Thank-You! Since I made the video, some of that neighborhood has changed. Some new business, and new construction. I'm glad I filmed when I did! Thank-You for commenting!
When I was 4 or 5 years old, our family lived in a two-story tenement building (Central Avenue) directly across from the main train station which is now a museum. The building we lived in is now an attorney's office and it is my understanding for some reason the building was declared a National heritage landmark. The corner store was a drugstore in the 1950s (Villa Avenue + Central Avenue, or is that Summit Avenue, I forget). We used to go in that drugstore and in those days they served raw coke syrup and carbonated water; mixed as a flavored drink over ice at the counter. The park at the beginning of the video I remember well, we used to go over there and play and we called it the 'gully' because of the terrain in that area. Cool video, it brought back a lot of memories for me.
Thank-You for viewing! The corner store, at Villa and the "tracks," is now a comic book store (Unicorn Comics). I believe the owner is part of the family that ran that store...?
I lived across from Ovaltine on East Wildwood until 1976. I remember the coal pile Ovaltine kept for the train. My friends and I would play king of the hill. Always came home covered in coal dust. We used to cut through the Ovaltine property to go to Washington school. Great memories living there in the 70's.
Moved to VP in high school back in the 80's and lived in the area for many years. So I consider it my second hometown. Thank you, knew some of this history but not all of it. Nice to know some of these old buildings stories.
Hi! There have been some changes on Villa Avenue. The Pioneer Feed Store has shut down and the concrete material supply company is also gone. Thank-You for viewing and commenting...!
Ah the old Villard Theatre and bowling alley. Never grew up to see it but I heard it was a very nice facility. Oh and I can never forget the ovaltine factory! That place was an eyesore before they fixed it up and made those condos in about 2000 or 99
One could smell the light fragrance of cocoa from blocks away. However, if you were coming from the Salt Creek side the aroma would mix with the sulfuric dioxide from the sanitation plants. Thank-You for viewing and commenting!
Cool. I still remember riding my bike in and around this area as a kid and stopping by the playground by the Ovaltine factory before it closed and you could smell the stuff being made. That didn't last long (in my case) before it became a broken down dump for years. I would alternate later on running through VP via the Prairie Path and the Great Western Trail depending on how I felt that day when I got to Villa Park.
Thanks alot for posting this - I grew up in Villa Park and all this I remember- ahhhh memories - I live in Houston Tx now but still have family in V.P.-- great place to grow up in - went to Willowborrok - class of 76 - I loved seeing this --
Thank-You! The old Villa Park, Villa Avenue Business District is a neat place and the old stuff needs to be preserved/recorded. Recent updates include the cement company leaving, and a new medical building under constrction. Both on Villa near the old Ovaltine plant.
I had family in Villa Park in the 70s and 80s and lived by the Metra stop in the 90s myself. Sad to see how bad that area has become including my old apartment building!
They were supposed to bulldoze a bunch of stuff at Ardmore & the tracks. There was supposed to be some sort of residential/retail construction. I'll need to drive by and see if anything ever got going...!
I lived in Elmhurst and Villa Park from 1951 until around 1978. I lived in Elmhurst until around 1972 just a few blocks from the Chicago, Aurora, and Elgin (C, A & E) right of way. I vaguely remember taking the C, A & E to Chicago when I was very young. The C, A & E ceased operation in 1957, not in the sixties. And the C, A & E was not a trolley, it was an interurban. The Chicago and Great Western (CGW) and the C, A & E had parallel roadbeds just a few feet apart: they did not share rails. The CGW was bought by the Chicago and Northwestern railroad, and the track was pulled up. I moved to Villa Park in 1972. My last home in the area was an apartment on Villa Avenue just south of North Avenue. I rode the Prairie Path on many occasions. I can remember the wonderful smell that came from the Ovaltine Factory.
