Naperville Sun – Page 13

Here's another A.C. Kendig photo, this one taken in the early 1800s of Naperville toddler Arthur Henry Hobert and his toy cat, posed on a piece of furniture. This image is known as a carte-de-visite, a style of small photographs — usually about 4.5-inches-by-2.5-inches — that became popular starting in the 1860s because they could be easily shared and traded among friends and visitors. And, yes, while it appears young Arthur, who was born in 1881, died in 1958 and is buried in Naperville Cemetery, is wearing a skirt, that was the custom of the day. According to one account from the Maryland Center for History and Culture, it was likely more practical from the standpoint of changing diapers. But it also could have represented the child's dependence on its mother until the boy was "breeched" — given his first pair of pants or breeches — when the father was to take over his son's education. Another school of thought is "small boys and girls were dressed alike because they were seen alike. Infants and toddlers were all seen as innocent, meaning sexless or without gender," the center's publication said. (Naperville Heritage Society)

The Way We Were: Trading card photos like this one of a Naperville toddler were once the rage

August 26, 2025 at 6:21 p.m.

Arthur Henry Hobert's toddler image is captured in a photo taken by a Naperville photographer sometime in the early 1880s.

Linnie (Wagner) Stark, aka Mrs. Eli Stark, posed for a photo in about 1900 with her son Byron. They are standing in the yard of the Orcutt home in downtown Naperville, located at the northwest corner of Jefferson Avenue and Webster Street. According to Naper Settlement accounts, Eli Stark was an amateur photographer and man of many trades. In addition to opening a bicycle repair shop, he also delivered newspapers, operated a newsstand and a general store, and bought a confectionary shop that eventually included an ice cream parlor. It was the last venture in which wife Linnie played a role by helping make the ice cream. Byron Stark was born in 1898 and would live for 91 years. (Naperville Heritage Society)

The Way We Were: Capturing a sweet moment in 1900 of Naperville mother and child

August 22, 2025 at 12:39 p.m.

Linnie Stark, aka Mrs. Eli Stark, posed for a photo in about 1900 with her son Byron. They are standing in the yard of the Orcutt home in downtown Naperville,...

Cabinet card photographs, larger-size portrait photos mounted on hard cardboard featuring staged scenes or props, were popular in the late 1800s and early 1900s. This one taken by prolific Naperville photographer A.C. Kendig is of Ervine and Clarence Brown in the late 19th century, according to Naperville Heritage Society records. The two boys look like they're rowing a small boat but it's nothing more than a staged set into which they were placed. (Naperville Heritage Society)

The Way We Were: Cabinet card photo captures two Naperville boys in the late 19th century

August 1, 2025 at 1:36 p.m.

Ervine and Clarence Brown were just young boys in Naperville in the late 19th century when they had their cabinet card photo taken.

Letters to the Editor: Pretrial Fairness Act doesn’t need fixing based on one case; gratitude for the peaceful ‘Good Trouble Lives On’ event

August 1, 2025 at 2:53 p.m.

Letters to the editor submitted to the Naperville Sun.

If there was ever a doubt that Naperville was a one-horse town at the turn of the last century, this "bird's eye view" should dispell it. The postcard image was taken in 1908 and looks toward the northeast. At the time, the town's population was about 2,630, according to census records. (Naperville Heritage Society)

The Way We Were: Looking down on Naperville back in 1908

July 25, 2025 at 10:39 a.m.

If there was ever a doubt that Naperville was once a one-horse town, this "bird's eye view" postcard from 1908 will dispell it.

Naperville residents receive college/university degrees, named to honor rolls and dean’s lists

July 21, 2025 at 10:20 a.m.

Naperville residents have completed college/university degrees or have been named to their school’s academic achievement lists.

Naperville bank robber sentenced to 7.8 years in federal prison

July 19, 2025 at 12:40 p.m.

A Villa Park man who robbed a Naperville bank and four other financial institutions has been sentenced to more than seven and a half years in federal prison.

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Attic fire in Naperville’s Historic District leaves home uninhabitable

July 18, 2025 at 11:51 a.m.

Three people were forced out of their home Friday by an early morning fire that caused about $75,000 in damage, according to the Naperville Fire Department.

The more things change, the more they stay the same? This photo, appropriately yellowed with age, dates back 47 years to 1978, when Naperville National Bank anchored the northeast corner of Jefferson Avenue and Washington Street in downtown Naperville. While that local bank was done in by a wrecking ball quite some time ago, another financial institution, US Bank, holds down the space. If you have a keen eye, you'll also see the old Nichols library further down the street. (Naperville Heritage Society)

The Way We Were: Naperville still had its own bank when this photo was taken in 1978

July 18, 2025 at 10:40 a.m.

Back 47 years ago, Naperville National Bank anchored the northeast corner of Jefferson Avenue and Washington Street in downtown Naperville.

Naperville Police Arrests for July 12-15

July 18, 2025 at 7:57 a.m.

Roundup of recent arrests made by the Naperville Police Department.

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