Oak Park in Cook County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Birthplace of Oak Park

Photographed by Andrew Ruppenstein, August 26, 2021

1. Birthplace of Oak Park Marker

Inscription. On this site in 1835, Joseph Kettlestrings and his wife, Betty, first settlers of Oak Park, built their cabin amid the oaks on "the only dry land between Chicago and the Aux Plaines.” It later became an inn called The Oak Ridge House, and was the area's first public eating place...a stopping point for travelers, and for cattlemen who drove their herds down the trail (now Lake Street) to Chicago.

By Proclamation, August 3, 1962
Oak Park Board of Realtors
John F. Butler, Jr., President

Erected by Oak Park Board of Realtors.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Settlements & Settlers.

Location. 41° 53.305′ N, 87° 48.254′ W. Marker is in Oak Park, Illinois, in Cook County. It is at the intersection of Lake Street and Maple Avenue, on the right when traveling east on Lake Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1137 Lake Street, Oak Park IL 60301, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Greater Chicago.

It is also in the American Midwest

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and on the Great Lakes.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Viceroyalty of New France,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Mount Carmel Baptist Church (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Henry W. Austin Memorial Plaza (about 600 feet away); Oak Park Station (about 700 feet away); Niles Building (approx. 0.2 miles away); Austin Gardens Environmental Center (approx. 0.2 miles away); Austin Gardens Woodland Habitat (approx. 0.2 miles away); Continental Divide (approx. 0.2 miles away); The History of Austin Gardens (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Oak Park.

Also see . . . A Brief History of Oak Park (Oak Park and River Forest Museum). (Submitted on December 24, 2021.)

Birthplace of Oak Park Marker - fuller view image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Andrew Ruppenstein, August 26, 2021

2. Birthplace of Oak Park Marker - fuller view

Birthplace of Oak Park Marker - wide view image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Andrew Ruppenstein, August 26, 2021

3. Birthplace of Oak Park Marker - wide view

The marker is visible here on the left side of the building.

Betty Kettlestrings image. Click for full size.

4. Betty Kettlestrings

Joseph Kettlestrings image. Click for full size.

5. Joseph Kettlestrings

<i>Oak Park's First Hotel</i> illustration image. Click for full size.

6. Oak Park's First Hotel illustration

"Drawing made from the recollections of Mrs. P. J. Kester of 1860. The building pictured was the Oak Ridge hotel, the first house built in this neighborhood by the first settler, Joseph Kettlestrings. It was on the south side of Lake street, about 100 feet east of Harlem, according to Mrs. Kester. The floor of the front porch was even with the ground and was used by those who passed that way as a shelter in summer and winter. The long rambling stables of the caravansary was across Lake street. It was destroyed by fire in 1866."

Credits. This page was last revised on January 30, 2023. It was originally submitted on December 23, 2021, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Lamorinda, California. This page has been viewed 364 times since then and 25 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on December 24, 2021, by Andrew Ruppenstein of Lamorinda, California.