Morton Grove's Past Comes Alive in New Book

The past is not dead in Morton Grove.

It's very much alive, especially if you sit down and chat with Mary Busch and Tim Mayse-Lillig, who authored Images of America: Morton Grove on behalf of the Morton Grove Historical Society. 

When they start talking about how they gathered hundreds of photos for the book, Busch offers, "Carol Anzelone donated photos. Herr Louie Nachbauer and Tante Anna had a German restaurant.  His daughter was a Neumann who married an Anzelone."

The mention of local folks and a restaurant gets them started on the subject of nightclubs. 

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"The Schafer family let us tour their basement. It was a speakeasy during Prohibition," Mayse-Lillig contributes. "At that time it was the home of Al Cowdrey. Half the basement was a speakeasy, and half was probably a distillery, There was a fire, and during the fire there were signs of a distillery."

That leads to a discussion of Augie Sonne, who had a gambling joint in his basement, and lookouts so if the feds raided, they could cover up evidence of gambling in a snap.

As the talk goes on, it's not clear we're still in 2013. In their world--and the world of the book--there's a seamless connection between current residents, with names like Lochner and Minx, and their forebears. 

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For example, we learn that Michael M. Lochner, who was born in the Baiern region of Germany in 1836, farmed in Morton Grove. The family-owned Lochner greenhouse on Dempster Street sold plants until it closed in 2005, and Kevin Lochner, a descendent, sits on the Morton Grove Park District board today.

That will create a lot of "aha!" moments for anyone who has ever lived in Morton Grove, as they fit together the names of parks and streets with the early settlers they were named for.

Busch said the authors' biggest challenge was winnowing down all the photographs to the limit of 200 set by Arcadia Publishing, publisher of the book, which retails for $21.99. 

"We tried to include all the  mayors, churches, religious groups, schools, and we couldn’t, it was too much," Busch said. "So we tried to give a slice of it, and mix it up a little bit and put some new things in there."

Busch and Mayse-Lillig, who both work part-time for the Historical Society--with Busch's salary paid by the Morton Grove Park District, in an agreement with the society--started working on the book around last May or June, they said, after the Historical Society signed a contract with the publisher.

The book spans from about the 1830s to close to the present, though the first chapter references the area's Native American past. The two authors, working with a historical society commitee composed of Donna Hedrick, Lorraine Strybel, Mark Matz and Milton Langer, divided the material up into eight chapters. 

"The topics just kind of came to us based on what we have, and history to the modern day," Busch said. 

Both Busch and Mayse-Lillig will be on hand to answer questions and sign books during the book signing Sunday, April 28, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Historical Society, 6148 W. Dempster. The book will be offered for a limited-time price of $15 at the event.

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Watch for more coverage of the book and the Historical Society.