasurer’s Office are located throughout the collection; however, incomplete and interspersed with gaps throughout the years.

The collection also comprises material related to the creation of the Public Library; and records of the Police Department; being particularly strong in the areas of public works and local improvement, which includes correspondence and petitions, contracts and ordinances for water mains, street lighting, sidewalk and pavement.

Series 1. City Clerk’s Office, ca. 1869-1951 (Boxes 1-3, 8).

Series 1 consists of correspondence, administrative records that include hunting license applications (1916-1917), permission to excavate in streets (ca. 1911, 1915, 1936), and sewer construction permits (1891-1903), financial records including annual reports, annual statements (1872-1899), and journal of proceedings (1931). Also included are official oaths and bonds (ca. 1869-1915), warranty deeds and affidavits. The series also contains correspondence and materials related to the City Day for the students of American Government of the High School, in which they take over as far as possible the functions of certain offices (1949-1951).

Series 2. City Council/Mayor’s Office, ca. 1869-1972, 1947-1950 (Boxes 1-2, 5 and 8).

Series 2 contains correspondence, petitions, resignations, suspensions and office appointments. Also present are minutes of meetings (1870-1878, 1889, 1912), a transcript of a conference held at the City Hall in 1950, annual mayor’s reports (1890-1891), and address by Mayor R. G. Evans upon entering office in 1895. The series also includes reports to the City Council by the City Attorney (1883), City Engineer (1894), Committee on Bridges (1893), City Marshall (1897), and Committee on Public Works (1895, 1900). The series also contains Ordinances and Resolutions (1869-1914, 1947-1950), including Alcohol Ordinance with related correspondence and photograph (1972). Also included are correspondence between the mayor and the American Legion (1947-1950); and correspondence related to the Traffic Commission, zoning and parking issues (1948-1951).

Series 3. City Treasurer’s Office, 1869-1927 (Boxes 3-4).

Series 3 consists of financial records and statements that include reports of City Treasurer, City Collector, Finance Committee, Reports of Comptroller, Statement of City Taxes and Delinquent City Taxes, and Report of Auditing Committee. The series also contains financial reports from the Defense Council (1917-1918) and balance sheets (1927, 1931).

Series 4. Comptroller’s Office, ca. 1894-1938 (box 4 and 7).

Series 4 consists of financial statements of the office of City Comptroller (1907-1908) and a City Hall Inventory (1915). The series also contains incomplete payroll records (1894-1912) that include the Police and Fire Departments, election judges and clerks. The series also contains Installment Special Assessment Vouchers (1891-1896), Special Assessment Rebate Vouchers (1916, 1920), reports of Special Assessment Accounts (1912, 1922), Special Assessment Receipts (1929-1938), and some related correspondence.

Series 5. Water Department, 1888-1919 (Boxes 4-5).

Series 5 consists of Reports of City Tapper (1901), the ordinance authorizing the construction, maintenance and operation of the Water Works to supply the city of Highland Park and its inhabitants with water (1888), assessments, contracts and proposals for water mains, ordinances for main water pipes, including the assessment, ordinance, proposal and contract for Central Avenue (1894). The series also contains correspondence related to excessive water bills, and several analytical reports (1900-1919) from The Columbus Laboratories attesting to the quality of the drinking water. Materials related to the Fire & Water Committee include minutes of meetings (1893), reports, petitions, correspondence, estimates and proposals for the building of water pipes and sewer systems. The series also contains materials related to the Sewer Committee that include reports and correspondence, and reports of the Chief Engineer of Water Works.

Series 6. Pavement, ca. 1876-1950 (Boxes 5-7).

Series 6 consists of sidewalk and pavement petitions and related correspondence, estimates, contracts, sidewalk ordinances, bill of costs, special tax lists, warrants, assessments for grading and paving, including assessment for the construction of the Ravine Drive and a wooden bridge and pavement on Central Avenue, and the contract for paving Laurel Avenue (1891). Also included are other documents such as quit-claim deed (1876), Contractor’s Bond (undated), and Contract for Public Works (1893), and statements of the amount of special assessments collected. The series also consists of correspondence, petitions, reports and estimates directed to the Board of Local Improvement, also referred to as the Street and Alley Committee (1877-1917), and correspondence from the Commissioner of Public Works (1911-1919).

