Aptakisic - Half Day

The historic town of Half Day claims many firsts in the annals of Lake County history—the first post office (1836), the first school (1836) taught by Laura Sprague in her family's log cabin, and the county's first non-native settler, Daniel Wright.

Perhaps most intriguing about Half Day is its name, which provokes more interest and debate than any other place name in the county.

You may wonder why there's debate. Ask anyone and they'll tell you it got its name because, "It took half a day to get there from Chicago." That may have been true back in the day of horsedrawn transportation, but Half Day was named for Aptakisic, a Native American leader of great standing.

Aptakisic's name (also spelled Aptegizhek), was translated as "center of the sky," "sun at meridian" or "half day." He was known to the settlers as Half Day. Both Daniel Wright (1778-1873) and Henry Blodgett (1821-1905), who knew Aptakisic, documented that he was "known as Half Day." Wright went on to say that the village took its name from Aptakisic.

A depiction of Aptakisic (Half Day) waving goodbye to the settlers he had led to Fort Dearborn in 1832. Painting by Les Schrader, courtesy of Naper Settlement. For more on Les Schrader: https://www.napersettlement.org/138/Les-Schrader-Painting-Collection.

Blodgett had met Aptakisic in 1832, during the Black Hawk War, when Aptakisic protected the settlers in Downer's Grove from an impending attack.

Wright became acquainted with Aptakisic and his tribe of Potawatomi in 1833 when he settled along the Des Plaines River.

Wright remembered: "When I stuck my stake in the banks of the Aux Plain [Des Plaines] River I was surrounded by the native tribes of Pottawatamies [sic]. They helped me raise my first rude cabin, being the first house built in the county." These native people also assisted Wright in planting crops, and tending to his family when they became ill.

According to James A. Clifton in The Prairie People: Continuity and Change in Potawatomi Indian Culture 1665-1965, Aptakisic was present at the negotiations for the Treaty of Chicago, which took place in September 1833. "Apparently wearing Meteya's [Mettawa's] moccasins, Aptegizhek stood and informed Commissioners Porter and Owen that the Potawatomi had no wish to consider moving west of the Mississippi until they had been given the opportunity to inspect the country there... He insisted the Potawatomi had assembled merely to enjoy their Great Father's beneficence and liberality. Could the annuities due the Potawatomi be distributed quickly so that they might go back to their villages to tend their gardens?"

Ultimately, the treaty was signed by Aptakisic (twice!) and other leaders of the United Chippewa, Ottawa and Potawatomi Indians on September 26, 1833.

In 1918, the students of Half Day School wrote a history of their school and community. In it, they recounted that "Half Day was named so in honor of an Indian chief, Hefda, who some people say is buried in this locality." They went on to say that Half Day was a "half way station" between Chicago and the northern part of Lake County.

Excerpt from the Half Day School history, 1918. Dunn Museum Collections. 

When and how did the origin of the name change?

Postcard of "Hotel Halfday," circa 1910. Dunn Museum 97.18.3

It is my assertion that the confusion was started by visitors to Half Day, possibly as early as the 1840s. In 1843, the Half Day Inn (shown above) was established on the Chicago and Milwaukee Road (today's Route 21) as a stagecoach stop. The rutted and muddy road would have most certainly made for slow travel, leading travelers to surmise the town's name came from its distance from Chicago.

The Wisconsin Central Railroad arrived in Prairie View in 1886. It later became the Soo Line. Postcard view circa 1900. 

Dunn Museum 94.47.5

In 1886, train service was available on the Wisconsin Central Railroad to Prairie View, several miles west of Half Day. That trip would have taken at least two hours, and then a buggy ride over to Half Day, again leaving visitors to believe the name was a matter of travel time. Even with the advent of the automobile, travel was slow until roads were paved in the 1930s and beyond.

Travelers not knowing the true origin of the name, adopted a new meaning. As the people who knew Aptakisic died, and generations passed, the connection to Aptakisic faded, and the new tradition took root with no one around to contradict it.

