Suburban museum freebies

There are numerous community historical museums offering exhibits that relate to that particular town's origins and growth. Many hold special events and programs for adults and children. The following offer free admission or a suggested donation (pay what you can) year-round. Call or check the Web sites for hours and days open because they vary widely, and note that some special programs do require a fee.

• Barrington Area Historical Society, 212 W. Main St., Barrington; (847) 381-1730; bahsil.org

Check out the new exhibit, "Drawings From the Great Age of the American Automobile, 1945 to 1975," which runs through December and features images showcasing the beauty and ingenuity of American automotive design during the decades following World War II, a landmark period in car styling.

• Arlington Heights Historical Museum, 110 W. Fremont St., Arlington Heights; (847) 255-1225; ahmuseum.org

Now through Sunday, Nov. 30, the exhibit "Arlington Artists on Display" features original works of more than 50 individuals who live, work or enhance the arts within the community. Media include watercolor, oil, pen and ink, pencil, acrylic, mixed media, pastel, paper, photographic-based imagery, textiles, stone and wood.

• Des Plaines Historical Society/History Center, 781 Pearson St., Des Plaines; (847) 391-5399; desplaineshistory.org

The center hosts special School Day Off programs for children ages 5 to 12, including one on telescopes on Monday, Oct. 13, and one on military medals and insignia on Tuesday, Nov. 11.

• Volkening Heritage Farm, 1111 E. Schaumburg Road, Schaumburg; (847) 985-2100; parkfun.com/recreation/SpringValley/HeritageFarm.aspx

Step back into the 1880s for a look at when Schaumburg was a rural German farm community. Help with seasonal farm chores and participate in family activities and games of the era while authentically dressed interpreters guide visitors through the site. Try your hand at cider pressing, grain threshing and blacksmithing at the Autumn Harvest Festival on Sunday, Oct. 5.

• Durant-Peterson House Museum, located in the LeRoy Oakes Forest Preserve, on Dean Street one mile west of Randall Road in St. Charles; (630) 377-6424; ppfv.org/durant.htm

The Durant House, known as Kane County's "little house on the prairie," offers a Hearth Cooking program on Sunday, Sept. 28, in which docents will prepare an autumn supper over an open fire, and the Annual Fall Frolic on Sunday, Oct. 5, in which visitors can sample a variety of heirloom apples and hearth-cooked apple treats.

• Billy Graham Center Museum, 500 E. College Ave., Wheaton; (630) 752-5909; bgc.gospelcom.net/museum/index.htm#

The museum offers an informative experience on the story of evangelism in North America, especially the ministry of Billy Graham. The current temporary exhibit, showing now through Thursday, Feb. 26, 2009, is "Images of Poverty and AIDS in Africa."

• West Chicago City Museum, 132 Main St., West Chicago; (630) 231-3376; westchicago.org/Museum/index.html

Exhibits include "Century of Progress," which chronicles Chicago's 1933-1934 World's Fair through the eyes of local residents. Souvenirs collected by area residents are on display, and a special children's area replicates the World's Fair experience.

• Batavia Depot Museum, 155 Houston St., Batavia; (630) 406-5274; bataviaparks.org/park27.htm

Batavia railroad history comes alive in a permanent exhibit about the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad (est. 1850), the Chicago & North Western Railroad (est. 1872) and the Chicago, Aurora & Elgin Electric Line (est. 1902) in a quaint train station, built in 1854, situated along the Riverwalk. Try to send a message in Morse code by using live telegraph keys.

• Elk Grove Farmhouse Museum, 399 Biesterfield Road, Elk Grove Village; (847) 439-3994; elkgroveparks.org/museumCampus.asp

The campus includes a one-room schoolhouse, farmhouse with historic furnishings, barn with 19th-century farm equipment, chicken coop and a privy (that's an outhouse to you and me).

• Lisle Heritage Society, the Museums at Lisle Station Park, 921 School St., Lisle; (630) 968-0499, lisleparkdistrict.org/museum.htm

The museum campus was created in 1978 to provide a home for the community's historic train depot. Displays detail the roots and early culture of Lisle.

• Schingoethe Center for Native American Cultures at Aurora University, 347 S. Gladstone Ave., Aurora; (630) 892-6431; aurora.edu/museum

Current exhibits include an expanded version of "Native Peoples of Illinois" and one on "Children of Native America."

• Wheeling Historical Museum, 251 N. Wolf Road, Wheeling; (847) 537-3119; www.wheelingparkdistrict.com/WPDparks/parks.htm

Exhibits depicting the story of life in Wheeling from its founding are housed in the original Wheeling Village Hall, built in 1894.

• Warrenville Historical Museum, 3S530 2nd St., Warrenville; (630) 393-4215; warrenville.com/whis/

Exhibits include an art gallery of local artists' works; miniatures of a dry goods store, apothecary, gristmill, tannery and creamery; an 1890s bedroom display; American Indian artifacts; and school yearbooks.

• Addison Historical Museum, 135 Army Trail Road, Addison; (630) 628-1433; addisonadvantage.org/History/historicalsite.htm

Themed rooms display American Indian, military, medical and dental artifacts; toys, dolls, housewares and dishes; and clocks, radios and writing instruments.

• Glen Ellen Historical Society, Stacy's Tavern Museum, 557 Geneva Road, Glen Ellyn; (630) 858-8696; gehs.org

Adult Roundtables, held quarterly at the History Center, provide opportunities to share memories and keep the legacy of early Glen Ellyn alive.

• Lakes Region Historical Society, 817 N. Main, Antioch; (847) 395-7337; antioch.il.gov/ptsofint.html

Displays relate to the history of Antioch's Chain O'Lakes region, one of Chicago's favorite resorts since the 1880s.

• Fox Lake/Grant Township Area Historical Society, 411 Washington St., Ingleside; (847) 587-0544; rootsweb.ancestry.com/~ilflahs/

Memorabilia includes historical records and photos, census records, old maps, personal interviews, a large ice saw, scrapbooks and an antique duck harvesting boat, which hangs from the ceiling.

• Fort Hill Heritage Museum, 601 Noel Drive, Mundelein; (847) 566-7743

Artifacts chronicle the town's history, from its infancy to today.

• Sugar Grove Historical Society, 259 Main St., Sugar Grove; (630) 466-9726; sugargrovehistory.org

The soceity preserves the written, oral and photographic history of the area, and collects items of historic value relating to Sugar Grove Township since its 1834 settlement.