The West Chicago City Museum is excited to launch a new art and history maker program on the Second Saturday of every month. History based art projects will be set up at the museum to drop-in and take part in OR to pick up a to go bag to complete at home.

Everyone is welcome to stop by our first 2025 event on Saturday, March 8th from 10am-noon to weave, make your own pot holder, doll rug, or any other project! Cardboard looms and yarn will also be available to take home. Weaving was once a very popular activity in the United States and still is in Indigenous communities and other places throughout the world.

Can’t make it to the event but would still like to take part? Email us at wegohistotry@gmail.com and we will deliver a weaving kit to any West Chicago address.

Join the Friends of the West Chicago City Museum & the West Chicago Historical Society for an entertaining Tasting Party with history presenter Ellie Carlson.

Learn all about the history of cooking during the 1930s and enjoy the full tasting menu prepared as it would have been during the time! Tickets are $20 for We Go History Members and $22 for non-members. You can reserve your spot by emailing us at wegohistory@gmail.com or stopping into the City Museum at 132 Main Street during our open hours Thursdays & Fridays 9:30am-2:30pm and Saturdays 9:30am-3:30pm.

Details about the program: It is the Depression in America. The stock market has crashed, Roosevelt is trying to repair the country and thousands of Americans are changing the way they eat. Slide9Many rural folk are leaving for the cities and learning to cook on hotplates in rented rooms. A meal in a diner might have only cost a few cents but many didn’t have that so they made do with what they could cook themselves.

Still and all, many people who lived through that time have fond memories of the tastes and smells of that era.

Join the West Chicago City Museum for our summer free drop-in art making events "Fascinating Fridays at the City Museum."

Children of all ages are invited to stop in to our pop-up makers space, see a fascinating piece of history and experiment with art supplies to create their own pieces. History features will rotate each week and take home craft bags will also be available. The Museum exhibits and kids train table will also be open for families to view and interact with during their visit.

These drop-in Friday morning events are free and open to all. Can't make it to the City Museum, email us at wegohistory@gmail.com or DM us and we will deliver a free craft bag to your West Chicago home.

Join the West Chicago City Museum & People Made Visible for our latest mental health and history workshop on Saturday, June 10th with artist Ruth Hong. Participants will be invited to do some gratitude journaling after the presentation; instruction and supplies will be provided.

Ruth works in mixed media mostly on paper and loves using prismacolors and sharpies. Creating art is one of the few activities, along with being in nature, that allows her to appreciate the present. Some of Ruth's recent work address self-compassion and she hopes to continue the conversation surrounding the healing capabilities of art.

This event is part of the Resilience Collective, a grant funded through the Illinois Association of Museums.

Join the West Chicago City Museum for our July Stroll Through History all about Trains! Meet for this walk and talk about the 1860s CB&Q Depot, located at 134 Turner Court behind the Museum. These walks are free and open to all. Please contact the City Museum with any questions at museum@westchicago.org.

This event is held in collaboration with Healthy West Chicago.

Join the West Chicago City Museum for our June nonfiction book club Historiography where we will be discussing The Last Castle: The Epic Story of Love, Loss, and American Royalty in the Nation's Largest Home, about the home of the Vanderbilts.

Historiography is held each third Thursday of the month at the City Museum at 1pm. All welcome, no need to have read the book to join the discussion.

Masks strongly encouraged

Join the West Chicago City Museum for a lunch time Town Hall Share. Join Museum director Sara Phalen for a presentation about the train workers that powered the industry in West Chicago. Hear their stories of struggle and success in a hard industry followed by some time for community members and history lovers to share their own stories about the railroads in West Chicago. This event is free and open to all. A zoom link will be shared 30 minutes before the event on Facebook and our website www.wegohistory.com.

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Due to the popularity of our school break History at Home Craft Kits, the City Museum will have a grab and go History at Home Craft Kit Pick Up every Second Friday of the month.

On Friday, April 9th from 10am-noon FREE kits can be picked up in front of the City Museum at 132 Main Street, West Chicago. Kits are designed for children ages 5-9, but all ages can have fun with the kits. Bags contain 4 activities and a local history booklet. **Supplies are limited and once they are all gone, we will post in the event. Can't make it to the museum? Reserve your child's by emailing us at wegohistory@gmail.com and we will deliver it to your door if you live in West Chicago. Got questions? Send us a Facebook message or email us at wegohistory@gmail.com.

