You guys did a great video!! I used to live in Sycamore and moved to Montana after H.S. graduation! I know the Ellwood House very well. My uncle Gale Elliott used to live in the care takers part of the house with his family backin the early 70's. He was a painting contractor and traded rent for fixing some things that needed attention while there. Our family would visit them and and we had the best play area you could possibly imagine.We had the whole house to wander around and to just take in all the furniture, statues, art work, and the amazing architecture while playing hide & seek. We would run around in that house all day long. I was always amazed by the staircase inside, to us kids it was our castle!! What memories that brings back !! I remember my uncle telling us of some hidden rooms in the basement area and other things that supported the movement of individuals threw the area back in the end of 1800's, early 1900's.. Great video and thanks for the trip down memory lane!! Peace and prosperity to both of you and your family! Montana Rick.
I'm from DeKalb, but have been living in England for around 22 years. I really enjoyed watching this and thought you covered both DeKalb and Sycamore really well. I'm also comforted that others appreciate the historic attributes of both towns. Great video.
I moved to DeKalb about 6 years ago from the West Suburbs. I love it out here and I try to attend as many festivals as possible in both cities. Went to Pumpkin Fest in Sycamore last weekend and had a blast despite the very cold temperatures.
Thank You for featuring Downtown DeKalb and mentioning our Vintage and Makers Market. We hold DeKalb Back Alley Market twice a year in the Spring and Fall.
I remember drinking at both Andy’s and McCabes’ during senior year at NIU; also at Molly’s, Otto’s and Paradise Club….if I recall the names correctly 🤔
Used to live there moved from there in oct 2020 it is beautiful town I used to always ride my bike downtown dekalb so many memories 🥺🙂 everywhere you went in that video I went 😂 anyway great video keep up the great work
You guys are off to a great start. I found you because I wanted to see what Quincy was like. Very nice. Also DeKalb is a lot nicer than I thought - I’ve only visited NIU. One place I want to video is Ottawa, Illinois which isn’t for everyone but I have family that lived there.
Thank you, we were pleasantly surprised by DeKalb too! I have been to Ottawa multiple times to check out Starved Rock and Matthiessen but have not done any deep exploration on their historic buildings and homes. It is definitely on our list!
@@thelksaddress Buffalo Rock State Park on the north side of the river just west of Naplate which is just west of Ottawa is also nice - nice trails. My parents were married in Ottawa and spent the first night of their honeymoon at the Starved Rock Lodge. My grandmother lived on the East Side of Ottawa (on East Main Street) in a very Victorian district - some real stunners in there, as well as some in need of love & fixing up. Oglesby looked interesting when we drove by it a few times. If you want to do a separate video on the desolation of some towns, check out Marseilles & Seneca, both shadows of their former selves. Marseilles once had the Mars Theater (and you can see how they came up with the name) and Ottawa still had (at least as of 5 years ago) the Roxy Theater (maybe a takeoff on the Rock in Starved Rock). Keep up the good work. Ronald Reagan's boyhood home in Dixon is also worth a (quick) visit plus the downtown is interesting .......
Nicely done! I attended NIU in the mid 1980s, earning my BFA and living year round in an apartment above 129 E Lincoln Hwy. I have fond memories of being right across the street from 'Otto's' bar (before that it was called 'The Uprising'), McCabe's down the street was thriving then too. I frequented Apple Tree Records and Record Revolution for music, both long gone. College enrollment was significantly higher then than it is now, so Dekalb was bustling and busy during the school year, and much quieter and more tranquil during the summer. I've lived elsewhere since, 10 years in Philadelphia, 20 years in Chicago, .. but currently I live in Ottawa Illinois, which I do love. It's a beautiful picturesque little town. Dekalb was also on my radar the entire time I was home shopping, but I'm really glad I landed here in Ottawa. You really can't go home again, and I didn't want to end up comparing the times, or eclipsing any fond memories. All my teachers are retired now. My alma mater is still only 40 minutes north, I can (and do) visit when a nostalgic mood strikes me, even grab some diner food at The Junction, still there all these years later. So is Pizza Villa!
Were you ever able to get a tour of Elwood house? You mentioned Andy’s and McCabe’s as getting the first places to acquire liquor licenses after the prohibition. Note: if you do your the beautiful estate of Elwood, ask them about the Prohibition so you can see some fascinating history ;)
335 College Ave, as I understand it, was originally the NIU president's house, a long time ago. The story I have heard is, there was a president whose wife used a wheelchair, and this house was inaccessible. So NIU bought a different house, not a s nice, which was also recently sold because the current president already owned a home in town and did want to move.
6:16 you are rolling down Augusta and pass 233(?) Augusta. The story is, that house was designed by a student of Frank Lloyd Right. This are just things I have heard living in that neighborhood for 7 years.
You guys did a great video!! I used to live in Sycamore and moved to Montana after H.S. graduation! I know the Ellwood House very well. My uncle Gale Elliott used to live in the care takers part of the house with his family backin the early 70's. He was a painting contractor and traded rent for fixing some things that needed attention while there. Our family would visit them and and we had the best play area you could possibly imagine.We had the whole house to wander around and to just take in all the furniture, statues, art work, and the amazing architecture while playing hide & seek. We would run around in that house all day long. I was always amazed by the staircase inside, to us kids it was our castle!! What memories that brings back !! I remember my uncle telling us of some hidden rooms in the basement area and other things that supported the movement of individuals threw the area back in the end of 1800's, early 1900's.. Great video and thanks for the trip down memory lane!! Peace and prosperity to both of you and your family! Montana Rick.
