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Schools & Churches
Elgin Academy
Elgin High School
Franklin School
1st. Congregationalist Church
St. Mary's Church
St. John Ev. Lutheran Church
Ev. Lutheran Church of Holy Spirit
Methodist Church
 Episcopal Church
Grant School
Buildings
Borden Library
City Hall
Cook Publishing
Brethren Publishing 
Dunham's Castle
Elk's Club
Ill. State Armory 
Home Bank Building
Professional Building
Post Office
Sears Academy
Selz Shoe Factory
Masonic Temple
H. Kind 
Bakery
Hubbard Block
McGraw 
Electric
Woolworth's
Cromwell Shoes
Judge Botsford's Residence
Fire Barn # 1
Fire Barn # 5
Elgin Eagle Beer
Hospitals
Sherman Hospital
Resthaven Sanitarium
St. Joseph's Hospital
Larkin Children's Hospital
Elgin State Hospital Annex
Old People's Home
Streets
Grove Ave.
Grove Ave 
at Nite.
North on Grove
Douglas Ave.
Chicago Street
Villa Street
Highland & Larkin Avenues
Modern Elgin
Grove Ave. (Mod)
Aerial View
Elgin Skyline
Greetings From Elgin
Greetings From Elgin (1975)

Greetings from Elgin (1975) 

Most postcards on this site are between 50 and 100 years old.  This one, dating back to 1975 is a mere infant by comparison.  

Many cities in the Midwest experimented with  outdoor shopping malls in the 1970's.  For a period of time, Chicago's State Street was closed off to cars and buses and only permitted foot traffic.  Neighboring Oak Park tried the same concept with Lake Street, the busiest street in the town.  Elgin attempted the same sort of treatment for Grove Street in the heart of the city.  Like its two comrades, the outdoor mall was reversed when it was determined that it detracted more business than it attracted.   

The concept of the fountain dates back to Elgin's earliest days, when merchants and patrons came to the market on horses.  While the merchants were conducting their business, the horses were left to drink at the fountain.  Placing a clock in the middle of town seemed like a natural bet, seeing as how Elgin was, at one time, the largest manufacturer of watches in the country and maybe the world.  In 1967, the clock tower of The Elgin National Watch Factory was demolished, leaving people with a longing for the past.  By 1994, these accouchements were removed.  

      

 

Elgin Today

The clock in the upper left hand corner of the postcard above sat roughly next to the large red brick building on the right hand side of this frame.   

Home
Fox River
Chgo St Bridge
Chgo Bridge at night
Kimball  Bridge
Walton Island
Pumping Station
Elgin Nat'l 
Watch Co.
West & Front Wing
Noon at Factory
The Main Entrance
National House
Elgin Watchmakers College
Il. Watch 
Case Factory
Eppenstein's Home
Observatory
N. Y. World's Fair
My Elgin's All Right
Parks
Gifford Park
Veteran Monument
Lord's Park
Scenic View
Upper Lake
Band Stand
Audubon Museum
Pavilion At Night
Pavilion in Wintertime
Bear Pit
Trout Park
Trout Park  Amusement Park
Sulfur  Springs
(Wing Park)
Pavilion,
Wing Park
Swimming Pool
Band Concert
(Wing Park)
Weldwood Country Club
Central Park
Bridge over Tyler Creek
Windmill on Aurora Elgin RR
Hotels
Kelley Hotel
Hotel Fosgate
Fox Hotel
Misc.
Dairy Cows
Interurban
 Hiawatha
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Other Elgins
Elgin, Texas
Elgin, Minnesota
Elgin Oregon
Elgin, Arizona