In a letter written late in his life, Henry Blodgett once again recalled his friend, Aptakisic:

"In the fall of 1837, Aptakisic's band was removed to a reservation on the west side of the Missouri River near the mouth of the Platte and later were moved into what is now a portion of the state of Kansas, south of the Kansas River. I well remember the sad face of the old chief as he came to bid our family goodbye. ... We all shed tears of genuine sorrow ... his generous kindness to my parents has given me a higher idea of the red man's genuine worth." 

Photograph of Henry W. Blodgett from the Autobiography of Henry W. Blodgett, Waukegan, Illinois, 1906.

Dunn Museum Collections. 

Aptakisic's legacy continued in the names Aptakisic Road, Aptakisic Creek, and the former community of Aptakisic located in today's Buffalo Grove. Aptakisic was a railroad stop on the Wisconsin Central line at Aptakisic Road (west of Route 21), and had its own post office from 1889 to 1904.

The town of Half Day never incorporated, and in recent years was absorbed into the Villages of Lincolnshire and Vernon Hills.

You may also be interested in my post on the Treaty of Chicago 1833.

McCaskey - Conklin Wedding at Fort Sheridan

On August 26, 1903, Miss Eleanor McCaskey married Captain Arthur Stewart Conklin at the U.S. Army post at Fort Sheridan.

The wedding was big news on the society pages of the Chicago papers, evoking a bygone age of knights in shining armor and fair maidens.

Chicago Tribune, August 26, 1903.

Miss Eleanor "Dottie" McCaskey was known as the "daughter of the regiment." Her parents were Colonel William S. McCaskey (1843-1914), commander of the 20th Infantry, and Eleanor "Nellie" Garrison McCaskey. The bride's father and the groom, Arthur S. Conklin, served together in the Philippines in the 20th Infantry.

A bugle sounded the beginning of the wedding procession, followed by the 20th Infantry Band playing the wedding march from "Lohengrin."

From left to right are the bridesmaids (background); father of the groom and Mrs. McCaskey; bridegroom Arthur Conklin with his mother; William Reed and John McLeary; C.I. McCaskey and William Morris; Garrison McCaskey and H.D. McCaskey. Dunn Museum 2009.2.6.1

Captain Arthur S. Conklin (1872-1960), dressed in the red trimmed suit of the artillery, with his mother, Mrs. Conklin, of Elmira, NY on his arm, and behind them the bridegroom's father and Mrs. McCaskey, walking from Colonel McCaskey's residence at Fort Sheridan to the lawn where the wedding would take place. Dunn Museum 2009.2.2

View of the bridesmaids and bride with her father coming out of the Colonel's home and walking along a fabric path lined with evergreen boughs. Dunn Museum 2009.2.8

The bride, Eleanor McCaskey (1881 - 1958) escorted by her father, Colonel McCaskey, as they leave the family's home at Fort Sheridan for the wedding ceremony on the lawn under the oak trees. Also in view are the flower girls, Frances and Helen Meacham. Dunn Museum 2009.2.4

The Chicago Inter Ocean, August 27, 1903.

The ceremony was interrupted by the Second Cavalry's mascot dog. Depending on the source, the dog was either Bruno, the St. Bernard, or Bolivar the Mastiff. In either case, all agreed that the dog caused a bit of a stir as it wandered about the scene. According to the Chicago Record Herald newspaper, there was "intense resentment in the ranks of the blue-clad privates when a 'cavalry dog' tried to interrupt the wedding."

The happy bride and groom following the wedding ceremony. Dunn Museum 2009.2.1

The Chicago Inter Ocean reported that, "The gloomy skies and the dark shadows of the surrounding trees were in strange contrast to the bright uniforms and white dresses of the bridal party and the ecclesiastical attire of Bishop Millspaugh," the officiant.

The newlyweds honeymooned at Yellowstone Park before making their home at the Presidio in  San Francisco, California where Captain Conklin was stationed with the Pacific Coast Artillery. Arthur Conklin was eventually promoted to Brigadier General and is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

Col. Elmer Ellsworth (1837-1861)

The first hero of the Civil War was Colonel Elmer Ellsworth of the Zouave Corps.

