Oswego museum to open by reservation

Website includes wealth of Oswego history, heritage, fun

The Little White School Museum again will open its doors to visitors on a limited basis, thanks to an easing of pandemic restrictions in Kendall County.

The museum, located at 72 Polk St. (Jackson at Polk) in Oswego, most recently had been closed since Nov. 18. Starting Jan. 21, the museum will be open by reservation from noon to 4 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays and by special request. The museum will be closed to all visitors Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

Visitors may make a reservation by going to littlewhiteschoolmuseum.org and clicking on the “Visit” tab at the top of the page to fill out a reservation form. Or visitors can email museum manager Tina Heidrich at cheidrich@littlewhiteschoolmuseum.org or call her at 630-554-4494 to set up a reservation.

The museum website will be updated frequently to reflect the museum’s open or closed status. In addition, the informational sign outside the main entrance on Jackson Street also will be updated with the latest information concerning museum hours and status.

The Little White School Museum’s mission is to protect and preserve the history of the 68-square-mile area inside the bounds of Oswego School District 308. Its collections include more than 31,000 artifacts, photographs and archival materials that tell the community’s story from prehistoric times to the 21st century.

Website highlights

Are you a new Oswego resident, a longtime resident looking for some information on the village’s rich history and heritage or are you just seeking some Oswego-centric fun? If so, your first stop ought to be the Little White School Museum website at littlewhiteschoolmuseum.org.

The website, managed by the museum’s partners, the Oswegoland Park District and the Oswegoland Heritage Association, contains a wealth of information on area history from the earliest settlers through recent years.

Click on “Learn” in the site’s top bar, and you’ll be presented with a drop-down list rich in historical resources. “Oswego History” will present you with a capsule history of the village of Oswego and Oswego Township from prehistoric to modern times.

“Oswego Timeline” offers a list of important events in Oswegoland history in chronological order, from the Native People who lived in the area through the era of settlement up through the fast-growth era of the early 21st century.

Perhaps the richest historic trove is in the “Oswego News Columns” page accessed through the “Learn” pull-down menu. The page offers six downloadable files of transcriptions of early newspaper articles about the Oswegoland area, from the 1840s through 1969. The searchable files are assembled in about 20-year increments and offer a wealth of primary Oswego source material about people, local government, important community events, national events that had significant local impacts and more. The information was transcribed from the Ottawa Free Trader, the Kendall County Courier, the Kendall County Free Press, the Kendall County Record and the Oswego Ledger.

Clicking on the “Heritage Association” item on the “Learn” pull-down menu takes visitors to a page with information on how to join this nonprofit organization responsible for restoring the Little White School Museum and opening the community museum there, as well as a capsule history of the group and its aims and objectives. An annual “Friend” membership in the group is $20 a year.

The “Research” and “Preservation” selections on the “Learn” menu offer tips on doing research, as well as how to safely preserve and store family photos and other heirlooms.

Finally, click on the “Discover and Learn” menu item and unlock a wealth of fun Oswego heritage, from vintage Christmas ornaments to historic recipes to a list of virtual online visits you and your family can make to the Little White School Museum.