By Ricky Rieckert
To start with this week in an historical look back at Aurora, I forgot to add the addresses of both Fox Theaters.
The Original, on Fox Street, was 24-28 Fox Street (three units).
The New Fox Theater on Main Street, was 54 E. Main Street.
Just west of the Original Fox Theater, was a coin shop, when I was a kid, before the Aurora Historical Society.
Speaking of Aurora history, happy belated 104th birthday to Evelyn Rackmyer, January 3.
I’ve known her since doing work at her house on N. Lake Street, many years ago.
She’s one of the finest women I have ever known. I would see her at the Aurora Historical Society, where she volunteered.
The Voice ran an article with a picture, last week.
She now lives at Jennings Terrace. I would love to visit her, sometime.
Heading west of Aurora Historical Society was an alley, that ran from Fox Street to Main Street, behind the Paramount Theatre.
The last building west before the alley, was the Cove Tavern, owned by Bud Dixon.
In the late 1890s there was a lot of flooding downtown. The streets, sidewalks and bridges over the Fox River were raised up.
The Cove’s basement, used to be at street level.
In the late 1970s, I did a job there, and noted an outside door on the now basement wall, that goes nowhere.
West of the alley was a business building, then Island Avenue, now Stolp Avenue.
This is where W. Downer Place begins.
On the Northwest corner of Stolp Avene and W. Downer Place was Assell Photography.
West of there, is the West branch of the Fox River.
On the west side of the bridge, on the Northside, was the old Y.W.C.A. building.
That takes us to River Street, where the newer downtown Waubonsee Community College runs from the northeast corner of W. Downer and S. River Street to the southeast corner of W. Galena Boulevard and S. River Street.
A lot of stores were razed on S. River Street, to build.
That so ends this week’s article.
See you next week.