The Chicago Race Riots of 1919 were the most violent week in the city's history. What happened, and why? Join us on January 26th at 2 p.m. for a conversation about this poorly understood and often forgotten moment in Chicago's history with D. Bradford Hunt, Chicago historian and Vice President for Research and Academic Programs at the Newberry Library. He and the Newberry have led a year-long set of public programming across the city reflecting on the violence of 1919 and how its legacies help us understand the divides of our present day. Dr. Hunt’s lecture will be preceded by a brief Annual Meeting of the Wilmette Historical Society. All are welcome to this free lecture, but seating is limited. Please email museum@wilmette.com or call (847) 853-7666 to reserve tickets.
WHM is proud to announce the launch of the our online collections database! Find Collections Online under the Research & Collections tab above, or go directly to wilmettehistory.pastperfectonline.com. For the first time, almost 20,000 of our objects, photographs, and archival collections are made easy to search or browse from anywhere.Try a Keyword Search or Advanced Search if you know what you're looking for, or simply browse from all three catalogs. You can even send a link to a friend,send us feedback or request an image. We hope you enjoy exploring our collections!
Bring your kids to the Museum to celebrate Presidents’ Day with Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln on Sunday, February 16th at 2 p.m. President Lincoln will talk about growing up in a log cabin, how he got his beard and the importance of never giving up on oneself. Stay after to enjoy some birthday fun! You can take your photo with the Lincolns and enjoy some birthday cake as well as presidential activities. Admission is free for museum members and $5 per family for non-members. Seating is limited, so be sure to call (847) 853-7666 or email museum@wilmette.com to reserve your ticket.
Stop by to see our exciting new exhibit which explores a century of photographs of Wilmette people and places. Antique cameras, glass photographic plates, tintypes, stereo cards, and other unusual artifacts from the Museum’s collection join dozens of rarely seen photos in the main gallery to illustrate how developments in camera technology, and the emergence of fads like the “real photo postcard” craze, resulted in a treasure trove of images that have forever captured the look of everyday life in one small Midwestern town.