In the years before the war, Ellsworth was considered "the most talked about man in America." Even more so than his friend, Abraham Lincoln.

When Ellsworth was 17, he moved to Chicago from New York State, and became prominent in the state militia.

In 1857, he met Charles DeVilliers, a French physician and expert swordsman who had served in the Crimean with the French Chasseurs d'Afrique - Zouaves.

According to "American Civil War Zouaves" by By Robin Smith & Bill Younghusband, the original Zouaves were natives of the Zouaoua tribe mixed with French settlers, who had served with the French Army during France’s North African campaigns in the 1830s. Their Native North African dress – baggy trousers, short jacket, and fez – became the basis of the famous Zouave uniform. The French originally raised two battalions of native Zouaves; but by the time of the Crimean War, three Zouave regiments had been created entirely of Frenchmen.

Meeting DeVilliers, prompted Ellsworth to learn more about French light infantry drill. After a brief period of studying law in Springfield, where Ellsworth became friends with Lincoln, he returned to Chicago and formed the United States Zouaves.

By 1860, the Zouave Cadets were considered the finest militia in the Midwest, and role models for their high morals. In other words, they were Temperance men. Ellsworth promoted his Zouaves by challenging other state militias in drill competitions. The Zouaves handily beat their competitors (some conceded after watching them drill), and awed thousands of spectators, becoming known throughout the country for their "appearance of dashing ferocity."

Ellsworth's militia spawned a national Zouave craze. Overnight it seemed, Zouave units sprang into existence. Even paper dolls were sold of the uniquely and colorfully dressed young militia men. He visited towns throughout the region training young men, including students at Lake Forest College (then known as Lind University) where they learned marching and how to handle Springfield rifles.

Ellsworth campaigned on behalf of Lincoln's bid for president, and after Lincoln's win was put in charge of security for the party going to Washington, D.C..

In D.C., Ellsworth formed a new Zouave unit from Manhattan's volunteer firemen called the Fire Zouaves. Signs of the approaching war were everywhere, including that of a Confederate flag flying defiantly on the rooftop of the Marshall House in Alexandria, Virginia, all too visible from the White House.

On May 24, 1861, the day after Virginia seceded from the Union, U.S. troops were sent into Alexandria. Ellsworth's Zouaves went in to cut the city's telegraph lines, and in the process went past the Marshall House. Deciding to end that Rebel taunt, the Zouaves, led by their "gallant and idolized commander," stormed the hotel to retrieve the flag. On their way back down the stairs, the Zouaves were encountered by the innkeeper who fired a shotgun at Ellsworth, killing him instantly. Zouaves' Corporal Brownell then shot and stabbed the innkeeper with his bayonet.

The loss of Ellsworth was a national tragedy. Flags were lowered to half-mast in D.C., and President Lincoln ordered that Ellsworth's body lie in state in the White House.

Letter to Major Frank Peats of the 17th Illinois Infantry from George B. Swarthout, Peoria, Illinois, May 30, 1861. Swarthout writes: "We 'The Zouaves' had an invitation to attend the funeral reviews of Col. E.E. Ellsworth deceased which I accepted for the Co." (Frank Peats Collection Dunn Museum 94.5.139).

"Avenge Ellsworth!" became the North's battle cry.

A memorial was held at Bryan Hall, a public auditorium on Clark Street in Chicago. Many mourned Ellsworth by enlisting, writing poems and editorials, and carrying carte-de-visite photographs of the war's first martyr.

Ellsworth's Zouaves continued to make appearances, including one in Waukegan on July 4, 1862.

Zouave figurine, date unknown. (Dunn Museum 92.24.39)

The NASA Connection

To mark the 25th anniversary of the Space Shuttle Challenger tragedy on January 28, 1986, I thought I'd reflect on the museum's NASA related collections.