Join the West Chicago City Museum and the Warrenville Historical Society for our February non-fiction book club discussing Robin Wall Kimmer's book "Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants." Connect to nature in 2021 and start your year off right by reading this wonderful book that has been a mainstay for many over the last year. All are welcome and no need to have read or completed the book to join.

Currently meeting on Zoom https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89887385120

Join the West Chicago City Museum and the Warrenville Historical Society for our January non-fiction book club discussing Robin Wall Kimmer's book "Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants." Connect to nature in 2021 and start your year off right by reading this wonderful book that has been a mainstay for many over the last year. All are welcome and no need to have read or completed the book to join.

Currently meeting on Zoom https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83788441501

Join the West Chicago City Museum & the Warrenville Historical Society as our monthly book club continues virtually!

On Thursday, July 16th at 1pm the group will meet to discuss “Hamilton” the Broadway Hit streaming on Disney+. A link to join the meetings can be found on the Friends of the West Chicago City Museum’s Facebook Page or on our website wegohistory.com.

All are welcome, and feel free to join the conversation even if you have not read the book or watched the film.

On Stage

Be prepared to be whisked away on a literary adventure! Join West Chicago Library and the West Chicago City Museum once a month as we team up for a story-time experience. We will look, listen, create, explore and play - with a new theme each month. Ms. Kelli from the Library will be reading stories linked to the City Museum’s collection. Afterwards we will have some fun with a variety of hands-on activities. This program is FREE of charge and requires no registration. Meet us on the second floor of the City Museum.

Magic

Be prepared to be whisked away on a literary adventure! Join West Chicago Library and the West Chicago City Museum once a month as we team up for a story-time experience. We will look, listen, create, explore and play - with a new theme each month. Ms. Kelli from the Library will be reading stories linked to the City Museum’s collection. Afterwards we will have some fun with a variety of hands-on activities. This program is FREE of charge and requires no registration. Meet us on the second floor of the City Museum.

Flowers & Showers

Be prepared to be whisked away on a literary adventure! Join West Chicago Library and the West Chicago City Museum once a month as we team up for a story-time experience. We will look, listen, create, explore and play - with a new theme each month. Ms. Kelli from the Library will be reading stories linked to the City Museum’s collection. Afterwards we will have some fun with a variety of hands-on activities. This program is FREE of charge and requires no registration. Meet us on the second floor of the City Museum.

Chicks and Ducks and Bunnies, Oh My!

Be prepared to be whisked away on a literary adventure! Join West Chicago Library and the West Chicago City Museum once a month as we team up for a story-time experience. We will look, listen, create, explore and play - with a new theme each month. Ms. Kelli from the Library will be reading stories linked to the City Museum’s collection. Afterwards we will have some fun with a variety of hands-on activities. This program is FREE of charge and requires no registration. Meet us on the second floor of the City Museum.

Be prepared to be whisked away on a literary adventure! Join West Chicago Library and the West Chicago City Museum once a month as we team up for a story-time experience. We will look, listen, create, explore and play - with a new theme each month. Ms. Kelli from the Library will be reading stories linked to the City Museum’s collection. Afterwards we will have some fun with a variety of hands-on activities. This program is FREE of charge and requires no registration. Meet us on the second floor of the City Museum.

Queen Elizabeth II

In this new historical portrayal, historian Leslie Goddard, Ph.D., explores the life of Britain’s famous monarch, from her childhood, the abdication of her uncle, her marriage to a navy officer named Philip, her World War II service, and her struggle to balance her roles as queen and mother.. Get to know the woman behind the images, her sense of humor and savvy intelligence with which she meets her demanding obligations. Note: This program is a historical portrayal, not a lecture.

Free, all ages. Drop in to try your hand at drawing an item from the Museum’s collection during “Drawing on History” and view our current exhibits.

Be prepared to be whisked away on a literary adventure! Join West Chicago Library and the West Chicago City Museum once a month as we team up for a story-time experience. We will look, listen, create, explore and play - with a new theme each month. Ms. Kelli from the Library will be reading stories linked to the City Museum’s collection. Afterwards we will have some fun with a variety of hands-on activities. This program is FREE of charge and requires no registration. Meet us on the second floor of the City Museum.

Free, all ages. Drop in to make a historically inspired Valentine and view our current exhibits: West Chicago POP! and Building Community.