Hi! Sorry for the delay in the reply.... That Ovaltine plant had a scent that could travel more than a mile. I want to say it was 1972-73 when the CGW was pulled up at York Street. They kept the trestle at Salt Creek and the tracks started again at the creek. That lasted until Ovaltine closed down and that branch got yanked back to like Carol Stream. I think it was around 1987-89 when Ovaltine shut down...?
Thank you, that was nice. Nice to know about my adopted home area. (Villa Park/Elmhurst/Lombard Area) I'm a Chicago/Berwyn/Oak Park transplant. I didn't know those trolleys were electric nor a lot of what I learned from your video. Cool. I came very close to Urbexing in the Ovaltine Factory before they built the Villa Court Apartments, but I was alone and after looking in the windows, I saw the "devil worship graffiti" and lost my nerve. Lots of squatters in there not long ago. One day, with the right people. :)
I always thought that the old place got a bad reputation that it didn't deserve. Just because some freaks use a building does not mean that the structure is forever tainted. However, there are those who say that the bad guys were especially evil. Thank-You for viewing and commenting!!!
The "Unicorn" building was Serings, which drew its customers from the 'Roaring Elgin. and school kids. They sold light lunches, soup, lots of cigarettes, cigars and newspapers and a they had a full rack of magazines along the south wall.
Originally there were three small towns. Villa, Ardmore, and Westmore due to the C&NW stations. being there. Villa and Ardmore combined to Villa Park and Westmore went to Lombard.
Since I created this video, there have been a few changes. Pioneer Feed is gone and I think the building will come down. Next door, to the north, the old material company is gone and has been replaced with a Village parking lot. The bars have changed and there is at least one brew pub. The old NIKE missile is now at the VFW/Legion on St Charles Road. I was aware of the several communities as I study area History. I want to say that both the Villa Ave and Ardmore developments had big money behind them and the Chicago Aurora & Elgin was a huge transportation asset in regards to selling the parcels and structures. Thank-You for viewing and commenting!
I have a chimney video in my favorites. That old stack was a great landmark. I was sorry to see it go (and sorrier I wasn't out there to get the video....)
I grew up in Villa Park in the 70's and 80's. Finally left to live in San Antonio in '96. If I remember correctly some of the buildings on Villa Ave. just south of St. Charles where the Pioneer Garden and Feed is had cornerstones with dates back to 190-something. Nice little video. Thanks for posting.
I always remember the fountain at Villa Park was a life saver because I would start in Berkeley by the water tower "memorial" or whatever it's called right off of Taft Ave and run maybe as far as Glen Ellyn or Wheaton depending on how I felt. Incidently I'm surprised the old PO is still there but my dad worked there for the majority of his career. Those old gas stations used to be a auto shop in the 80s to I think as far as 2000. Probably shut down when the PO moved.
You're right though and now you remind me the reason I usually didn't take the Western Trail was that even though it was quieter and less well-known, there weren't as many water fountains so I not carrying water usually went the safe route of the Prairie Path.
I grew up on Ovaltine! I remember when it was flakes, not the powder it is now.I love that little park. I like that they restored the bowling alley.I'll bet it's haunted! Looks mighty cold there, no snow yet? Love the Christmas tree by the lampost. Love the driving tour, great upload:)
Thank-you! Just recently there have been some changes. Just north odf Pioneer, was a material company. They just either stopped operation or moved. Across the street, and a little further north, a couple of old buildings got fenced off. That usually suggests a demolition. Villa Park did just finish a pretty huge job of putting in new water mains, and rebuilding Villa Ave. It makes the area look nicer but the business district still has trouble attracting, and retaining, merchants.
You have reminded me of my old bike routes. I would start my ride on the far south east end of Elmhurst, and by the time I got to Route 83, I would need a (very significant) break. There is a drinking fountain almost at Villa, and after a slug of water I would decide which way I wanted to go. I'll admit that it was usually the Prairie Path as it had a better surface and more shade. By the way, on Great Western Trail, the bridges at St Charles Road are being rebuilt.
And is the stench of Salt Creek still unavoidable when you're making that last hill up to Rte 83? HaHa. That was always a, not fond, but visceral memory!