You may wonder why a local history museum in Illinois would have NASA materials in its permanent collection. Well, there are at least two good reasons—James Lovell, and the Curt Teich Postcard Archives.

The former NASA astronaut, James "Jim" Lovell, Jr., (born March 25, 1928), moved to Lake Forest, Illinois after retiring.

Lovell is most famous as the commander of the Apollo 13 mission, which suffered a critical failure en route to the Moon, but was brought back safely to Earth by the efforts of the crew and mission control. In 1994, he published a book about the mission, "Lost Moon," and the film version followed with Tom Hanks as Commander Lovell. Over a decade ago, Lovell with his family opened up Lovells of Lake Forest, a fine dining restaurant.

In 2010, the Bess Bower Dunn Museum (formerly the Lake County Discovery Museum) received information that NASA was deaccessioning items through the US General Services Administration program. The NASA Space Program artifacts can be acquired by non-profit museums, universities, and schools.

With James Lovell's connection to Lake County in mind, the museum pursued the acquisition of any items pertaining to the Apollo missions.

The process involved lots of paperwork. Through much diligence the museum received a ballpoint pen that had gone into space on an Apollo mission.

Staff fondly refer to the NASA pen as the "moon pen." Though it never was on the moon, the pen orbited the Earth on one of the Apollo space missions. Dunn Museum 2010.29

This color postcard was donated to the museum in 1975, probably a souvenir purchased by the donor (from Mundelein) while visiting the Kennedy Space Center. Dunn Museum 75.16.37

The postcard's caption reads: "The original 7 Astronauts selected by N.A.S.A. From left to right: Navy Lt. Comm. Malcolm Scott Carpenter, Air Force Capt. Leroy Cooper Jr., Marine Lt. Col. John Glenn. Jr., Air Force Capt. Virgil Grissom, Navy Lt. Comm. Walter Schirra, Jr., Navy Lt. Comm. Alan Shephard, Jr., Air Force Major Donald Slayton."

The museum's other connection to NASA are postcards held in the collections of the Curt Teich Postcard Archives. The archive of the Teich Company of Chicago was donated to the museum in 1982, and among the hundreds of thousands of postcards are 106 related to NASA.

"The Flight of the First Saturn C-1 Space Vehicle." Curt Teich postcard, 1961 (1DK-1981)

"U.S. Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel John H. Glenn, Jr." Curt Teich postcard, 1962 (2DK-1506)

"NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Florida, NASA's Saturn Undergoes Pre-Launch Check-out." Curt Teich postcard, 1964 (4DK-1641).

Updated 5/5/2021: Since the writing of this post, the Curt Teich postcards featured here are now part of the Curt Teich Postcard Archives Collection at the Newberry Library in Chicago.  The “moon pen” and the 1975 Dunn Museum postcard remain in the Dunn Museum’s collections.

Lake County's Gridiron History

I'm on the fence about this Sunday's big game between the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers. Actually, I'm on the fence. I live on the Illinois Stateline, and Wisconsin is across the street.

To keep things neutral, I'd like to share some football images from the Lake County History Archives, Bess Bower Dunn Museum.

Lake Forest College football team, circa 1899. Dunn Museum 

"Illinois Foot Ball Eleven - 1899." Dunn Museum 

"6th Corps Area Championship Game, November 29, 1925." Fort Sheridan-41, Jefferson Barracks-0. Dunn Museum 92.24.566

A great view of the sidelines at the Fort Sheridan game, 1925. Dunn Museum 92.24.560

Deerfield High School football schedule for 1932. Dunn Museum 2007.17.61

Women's Army Corps member, Technician 5th Grade, Mary Boyd, with Fort Sheridan football team members, 1944. Dunn Museum 92.24.1884

Lake County Rifles, circa 1965. Bob Amann is seated front row far right. Dunn Museum 2010.28.202

Bob Amann, a lifelong Lake County resident and newspaperman, co-founded the Lake County Rifles, a semi-professional Central States Football League that played from 1965 to 1972. Thanks to a generous donation by Amann's children, the museum now has an extensive collection of Lake County Rifles photographs, programs, news clippings, trophies, and memorabilia.

