::trixxie17

gallery

This is a possible entry for the history contest. Illinois, where I live, became a state in 1818. My country is relatively young and we don't preserve as we should but there is an interesting story behind this house. Many of what are now Chicago suburbs began their history simultaneous to the official founding of Chicago in 1833. What is known as "Deerfield" was originally settled in 1835. The name Deerfield was given to it around 1849 when townships were being formed in Lake County IL, the county due north of Chicago. Deerfield was named for Deerfield, Massachusetts, and also because of the deer abounding in the area. The Village of Deerfield was incorporated in 1903. It was a community long before it became a suburb of Chicago. The one-room log home where journeyman tailor Caspar Ott and his wife, Maria Elizabetha, raised their seven children is the oldest standing building in Lake County IL. In 1970, just one week before it was to be demolished the house was discovered under the plaster of the dining room in an old farmhouse. The building was carefully revealed and moved to the Historic Village by the Historical Society of Deerfield. In 2001, the cabin was restored to its original appearance by the Historical Society with funds from members, local organizations and the community. Now the house stands as it looked 177 years ago.