HR0013 96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0013 LRB096 03108 GRL 13432 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives are pleased to congratulate the citizens of the Village of Mundelein on the occasion of the Village's 100th year of incorporation on February 1, 2009; and

WHEREAS, The long and rich history of the Village of Mundelein began in 1835, when Peter Shaddle, the area's first known settler, built a log cabin on what is now the grounds of St. Mary of the Lake Seminary; around the same time, a group of English emigrants came to the area to escape the industrial depression occurring in England; the tradesmen became farmers and named their new community "Mechanics Grove" after the life they left behind, building churches and schools and expanding the settlement to the Diamond Lake area; and

WHEREAS, During the expansion of Mechanics Grove, a man by the name of John Holcomb purchased a large tract of land in the area and became active in the leadership of the rapidly developing area; in his honor, the unincorporated community changed its name to "Holcomb"; the area of Holcomb continued to grow, gaining a railroad station and a post office; in February of 1909, the Holcomb area became incorporated under the name of "Rockefeller", in honor of railroad owner William Rockefeller; and

WHEREAS, The town of Rockefeller boasted grain elevators, various stores and hotels, and the various amenities of a small but active town, but didn't keep the new name very long; Arthur Sheldon, an educational entrepreneur in town, bought 600 acres to build a school for sales techniques, which attracted a peak of 10,000 students, including many women, an unusual feat for the times; the school flourished for a few years, and made such an impact on the town that they accepted Sheldon's request in July of 1909 to rename the newly incorporated Village to "Area", an acronym for his sales school philosophy, "Ability, Reliability, Endurance, and Action"; his school was to close only a few years later; and

WHEREAS, In 1921, Archbishop (soon to be Cardinal) George Mundelein of Chicago bought Arthur Sheldon's property and authorized the construction of St. Mary's of the Lake Seminary, a new $10 million construction project; to this day, the campus remains a seminary and religious retreat for the Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago, with facilities for up to 400 students; in 1926, the 28th International Eucharist Conference, which was held at the seminary, brought an estimated 500,000 people to Area, a village of 500 people; in recognition of Cardinal Mundelein's success with the new seminary, the village changed its name again in 1924 to its current name, Mundelein; in thanks, the Cardinal donated the Village's first new fire truck in 1925; the current Village Hall is the same structure today that was built in 1929 with a few additions; and

WHEREAS, The following decades have brought the Village of Mundelein great growth in its industry, business, and population, who now look forward to adding great new chapters to Mundelein's history in the decades to come; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we congratulate the citizens of the Village of Mundelein on the occasion of the village's 100th year of incorporation and wish them continued success and happiness in the future; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Kenneth H. Kessler, Mayor of the Village of Mundelein, and the Mundelein Board of Trustees as a symbol of our esteem and respect.