“Chicago, Chicago that toddling town,
Chicago, Chicago I will show you around — I love it
Bet your bottom dollar you’ll lose the blues in Chicago, Chicago
The town that Billy Sunday couldn’t shut down.”
We all know and love that famed Frank Sinatra song, “Chicago.” But does anyone know who the heck Billy Sunday is?
Apparently, Billy Sunday was a popular outfielder in Chicago during the 1880s, who went on to become highly influential evangelist during the first two decades of the 20th century. “He converted in Chicago to a Christian evangelist,” said Frank Lipo, executive director of the Historical Society of Oak Park and River Forest. “He spoke to people face-to-face.”
You can meet Billy Sunday, as well as some other local legends, at the historical society’s upcoming Tale of the Tombstones, a guided, two-hour walking tour of Forest Home Cemetery taking place at 1 p.m., Oct. 16. (Meet inside the main gate at 863 Des Plaines Ave., Forest Park). Get up close and personal with Sunday, as well as other costumed characters, who unearth the history of some of the more prominent inhabitants of the circa-1870 cemetery.
“Instead of walking around and pointing and telling stories, we have people in costumes telling first-hand accounts,” said Lipo, who is busy putting the final touches on the historical society’s new home where they’ll have a soft opening on or around Nov. 1.
“It’s amazing the range of people this year.”
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This year is the tour’s 25th, silver anniversary, and it’s themed, “The Big Show.” Besides Mr. Sunday, it shines the spotlight on men and women who have been part of “The Big Show,” in the worlds of sports, politics, religion, theater, and public relations.
“These people had something to do with being on stage, being the big show,” said Lipo.
The all-ages tour is an important annual source of fall revenue for the historical society, said Lipo. Yet the first walk, 25 years ago, started as a one time fund-raising project for the broken gravestone of Ashbel Steele, a pioneer founder of River Forest.
“We helped raise money for that, and people enjoyed doing it and it was fun,” said Lipo. “We added people and costumes and characters within a couple years, and it quickly evolved.”
For the last eight years, Oak Park resident Lee Conte has been one of those costumed characters. Conte became involved with the event after one of its actors had to bow out and she was asked to fill in. These days, Conte not only portrays characters but she also makes their costumes.
This year, Conte transforms into Emelia Neumann, who speaks on behalf of her husband, Edward Neumann. Edward Neumann was a very successful businessman who was president of U.S. Tent and Awning company, (a major supplier of tents and banners to circuses, carnivals and tent shows, which were very popular during the early 1900s), and who also founded the West Side National Bank in Chicago.
“But the dream life takes a turn, and I die of Spanish flu just after the great war,” said Conte. “I talk about how my dear Edward remarried, and through bad business decisions, his new wife’s expensive tastes, oh, and that stock market crash in 1929, he lost everything. And one morning, they found him dead in the backseat of his Chrysler, with the ignition on, and the car still in the garage, but out of gas.”
Conte researches “as much as I can,” about her characters, and the way they dressed.
“We have beautiful dresses in the collection at the Oak Park/River Forest Historical Society that I use as inspiration,” she said. “I also have a few reference books, and study pictures online from museums.
“It can be time consuming, as I generally don’t work from a pattern, and construct the entire ensemble based on photos from the era I have chosen, from the slips and camisoles to the actual dress,” said Conte. “This year I picked a dress from 1903 as my inspiration. It begins to show the transition in fashion from Victorian to Edwardian … still high-collared blouses, but no bustle, and slimmer silhouette.
“The people we portray, many times, are just regular people, but they all have very interesting stories to tell, and bringing them to life and letting their voices be heard is a wonderful way to honor them,” said Conte. “And who doesn’t love a good story!”
Seems the tour is just one of those things where you have a chance to learn factually accurate history and be entertained at the same time, said Lipo.
“We don’t think history is inherently boring, but we want people to experience it in a more lively fashion,” he said.
Tickets are $15 ($10 for members) and will be sold on the walk day only beginning at 12:30 p.m.
Felicia Dechter is a freelance columnist for Pioneer Press.