Oswego history on sale at the Little White School Museum

Looking for unique, Oswego-themed gifts for friends and family? The Little White School Museum Store may have exactly what you’re looking for.

The store is open at the museum, 72 Polk St., is open Thursdays and Fridays from 2 to 6:30 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.; and Mondays, 4 to 9 p.m. The museum is closed to visitors on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

Selections begin with the museum’s collection of Cat’s Meow architectural miniatures of historic area structures. The two latest entries in the collection – The Johnston House and the Boulder Hill sign – join the other miniatures in the collection including the Church of the Good Shepherd United Methodist, the Korte-Zentmyer Building (My Lil’ Sister’s Donut Shop), the Hoze-Cherry House, the Chapman House, the Crothers-Jolly-Denney House, the Dairy Hut, the Schwartz House (Tripp Insurance), the A.O. Parke Building (The Prome Shoppe), the Durrand House (The Village Grind), the Oswego Fire Barn (Oswego Winery), the Knapp Building (Masonic Hall-Oswego Family Restaurant building), the Rank Building, the Schickler Building (The Mod Stitch Co. and barber shop), the Little White School Museum and the Oswego Woman’s Civic Club’s iconic “Welcome to Oswegoland” sign.

Each building facade is accurately rendered, and measures about 6 x 4 inches. The back of each miniature includes a brief building history. They are available for $20 each. The Cat’s Meow sale is the heritage association’s major annual fundraiser.

Also available at the museum store is a selection of fine Great Bay custom Oswego-marked stoneware, along with books and pamphlets on Oswegoland history, and books and videos featuring the Oswego area’s homegrown environmental crusader, “The Fox.”

Copies of “Oswego Township”, a 128-page pictorial history with dozens of historic images from the museum’s collections are $20 each. A few copies of the 192-page hardbound “150 Years Along the Fox: The History of Oswego Township, Illinois,” published in 1983, are still available at $40 per copy. When all copies are gone, it’s unlikely any more of these books will be reprinted.

“By Trace and Trail”, a monograph on the history of the stagecoach era west of Chicago – including roads, stage stops, post offices and more – is available for $10. Also available are monographs on aspects of Oswego history at $1 each, along with a number of other local history-related books and pamphlets, including books and other items concerning Jim Phillips, the ecological hero who called himself The Fox, including “The Legend of the Fox,” a video on both DVD and VHS about Phillips’ exploits.

Proceeds benefit the Oswegoland Heritage Association’s efforts to protect and preserve the Oswego area’s rich heritage and the Little White School Museum’s operations.

For more information, call 630-554-2999, email info@littlewhiteschoolmuseum.org, or visit littlewhiteschoolmuseum.org.