What's in a Name? Appellations for West Lake Forest

Dating back to the earliest settlers, the growing community in west Lake Forest collected several monikers – official and unofficial.Meehan's SettlementIrish immigrants Michael Meehan and his wife Bri...

Dwyer Settlement: Foundations of Lake Bluff

In 1837 William and Mary Dwyer and Mary's brother Dr. Richard Murphy settled on the west side of the Green Bay Trail, north of what is now West Washington Avenue in Lake Bluff. This property included...

O Pioneers: Early European Settlers in West Lake Forest

The first pioneers to settle in west Lake Forest were mostly Irish immigrants. Many had come to Illinois to work on the Illinois & Michigan Canal. Under the terms of the Treaty of Chicago, by 1836...