Seniors Stop At Lombard

Senior travelers find that Lombard is a village and a suburb of Chicago with a population that runs around 43,000. Lombard was officially incorporated in 1869, named after Chicago banker and real estate developer Josiah Lewis Lombard.

The city has a very interesting history. Originally part of Potawatomi Indian lands, the Lombard area was first settled by Americans of European descent in the 1830s. Lombard shares its early history with Glen Ellyn. Brothers Ralph and Morgan Babcock settled in a grove of trees along the DuPage River in what was known as Babcock’s Grove. Lombard developed to the east and Glen Ellyn to the west.

In the mid-1830′s, early settlers were attracted to Babcock’s Grove, (as Lombard was called at the time) by rich farmland; more settlers came when the railroad route westward from Chicago followed the St. Charles Road Trail.

In 1837, Babcock’s Grove was connected to Chicago by a stagecoach line which stopped at Stacy’s Tavern at Geneva and St. Charles Roads. Fertile land, the DuPage River, and plentiful timber drew farmers to the area.

Seniors Enjoy The Lilac Festival

Josiah Lombard purchased 227 acres of land in 1868 and spearheaded the incorporation of Lombard in 1869. Stylish Victorian homes appeared on North Main Street. The Lombard Historical Museum maintains a house museum in the style of one of these homes circa the 1870s.

The Maple Street Chapel, which is now on the National Register of Historic Places, was constructed in 1870 to serve a growing population. The “Lilac Village” as it is called, has much to offer senior visitors in part because of its proximity to Chicago.

If you enjoy the scent of lilacs… since 1930, Lombard has hosted an annual Lilac Festival and parade in May. “Lilac Time in Lombard,” is a 16-day festival ending in mid-May. Sixteen days…wow.

Lombard is loaded with scenery and a visit would not be complete without a few photos of the Little Orphan Annie  House on Lombard’s Main Street.

Seniors Visit Lilacia Park

TripAdvisor has a listing of several attractions that seniors can enjoy, starting with the Lilacia Park, a 8.5 acre garden,  located at 150 South Park Avenue. It specializes in lilacs and tulips and is open to the public daily.

The park, once home to Colonel William R. Plum’s lilac garden, is now a park with poetic appeal. Originally the Plums purchased two lilacs, Syringa vulgaris ‘Mme Casimir Périer’, a double white, and Syringa vulgaris ‘Michel Buchner’, a double lilac color. The present collection of lilacs in Lilacia began with these two cultivars.

The park was bequeathed on the passing of Colonel Plum, a Chicago lawyer and Civil War veteran,  in 1927. With a name like “Plum” one can better understand why purple is supreme around Lombard. For me, a Master Gardener, I’d want to then head off to the Lombard Historical Society Museum to learn more about Lombard.

Senior travelers, make a stop in Lombard next time you are in the Chicago area.  You won’t regret it.  jeb