Series 7. Library, ca. 1890-1949 (Boxes 7).
Series 7 consists of correspondence, receipts, copy of the ordinance for the erection of a Public Library building, ordinance providing for the sale of the old library building (1905), and a report of the public library for the year ending in May of 1911. Also included is a photograph of the Peter Voulkos’ outdoor sculpture, correspondence, dinner invitation and newspaper clippings related to the erection of the sculpture (1970-1974).

Series 8. Police Department, ca. 1869-1951 (Boxes 8).

Series 8 consists of correspondence, petitions, requests for officer appointee, recommendations, resignations and reports of City Marshall.

Series 9. Street Lighting, ca. 1876-1950 (Box 8).

Series 9 consists mainly of correspondence and petitions, a contract between the City and Joseph Pluard for lighting street lamps (1876), assessment of costs of electric lights (1894), and reports from the Finance Committee for electric lighting (1895-1898).

Series 10, Elections, ca. 1869-1921 (Box 8).

Series 10 consists of correspondence, Poll Lists, Poll Books, Report of Special Committee created to investigate illegal voting (1871), reports of committees appointed to canvass the ballots, election notices, ballots, tallies, Nomination Certificates for City or Village Officers, objections, withdrawals, Reports of Tellers, and reports of election expenses. Also included are booklets about the Illinois Primary Election Laws (1910) and Suggestions on Primary Law (1912).

Series 11. Board of Health, ca. 1890-1950 (Box 8)
Series 11 contains Official Reports of Contagious Diseases issued by doctors stating the name of the sick person, address, disease and remarks. Also included are results of analysis of milk samples issued by the Columbus Laboratories in Chicago, reports of the sanitary analysis of the Lake Michigan water, correspondence, and a Report of Board of Engineers North Shore Sanitary District (1916). Permission and confidentiality agreement is required to view Series 11.

There are two series in the Wolcott collections: Journals and photographs.
Reverend Wolcott was an avid diarist. Diaries from the years 1895; 1897-1899; 1900-1910; 1912-1913, 1915, 1919-1920; 1923-1929 are arranged chronologically in the series. Wolcott was an active member in the community who always started out his entries describing the weather. He tended to describe nicer days, but also included the “coldest day of the year” and when the weather was just “fine.” Towards his later diaries, he also started recording the exact temperatures of the day, something he continued to do towards his later diaries. Wolcott talked about his daily masses, how many people attended, and his plans for the day. He noted visits to the high school where he was a member on the board of education for 9 years as well as taking the train down to Chicago. His last entry on December 31st, 1929 talked about his night out with friends on New Year's Eve and how his friends “raged after midnight.” The reverend died a few days after his 75th birthday.
The second series contains family photographs.

This collection is comprised of valentines ranging designed and printed 1904 to 1918. Many of them have names written on them, and seem to have been given from students to teachers. Height, size, and style varies. Many of them have moveable parts, lace, macramé, and tissue paper. They are very delicate objects and fall apart easily. The valentines are styled as flat calling cards, double folio cards (some standing with a leg and some just open), while the majority of the collection are pop-ups, both with moveable and non-movable parts. A single valentine is in German, but the rest of the collection is in English.

The Robert S. Arnold Architectural Collection consists of architectural plans, site surveys, perspective sketches, contracts, and job schedules. The collection contains materials relating to the Highland Park Library, The Moraine Hotel, and several prominent Highland Park residents. Homes, buildings, and churches from the Chicagoland area can also be found in the collection including Kelly's Day Camp in Wheeling, Illinois, St. Martins Church of Christ in Chicago, Illinois, and the Serbian Orthodox Monastery in Libertyville, Illinois. The collection also contains items relating to homes built outside the Chicagoland region, including those built in Troy, Alabama. This collection contains the exhibit plans for Arnold's submission for the Chicago Tribune's Chicagoland Prize Homes Exhibition. The collection originally contained 369 rolls. The collection still contains many of the rolls relating to Highland Park, Illinois. A large collection of rolls relating to Chicago, Illinois; Glencoe, Illinois; Wilmette, Illinois, and several other North Shore communities are missing. Seven rolls were deaccessioned to the Lake Forest Lake Bluff Historical Society in 2006. One roll was deaccessioned during 2010 processing as it did not fit in The Highland Park Historical Society's collection policy. It is unclear where the other rolls are located.

