The past can be an effective educational tool for understanding the present.

By Marilyn F. Campbell

The first settlers arrived at Forest Glen in the 1820s and built log cabins, cleared the land along the Vermilion River and raised their families. Since those early settlement days, the land has seen many owners and numerous changes.

Forest Glen Preserve encompasses the homesteads of many of those early settlers. It has been a county park, operated by the Vermilion County Conservation District, since 1968. The preserve is well-known for its beautiful wooded ravines and beech-maple forest, its restored prairie and its outdoor education programs.

Cabin construction

In 1984, a pioneer log cabin was erected in a clearing at the preserve, and the living history of Forest Glen took on added meaning. For several years, the naturalists and rangers had cooperated in an annual Pioneer Craft Day, which was quite popular with park visitors. A permanent facility was needed for this event, and what better than a log cabin to house some of the early crafts?

Plans were drawn, visits to other cabins were made and the rangers went to work. The result of their endeavors is a beautifully handcrafted building, with stone fireplace, log stairwell and sleeping loft. Charles Rhoden, one of the rangers, also made tables and benches. Clarence Hurley, a dedicated park volunteer, crafted a spinning wheel and water bucket for the cabin. From other friends of the preserve came additional furnishings.

Illinois Parks and Recreation                                 21                                       November/December 1985

Year-round activities

The cabin, built to represent the 1840 period, is now the focal point for activities throughout the year. School groups visit with Susan Biggs, historical interpreter, and learn about pioneer life through a variety of hands-on activities. Weekend programs are planned in spring, summer, and fall, with volunteers from the community who demonstrate various crafts. These include spinning, weaving, canning, woodcarving, quilting, soap making, candle making and more.

The staff also presents "Thanksgiving at the Cabin" and "Christmas at the Cabin," when the public can observe dinner being prepared over the hearth. Many of the neighbors who drop by have special ties to the preserve, as they are descendants of some of those early settlers. Historical data about the area, and the families who lived there, is being gathered for a book. Original abstracts have provided interesting notes about the land and its owners.

Future plans

In time, the staff hopes to expand the homestead to include a barn, smokehouse, springhouse, privy and other essentials of the period. Meanwhile, the emphasis is on interpreting history for the children of the county and their families. Visits to the prairie, and to pioneer cemeteries within the preserve, add to the living history program at Forest Glen.

The outdoor education program at Forest Glen, serving thousands of students each year, has added a new dimension. An appreciation of our pioneer heritage has joined the study of native plants, animals, geology and ecology. Vermilion County has a rich heritage — both natural and cultural. By interpreting both, the conservation district is playing a vital role in the education of our young people.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Marilyn F. Campbell is deputy director for administration and programs at the Vermilion County Conservation District.

Illinois Parks and Recreation                                 22                                       November/December 1985