You may have seen the Rifles play at Weiss Field in Waukegan or Carmel High School in Mundelein. Rifles' program, 1973. Dunn Museum 2010.28.14

Historian: Bess Bower Dunn (1877 - 1959)

Bess Bower at Grass Lake, circa 1905. Dunn Museum Collections.

Bess Bower Dunn has made appearances in previous posts, but I've never featured her until now. She is so deserving of her own post!

Bess, also known as Bessie, was a woman of firsts. She was one of the first women in motion pictures, the county's first official historian, the county's first assistant probate clerk, and one of the county's earliest genealogists and historic preservationists.

Still from Edward Amet's silent film featuring best friends, Belle Spoor (left) and Bess Bower. Circa 1896. Amet Collection, Dunn Museum. 

About 1896, Bess and her best friend, Isabel "Belle" Spoor, were asked by inventor, Edward Amet, to help with his new motion picture invention. When the women arrived at the inventor’s home on North Avenue in Waukegan, Amet handed each a pair of boxing gloves. Bess recalled, “We whipped those long skirts out of the way and had a fine old time.” 

For several historic minutes, the girlfriends punched each other while Amet filmed. The stars of Amet's film titled, "Morning Exercise," became the first women in motion pictures.

Bess Bower working in Lake County's probate office as the assistant probate clerk, circa 1899. Bess Bower Dunn Collection, Dunn Museum, 61.14 

In 1899, Bess was hired as the county's assistant probate clerk, and in her spare time assisted people with their family research. If you happened into the probate office at the first half of the 20th century, Bess would happily assist in your research by looking into county records, and offering to visit local cemeteries to verify the correct spelling of surnames and birth/death dates. 

Bess Bower with Daniel Wright Memorial Rock in Half Day, 1909. Bess Bower Dunn Collection, Dunn Museum.

Bess was one of the founders of the Lake County Historical Society (defunct). In 1909, the Society placed a 7-ton memorial rock near the intersection of Milwaukee Avenue (Route 21) and Aptakisic Road west of the Des Plaines River to commemorate the county's first permanent non-native settler, Daniel Wright (1778-1873). See my post on Wright. 

Bess promoted Lake County history through the efforts of the Lake County Historical Society and by giving lectures. She also preserved history by documenting the county's heritage through research and speaking with descendants of early settlers. She was an avid photographer and traveled throughout the county looking for historic sites and natural areas to capture on film. 

Bess Bower with her box camera at an unknown location, circa 1905. Bess Bower Dunn Collection, Dunn Museum. 

Bess Bower with Native American trail tree in Lake Bluff, circa 1909. Bess Bower Dunn Collection, Dunn Museum. 

On November 21, 1918, after several years of courtship, Bess Bower married Roland R. Dunn. Roland was the son of Byron A. Dunn (1842-1926), historian, author, Civil War veteran, and newspaperman.  Roland became the advertising manager of the Globe Department Store in Waukegan. Sadly, just ten years into their marriage, Roland died of pneumonia following an appendicitis operation. Bess and his sisters were at his bedside. Bess never remarried. 

Bess Bower's husband, Roland R. Dunn (1874-1928). Photo 1903. 

In the mid-1950s, Bess Bower Dunn assisted Robert Vogel with his Lake County Museum of History in Wadsworth, Illinois. She was the museum's curator and donated materials from the Lake County Historical Society and her own collections for Vogel's museum. Those collections are now part of the collections of the Bess Bower Dunn Museum in Libertyville. 

Just before her death in 1959, the Lake County Board of Commissioners awarded Bess the title of Lake County Historian. She is the first person in the county's history to have the title. She was also honored for her 60 years of service as an employee of the County of Lake from 1899 to 1959, which made her the longest county employee on record.

The day after her passing, the courthouse flags were at half mast in memory of Bess and the county's Recorder of Deeds, Gustaf H. Fredbeck, who had also passed away.