Scrapbooks documenting Brand's participation in the Young Men's Athletic Club in Highland Park, Illinois and its life guard programs, his travels and postcard collection.

Newspaper clipping relating to the death of Julius Rosenwald in 1932.

This collection was developed by Samuel T. Lawton Jr. It is an assortment of archival material and objects accumulated by Lawton. The collection is divided into 5 series. The first series is Personal, which contains personal papers. The dates in this series range from 1966-2004. The second series is Professional, which contains items pertaining to work Samuel was doing as Highland Park, Illinois. For example there are ordinances, zoning laws, and record books. The items in this series range from 1940-1980. The third series is Oversize, these are all the oversize archival items contained in the collection. It holds invitations and legal documents ranging from 1969-1970. The fourth series is Newspapers. It contains newspapers and newspaper clippings dating from 1968-1970. The final series is Objects. This series contains all the objects brought in with the archival material. These items are personal, professional, and commemorative. They range in dates from 1959-1986.

Sholom Alchanan Singer was born into an orthodox Jewish family in Brooklyn, N.Y., in 1924. Yiddish was the language spoken at home and his father, William, was a cantor. His mother, Miriam, was an artist and pianist. Singer inherited his parents' musicality, singing liturgical and opera music. Singer attended public school until second grade, when his parents decided to send him to Yeshiva. After earning his orthodox rabbinic ordination, he became interested in the teachings of Reform Rabbi Stephen Wise. This led him to attend Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion, completing his studies in 1951, as a Reform rabbi. He also earned advanced degrees in secular studies, completing a bachelor's degree at Yeshiva University, a master's at Columbia University, and his Ph.D. in intellectual history at the University of Chicago. He had quite an accomplished academic career: He was an associate professor of history at DePaul University. He also taught at Lake Forest College, Northeastern Illinois University, and Spertus College of Jewish Studies. He was a guest lecturer at Carleton College, Princeton University, and Cambridge University England and at Oxford Centre for Graduate Jewish Studies at Oxford University. He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Divinity from Hebrew Union College in 1976. He lectured extensively and published many articles and two books. Singer and his family, which included his wife, Vivian, and three children, came to B'nai Torah in Highland Park in 1957. At the time, the 3-year-old congregation used office space at a storefront location on Central Avenue. Services were held at Lincoln School. The permanent building on Oak Street was purchased in 1959. Singer added innovations to the Reform prayer service, including the "temple in the round," a drama-sermon. Adult study opportunities were offered, including a series of eight lectures on various topics by experts, and the Sunday morning Round Table, a series of 10 lectures held two Sundays a month. After Israel’s Six Day War in 1967, the Singers led a trip to Israel, in part to share their love for the country. Singer felt strongly that Jews living outside Israel should maintain a residence there, leading to the congregation maintaining an apartment in Jerusalem. B'nai Torah also served as the headquarters for the American Association for Ethiopian Jews for many years, thanks to Rabbi Singer. This organization, which ran from 1969-1993, aimed to educate the world about the Beta Israel. B'nai Torah also ran a busy religious school. In a letter addressed to the congregation during the High Holiday services in 1987, he wrote, "As for life, it is not always what we want, but it is all that we've got. Use it wisely. Make the best of it." (Excerpted from "Rabbi brought faith, intellectualism to congregation" Chicago Tribune, November 17, 2014)

Minutes, membership and financial records for local mutual aid society from its founding until 1926.

The Beinlich, Stipe, Koller family history/ by David W. Winter, photo Tina Stipe Hart, 1870-1937 and family history notes and photographs.