During the mid 1940s, McHenry was going through somewhat of an economic boom, mainly brought upon producing war materials for the front. It was this opportunity that brought Sam & Madeline Nathanson to McHenry from Chicago. Sam was involved in the clothing manufacturing business since he started working. After selling their shares of a company… Continue reading The Riverside Manufacturing Company
When McHenry was a travel destination for vacationers, it offered many colorful locations for people to enjoy themselves. One of the most interesting places was the Polly Prim which was located where the Hickory Pit now sits today on Rte. 120 & Charles St. The Polly Prim was built in the spring of 1924, by… Continue reading The Polly Prim
On a Sunday morning, September 3, 1911, a couple of fishermen who were out on the Fox River and made a gruesome find. Floating in the river was the body of a man. Authorities were called and after the body was removed from the water, they could see it was wrapped in a rain cover… Continue reading The Mysterious Case of Frederick Wennerstrom
McHenry has had several things that make it stand out from its neighbors. Yet, one of the more distinctive things about it was that for many years it was the only city in America to have two Post Offices that worked independently of each other. From 1882 to 1950 McHenry had two post offices, one… Continue reading The Origins of the West McHenry Post Office
During the early 1900s, McHenry was a bustling tourist town that attracted many people from the city and other local areas as a vacation spot. By 1911, it was becoming apparent to some citizens in the village of McHenry that the town hall no longer met the needs of its people. If the town was… Continue reading McHenry’s 2nd City Hall