Those are such cool stories! Thanks so much for sharing!
My Dad was born & raised in DeKalb, I have wonderful memories of visiting my Grandparents there. ❤
I've lived in DeKalb for 40 years. Pumpkin Fest is in Sycamore. Cornfest is in DeKalb. Nice Video
I'm from DeKalb, but have been living in England for around 22 years. I really enjoyed watching this and thought you covered both DeKalb and Sycamore really well. I'm also comforted that others appreciate the historic attributes of both towns. Great video.
FYI DeKalb doesn't have a Pumpkin Fest... That's Sycamore. DeKalb has a Corn Fest. Nice video.
Thanks for the kind words and thank you for the correction!
I moved to DeKalb about 6 years ago from the West Suburbs. I love it out here and I try to attend as many festivals as possible in both cities. Went to Pumpkin Fest in Sycamore last weekend and had a blast despite the very cold temperatures.
Had to come check out the video. I make videos running around DeKalb doing street scrapping.
These homes are everything!!!
Thank You for featuring Downtown DeKalb and mentioning our Vintage and Makers Market. We hold DeKalb Back Alley Market twice a year in the Spring and Fall.
I live in DeKalb, Such a beautiful video. Fun fact The famous actor Richard Jenkins, (The father on the movie Stepbrothers) is from DeKalb
I lived in Illinois for 43 years and there's so much of it I haven't seen...
Amazing video!
Big thanks!!
I remember drinking at both Andy’s and McCabes’ during senior year at NIU; also at Molly’s, Otto’s and Paradise Club….if I recall the names correctly 🤔
Used to live there moved from there in oct 2020 it is beautiful town I used to always ride my bike downtown dekalb so many memories 🥺🙂 everywhere you went in that video I went 😂 anyway great video keep up the great work
Born in DeKalb, but moved to Quincy in Jr. High!
You guys are off to a great start. I found you because I wanted to see what Quincy was like. Very nice. Also DeKalb is a lot nicer than I thought - I’ve only visited NIU. One place I want to video is Ottawa, Illinois which isn’t for everyone but I have family that lived there.
Thank you, we were pleasantly surprised by DeKalb too! I have been to Ottawa multiple times to check out Starved Rock and Matthiessen but have not done any deep exploration on their historic buildings and homes. It is definitely on our list!
@@thelksaddress Buffalo Rock State Park on the north side of the river just west of Naplate which is just west of Ottawa is also nice - nice trails. My parents were married in Ottawa and spent the first night of their honeymoon at the Starved Rock Lodge. My grandmother lived on the East Side of Ottawa (on East Main Street) in a very Victorian district - some real stunners in there, as well as some in need of love & fixing up. Oglesby looked interesting when we drove by it a few times. If you want to do a separate video on the desolation of some towns, check out Marseilles & Seneca, both shadows of their former selves. Marseilles once had the Mars Theater (and you can see how they came up with the name) and Ottawa still had (at least as of 5 years ago) the Roxy Theater (maybe a takeoff on the Rock in Starved Rock). Keep up the good work. Ronald Reagan's boyhood home in Dixon is also worth a (quick) visit plus the downtown is interesting .......
Nicely done! I attended NIU in the mid 1980s, earning my BFA and living year round in an apartment above 129 E Lincoln Hwy. I have fond memories of being right across the street from 'Otto's' bar (before that it was called 'The Uprising'), McCabe's down the street was thriving then too. I frequented Apple Tree Records and Record Revolution for music, both long gone. College enrollment was significantly higher then than it is now, so Dekalb was bustling and busy during the school year, and much quieter and more tranquil during the summer.
I've lived elsewhere since, 10 years in Philadelphia, 20 years in Chicago, .. but currently I live in Ottawa Illinois, which I do love. It's a beautiful picturesque little town. Dekalb was also on my radar the entire time I was home shopping, but I'm really glad I landed here in Ottawa. You really can't go home again, and I didn't want to end up comparing the times, or eclipsing any fond memories. All my teachers are retired now. My alma mater is still only 40 minutes north, I can (and do) visit when a nostalgic mood strikes me, even grab some diner food at The Junction, still there all these years later. So is Pizza Villa!
Were you ever able to get a tour of Elwood house? You mentioned Andy’s and McCabe’s as getting the first places to acquire liquor licenses after the prohibition. Note: if you do your the beautiful estate of Elwood, ask them about the Prohibition so you can see some fascinating history ;)
335 College Ave, as I understand it, was originally the NIU president's house, a long time ago. The story I have heard is, there was a president whose wife used a wheelchair, and this house was inaccessible. So NIU bought a different house, not a s nice, which was also recently sold because the current president already owned a home in town and did want to move.
6:16 you are rolling down Augusta and pass 233(?) Augusta. The story is, that house was designed by a student of Frank Lloyd Right. This are just things I have heard living in that neighborhood for 7 years.
Lincoln Highway in Dekalb runs East & Westm not North & South.