Being one of the first communities in Illinois created by the introduction of rail roads, West Chicago is a city steeped with history.
As curator of the West Chicago City Museum, it has been Sally DeFauw’s charge to discover, care for and catalog certain artifacts relating to the heritage of the city. Some of the more important pieces of the museum’s collection are old photographs that have been unearthed throughout the years.
“I have always been enamored with historical photography,” DeFauw said. “It is really the only way to get an actual glimpse of what life was like back then. These photos are old and delicate. I have to make sure these pieces will last for generations to come.”
DeFauw has been the museum curator for the past 20 years. Only one other employee can stake a claim to being around longer. LuAnn Lombard is the museum’s director.
“I was the one to hire Sally,” Lombard said. “She is an extremely detail-oriented person, which is an important quality to have when dealing with the fragile pieces of our history.”
| Sally DeFauw, curator for the West Chicago City Museum Favorite author: Sigrid Undset Last vacation: Canoeing, hiking and camping in northern Wisconsin Also serves as: DeKalb County board member |
DeFauw came to the museum after attending Northern Illinois University. Her undergraduate degree was in political science.
“I thought I wanted to be a lawyer,” DeFauw said.
She attained a graduate degree from Northern Illinois University in Library Sciences after deciding law wasn’t for her.
DeFauw was born and raised on the Southwest side of Chicago. Though she now lives in Dekalb with her husband, she feels that West Chicago is her second home.
“I’m so involved with the town how could I not consider it my second home?” DeFauw said.
Throughout the past 20 years DeFauw has seen a lot of projects, programs and exhibitions come and go. There is one project that she is particularly drawn to — the cemetery walk.
An annual event, the night time hike through the oldest grave yard in the city is a popular attraction. DeFauw flexes her historical talents by researching the old grave yard.
“I try to find names that come along with interesting stories,” DeFauw said.
The stories are then set to a script and costumed volunteers act out the script creating a living history exhibit.
“The graveyard walk is a blast,” DeFauw said. “But we try to change up our exhibits on regular basis.”
The museum is host to multitude of activities, educational programs, events and exhibits through out the year.
“The variety is important,” she said. “It’s what keeps people coming back.”