Since I made this video, there has been a number of changes on Villa Avenue and to the west. The old concrete truck company is gone and is now Public Parking for Villa Avenue. The old missile has been moved from the square to the Veterans building on St Charles Road. The old theater has been remodeled and new building has arisen beside that old moviehouse. And there seems to be a number of breweries in the neighborhood........ Thank-You for viewing and commenting.
Villa Avenue was just "improved" this past year. They rebuilt the road, gutters, and sidewalks. They also managed to eliminate some parking spots. It will be interesting to see what, if anything, goes into the old Villa Park Material yard. It might make a nice trail head park....
I appreciate your effort. I grew up in VP in the 50s and early 60s. I'll add some flavor for you. The Unicorn Comic book store was Cering's in the 50s Comic books, old time phone booth back in the corner, outstanding ice cream and soda counter. Maybe 4-5 stools, last ditch place to get notebook paper for school when you kept forgetting. Kindly old couple, at least the seemed old to me. The "trolley station" is more accurately described as the Roarin' Elgin. In fact South Elgin museum has several cars. I recall it running when I was very young and I think I rode it to the city once or twice. The old depot on Villa became Villa Park Pharmacy a couple of years after the trains quit running The big building on the west side of the square had a theatre which was struggling way back in the 50s but still open at times. I recall seeing Mr. Roberts there with my mom. There were two buildings on Villa, one on each side of Villa that served as the Villa Park Bank before it moved to St Charles Road. Al's Smoke shop ("Fannie May"seriously?) on Ardmore and Division is, now was, almost hallowed ground. Anyway good stuff
Thank-you for the history. I value first person memories above all others. I go into Unicorn quite a bit and will mention this to the two brothers who operate the store. Your memory of the theater is awesome. I only recently got tuned into the place. I've been watching its remodeling (and the new townhomes behind) for awhile. I think the neighborhood is still trying to make up its mind as to whether it will go upscale, or remain a working class, service type of district. In any case I wish the town well!
Irving P. Feldspar a little more flavor. The old bank on the west side of Villa was Zenger Jewelry. I knew his daughter who went to WB (class of 66) That may have been the VP bank robbed by the John Dillinger gang in the 1930's. They were captured by a Michigan State Trooper. Roosevelt Road was Hwy 12 and ran to Detroit. The Mc Donalds on St Chas is thought to be the 2nd overall Mc D. It was walk up only. My dad worked part time evening at the Cities Service gas station on the same corner across Villa. Burgers were 15 cents and I recall him bringing home a bag the first night they opened. Still love them.
I seem to remember a story about some kids on a Sunday in 1965 that somehow climbed to the top of the Ovaltine plant building and one of them fell through the roof and plummeted to his death inside....I always found the place to be kind of spooky especially at night
I would have preferred to see it stay a chocolate factory (with the Oopa-Loompa's) but at least they kept most of the main factory, I drove over to Pioneer yesterday, and I noticed that the old post office is up for sale. I really hope they don't tear that one down!
Actually it was a malt factory. The smell around town was cooking malt for Ovaltine, which was a malt drink. It came as crystals, and would not dissolve in cold milk.
I'm disappointed that you didn't show the folks out in RU-vid world the ghettos of Villa Park. The apartments on west Division and of course the town houses up on North ave. There may even be a new one by now. The village idiots have let that town turn into a hell hole. Now they even have to have a gang crime unit. There's too many HUD houses and apartments and too many welfare recipients living there now from all walks of life. It was a great little village back in the day.
+Bob Kerbs It has been forty years since Villa Park had a decent group of business along North Ave. What is now Safari Land used to be the movie theater and Mongomery Wards had a great outlet store there. I think the original mistake was to allow high density rental housing, and the the State of Illinois asdded to this when Section 8 got rolled out. I think Villa Park will survive but it will take awhile to root out the unsavory types who exploit the town..?
The gas station was M&M gas station. the owners were Mansfield and McCraken since the 40's on. They always had the Cub's games on the radio in the office, and a nickle coke machine.
