Information about the Organization
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Useful Links
- Antique Home Resource
- Berwyn Bungalow Walk
- Berwyn Historic Preservation Commission
- Berwyn Informer
- Berwyn Public Library
- Berwyn's Historic Preservation Commission
- Bungalow Love on Berwyntalk
- Chicago Bungalow Initiative
- City of Homes – Berwyn Bungalow Preservation Initiative
- House History Research
- Route 66 in Berwyn
- Sears Mail Order Homes
- What style is my Bungalow?
- What style is my Home?
Do you have any Berwyn history to share?
Please help us grow the collection and share your stories, images and objects.
We encourage you to donate but would also be happy to add your images digitally to the gallery so you can keep the originals.
History
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Newspaper Digitizing Project Overview
This page is a sample page of a project which the BHS will be undertaking this spring. You may not know, but we hold a collection of newspapers dating from 1910 through the late 60’s. Some of them have been microfilmed. Our project will convert the microfilm to digital images, and then use Optical Character […] -
Berwyn Post Office Mural by Richard Haines
The muralist Richard Haines was commissioned to paint the mural which hangs in the Berwyn Post Office, located at 6625 Cermak Road. Haines was a WPA muralist. WPA as you may know, stands for “Works Progress Administration.” In 1939, WPA was changed to “Works Projects Administration.” Most of the work performed by the WPA was […] -
2011 Snowstorm: Send us your photos!
Do you have pictures of our 2011 blizzard in Berwyn, especially pictures of Landmarks? We would like to build a digital library for this soon-to-be-historic event. Please send JPGs (as large as you have them) along with your name and the location/time/date when/where you took the image and email them to info@berwynhistoricalsociety.org. If the files […] -
How it all started
Berwyn is a community incorporated in 1902 as a village and located approximately 20 minutes to the southwest of the Chicago Loop. The south end of Berwyn today was originally made up of three communities: LaVergne, Upsala or “Swedetown,” and Berwyn. This entire area was bounded by 31st Street, Ogden, Lombard, and Harlem Avenues. At roughly […] -
Berwyn Bungalow’s today
Berwyn has the most significant collection of Chicago-style bungalows in the nation. Traditionally, Berwyn Bungalows are one-story buildings with basement and attic, two to three bedrooms, and a living and dining room. Decorative details included oak woodwork and stained glass windows. The finances of the owner at the time they were built determined the specific […] -
South Oak Park
At roughly the same time, still another community was developing on the north side of present day Berwyn, aided by “Honest John” Kelly. Located more than 1-1/2 miles north of the growing communities to its south, this area extended from Roosevelt Road to 16th Street and from Ridgeland to Harlem and was first known as […] -
LaVergne
LaVergne: Thomas Baldwin Berwyn’s development began in 1856 when Thomas Baldwin purchased 347 acres of land that he subdivided into large, 10-acre lots, hoping to market the idea that he named LaVergne as an all exclusive community for affluent residents. Baldwin invested heavily in this community; he built many roads and imported thousands of maple, […]