Silver Creek's Edge

Suburban Chicago, December 1964. We take a walk behind the house to check out the creek.

Creekside Reunion

Thatcher Woods, Suburban Chicago, January 1962. We approach the spot at which Silver Creek meets the Des Plaines River.

If you fall down, then get up.

Suburban Chicago, January 1964. This photo dates from the time when it still was possible to skate on Silver Creek. Homes in the Winston Park subdivision stand along the creek.

Another Walk in the Woods

Suburban Chicago, January 1963. Mom and I are dressed for a walk through Thatcher Woods.

Here's the creek, when it was clean.

Suburban Chicago, January 1964. This is a view of Silver Creek before it became polluted.

Let's go to "The Plaza."

A Melrose Park landmark, Winston Plaza stood at the intersection of Ninth Avenue and North Avenue. "The Plaza," as we called it, was across the street from Amling's Flowerland.

The Plaza was a hub of many activities, but at its heart, it was a shopping center. Most Melrose Parkers did all of their shopping at The Plaza. Two grocery stores—Dominick's (originally a Kroger) and Jewel—anchored the mall. Moms usually shopped at either Dominick's or Jewel, but never at both. We were a "Jewel family." (I leave discussions of "Foodtown" and "Bonnie Bee" for later posts.)

The Plaza had a Walgreen's and a number of other stores that attracted preteens and teens. There was, for example, a record shop, a Lerner Shop, and a discount store, Newberry's. Newberry's had wooden floors similar to those one usually found in a Woolworth's. 

The higher-end, department-style, store was Madigan's. My Mom bought shoes and underwear there occasionally. Madigan's had a small book department—toward the back, near the bathrooms. After my Parents took me to see Mary Poppins at the movie theater, they bought the official Walt Disney Mary Poppins book for me when we visited Madigan's one evening. I remember feeling very special that day.

One of the undercover security guards at Madigan's was a patient of my Mom's. We'd see her walking around the women's department, looking cosmically bored, spinning the dress carousels as she feigned interest in the merchandise.

My childhood home was less than one mile from The Plaza. I was not allowed to go there alone, or with my Best Friend, until I reached the Seventh Grade. After I got my big-girl bicycle, however, my Best Friend and I sometimes snuck away to The Plaza and illicitly bought things like lip gloss, Fritos, and Creedance Clearwater Revival records.

When I was much smaller, my Dad sometimes walked with me to The Plaza. One year, The Plaza featured an "attraction" for kids: an "Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe" structure.

Suburban Chicago, February 1964. There's still snow on the ground, but Dad decides it's warm enough to make the 0.84-mile walk to Winston Plaza. "The Swan" stands in our open garage.

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Suburban Chicago, February 1964. We walk near Silver Creek as we make our way down Andy Drive, and across Fifth Avenue.

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Suburban Chicago, February 1964. We're getting close! There's the baptist church on the corner of Andy Drive and Ninth Avenue.

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Suburban Chicago, February 1964. We've reached the "Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe" attraction.

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Suburban Chicago, February 1964. It's a lame, walk-through lure of nothingness.

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Verona, Wisconsin, February 2012. But cheer up! I still can go home and read Mary Poppins.

Silver Creek

The home in which I grew up stood close to the intersection of Silver Creek and the Des Plaines River. When I was a little girl, this was a pristine area. Silver Creek froze in the winter, and we often walked down its banks to skate. The Des Plaines River, too, was clean, and on sunny days, we spent time enjoying the scenery in Thatcher Woods.

By the time I was a teenager, both Silver Creek and the Des Plaines River were badly polluted. Silver Creek ran through Melrose Park, "Corporate King of the Suburbs." The nearby industries likely contributed to the creek's dismal state in the 1970s. What once had been a place to ice skate became an oily waterway, slick with chemicals that would not freeze.

Thatcher Woods, Suburban Chicago, January 1964. The Des Plaines River froze in the winter.

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Thatcher Woods, Suburban Chicago, January 1963. My Mom and I enjoy the winter view along the bank of the Des Plaines River.

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Thatcher Woods, Suburban Chicago, January 1963. My Dad and I walk through the snow.

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Melrose Park, Silver Creek, January 1964. Dad pulls me, in a sled, up from Silver Creek.

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Thatcher Woods, Suburban Chicago, January 1964. Thank you for watching our snow show!