Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Another Underground Railroad House in Illinois

The May 6th Chicago Tribune ran an article on the 1840s Blodgett House in Downers Grove being moved to its original site. It wqas just a hundred foot move from 812 Randall Street to 813 Maple Avenue.

Besides being an old house with construction starting in 1846 and being completed in 1849, it was owned by staunch abolitionists Israel and Avis Blodgett and was a known stop on the Underground Railroad. They are also known to have befriended Indians during the 1832 Black Hawk War.

The Heritage Preservation Corporation bought it last year from a developer who had planned on tearing it down, but offered it for $10 when he found out its historical value.

The Corporation plans on restoring it to its pre-Civil War condition and set it on a new foundation once it is rotated 180 degree to face Maple Avenue as it originally did.

The project will cost $700,000 and is expected to be open by 2011. So far, $140,000 has been raised. No reason was given for why it was origiannly moved a little over a hundred years ago.

Lots of interesting comments with some questioning the money and whether or not it has the historical significance. One writer pointed out tthat it seems like every old home in Illinois is thought to have been a stop on the Underground Railroad. Good Point.

George Washington Slept There Too. --The Old Coot

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