Bess Bower Dunn was known to have a wide circle of friends. Here she is with friends in Millburn, Illinois: (left to right) Bess Bower, Florence Stewart, Mrs. White, Maud White, Mrs. Stewart, Mrs. Armbruster, and Mrs. Strang. Photo taken July 12, 1897. Bess Bower Dunn Collection, Dunn Museum. 

Bess Bower likely at home in Waukegan, circa 1896. Bess Bower Dunn Collection, Dunn Museum. 

Bess Bower Dunn is one of my most admired Lake County citizens. From her photographs and articles it's apparent her life was full of joy and purpose. I think she'd be pleased that her efforts in preservation are appreciated to this day. 

D. Dretske, ddretske@lcfpd.org

~ ~ ~ 

Note: In 2016, the Lake County Forest Preserves Board voted to change the name of the Lake County Discovery Museum to the Bess Bower Dunn Museum, honoring Dunn's extraordinary efforts to preserve and promote Lake County's heritage. 

Note: the Lake County Historical Society's collections are now held by the Bess Bower Dunn Museum and Lake Forest College. 

Adlai E. Stevenson II

Lake County resident, Adlai E. Stevenson II (1900-1965) was one of the most important statesmen of the 20th century.

Stevenson was a popular and effective governor of Illinois from 1948 to 1952, before running twice unsuccessfully for president against Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1952 and 1956. He was appointed as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations during the Kennedy and Johnson administrations from 1960 to 1965.

During the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1961, Stevenson famously confronted Soviet Ambassador Valerian Zorin in an emergency meeting of the Security Council. He provoked Zorin to admit that offensive weapons had been placed in Cuba and declared that he would wait "until Hell freezes over" for Zorin's response.

Presidential campaign button for Stevenson and Sparkman, 1952. Senator John Sparkman was a conservative Democrat from Alabama. (LCDM 2009.5)

In 1937, Stevenson purchased property in Libertyville Township along today's St. Mary's Road south of Route 60. For this reason, he was known as "the man from Libertyville." Since 1960 the property has been part of the Village of Mettawa.

Stevenson loved this property and called it "the farm." He hired Frank Holland to be the farm manager and caretaker. Holland worked for the Stevensons from 1937 to 1963 and again from 1965 to 1970. Guests to "the farm" included Eleanor Roosevelt, a close friend of Stevenson's, and John F. Kennedy.

Adlai Stevenson with his farm manager, Frank Holland, on "the farm," 1948. Stevenson would share in the sheep shearing and other farm tasks. Photo courtesy of Jim Holland.

Stevenson had a remarkable political pedigree. His grandfather, Adlai E. Stevenson I, was Vice President under U.S. President Grover Cleveland from 1893-1897. His maternal great-grandfather, Jesse W. Fell, was a close friend and campaign manager for Abraham Lincoln.

There was a great sense of loss when Stevenson died suddenly of a heart attack in London, England in 1965. He was an eloquent speaker and was enormously informed in national and world affairs, working tirelessly to raise the level of the public's awareness about the world and America's place in it.

Cover of Life Magazine from 1965 in memory of Stevenson, showing him at home at "the farm." Copyright Getty Images.

In 1969, most of the property was sold to Edison Dick, a longtime friend of Stevenson. In 1974 the Dick family donated the estate to the Lake County Forest Preserves. The property has since been designated an Illinois Historic Site and listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Through a generous grant from the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, the Stevenson Historic Home has been restored, and is open for tours. The 40-acre site is open daily for self-guided tours of the grounds. Tours of the home and exhibit gallery are by appointment and can be arranged through the Lake County Discovery Museum at 847-968-3381.

Presidential campaign slogan for Stevenson.(right)

The Stevenson Historic Home is also the site of the Stevenson Center on Democracy. The Center is a newly organized non-profit corporation which seeks to enhance the global understanding and practice of democracy, and continue Adlai E. Stevenson II's legacy. Learn more about upcoming events sponsored by the Center at the Stevenson Historic Home: www.stevensoncenterondemocracy.org/index.html