The Kankakee County Museum is the home of the Kankakee County Historical Society, which is the oldest incorporated historical society in Illinois. The Society celebrated its first century in 2006. The Kankakee County Historical Society had its origins in a local group known as the "Old Settler’ s Club," which met occasionally to discuss the early history of the area. It was an informal group. On December 14th, 1906, "In response to a public call," a number of local discussion groups and veterans organizations gathered at the Kankakee Court House to establish the Kankakee County Historical Society. Beginning in 1912 the new Historical Society displayed artifacts and documents representing the history of Kankakee County inside Kankakee’ s Central High School, constructed in 1869. During the Great Depression in 1935 extensive renovations at Central High School forced the Society to seek new exhibit space. On June 19th 1936 a local newspaper noted: "The fate of the Kankakee County Historical Society’ s collection of historical objects, which must be moved from the showplace of many years, is uncertain." After much discussion, exhibit space was given to the Society in the Kankakee County Court House (the third on the site) constructed in 1909.

The Kankakee County Historical Society was about to receive its own permanent facility. Their collection was moved temporarily back to Central High School in 1944. The following year (in 1945) the Illinois State Legislature appropriated funds to create a memorial to Governor Lennington Small, as had been done for other former governors. At the same time the Small family donated twenty-five acres of land and the historic Dr. A.L. Small House to the Society. The Kankakee County Historical Society’ s new museum was dedicated and first opened to the public on October 17th 1948. The Museum was doubled in size in 1972. The one-room Taylor School House, built in 1904 was moved to "Governor Small Memorial Park" in 1976. The Museum was further enlarged and modernized in 1992. In 2007 the Museum’ s Building Extension Project added new professionally designed support facilities, including: climate-controlled collection storage areas; an archival library and exhibit preparation spaces. In 2003 the Museum complex was renamed: the Kankakee County Museum, characterizing the Museum’ s new professionalism. The Kankakee County Museum remains, however, the home of the Kankakee County Historical Society, now entered into its second century of existence.

Copyright © 2006 The Daily Journal