Spend Part of Black Friday at Oswego's Little White School Museum

The Oswegoland Heritage Association’s latest fundraising project is offering three miniature wooden replicas of historic Oswego buildings, plus the historic “Welcome to Oswegoland” sign for collectors, priced less than $20 each. Many other Oswego-themed items are also available at the Little White School Museum, Jackson at Polk, Oswego. Submitted by the Little White School Museum:

If you’re looking for some unique, Oswego-themed gifts as the holiday shopping season starts, head on over to the Little White School Museum, 72 Polk Street (Polk at Jackson), just two blocks from historic downtown Oswego.

Although closed on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 26, the museum will be resume regular hours on “Black Friday,” Nov. 28. Museum hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondaythrough Saturday and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday.

Offered for the first time this year is the museum’s new annual fundraising effort, miniature wooden replicas of three historic Oswego buildings, produced by Cats Meow of Wooster, Ohio.

The first three buildings in the new “Oswego’s Main Street Series” are the Rank and Schlicker buildings in downtown Oswego and the historic Little White School Museum. Also featured in this first group of the series is the classic “Welcome to Oswegoland” sign sponsored by the Oswego Women’s Civic Club.

The front facades of the buildings are faithfully reproduced and measure approximately 6 x 4 inches. The history of each building is printed on the reverse. Buildings are available for purchase at the museum store for less than $20 each. Start your collection now–additional historic Oswego buildings will be offered starting next spring.

For history buffs on your list, pick up a copy of Oswego Township, the 128-page photo history of Oswego compiled by museum director Roger Matile and published by Arcadia Publishing. Or perhaps a copy of 150 Years Along the Fox: The History of Oswego Township, Illinois, the 192 page large format, hardbound book published for Oswego’s 1983 sesquicentennial, would be suitable. Also available are copies of a new, updated edition of By Trace and Trail, the story of stagecoach days in the mid-Fox Valley and Faith on the Prairie, a religious history of Oswego Township. Past and present Boulder Hill residents will be fascinated by Boulder Hill: Highlights of The First 35 Years 1955–1990 by Ruth Skaggs.

Also available are a selection of full-color historic maps suitable for framing, including the 1842 original survey map of the township and the 1870 plat map of Oswego Township, complete with property owners’ names.

For the environmentalists on your shopping list, pick up a copy of Raising Kane, an ecological autobiography of the Fox Valley’s mysterious environmental crusader, The Fox, get a vintage “Go Fox—Fight Pollution” bumper sticker, or get a copy of a one-hour VHS and DVD video of the Fox’s life story, “The Legend of the Fox.”

For more information, call 630-554-2999, send an e-mail to info@littlewhiteschoolmuseum.org, visit the museum website at www.littlewhiteschoolmuseum.org, or find them on Facebook.