Schlick Daleiden Family DuPage/Kane Co. Blog

Here are some additional photographs from Frank and Mae Schlick’s photo collection from this celebration.

On the same day the above photo was taken another photo of the grandchildren was taken (see photo below). The photos were taken at the Schlick home at Main and Water Streets in Burlington (Kane County) Illinois. You can see a portion of the posts for the large wrap-around porch to the right of these photos on the north side lot of the house.

My father George Davis past away in 2020. He married Louise Schlick the daughter of Frank and Mae Schlick. George grew up in the Englewood area on Chicago’s southside from the mid nineteen thirties through the late nineteen fifties. Dad and I spent several days, weeks and months prior to his death on discussing his remembrances of growing up. Amongst some of the memories he shared was going to Chicago Vocational High School and the places he lived at while growing up.

Chicago Vocational High School (2100 E 87th St,) is a public 4–year vocational high school located in the Avalon Park neighborhood on the south side of Chicago. The school opened in 1941, the school is operated by Chicago Public Schools district. The school building was recently named in 2022 to the National List of Historic Places.

My father in his handwritten memoirs of his high school years at Chicago Vocational writes: “I was unhappy all 4 years, and my grades reflected that.” I own two high school year books my father had saved.

George lived with his parents George G. and Florence Marie Brose Adelsperger Davis. During these years that he was in high school in his junior and senior years the family lived at 62nd and Harper Ave in Chicago. The home was located next to the Sherwood School (now Hyde Park Academy High School) on Stony Island the street just to the east. Beyond their home and to the east was Jackson Park. According to my father this was “the worst place we ever had. It had one room a roll up bed and a closet converted with a two burner stove and oven. We had one large bath that was shared with two other families.”

Prior to the home they were rented at 62nd and Harper Ave they lived across the street from the Sherwood School at 6048 Sangamon in Chicago. They rented the second floor of the home and my dad noted that “there were no rats this time” at this home.

George began working at the Sears store at 63rd and Halsted while in high school. This area was considered Chicago’s “second downtown”.

My father’s favorite free time activity was going to the movies at one of the movie palaces then in business on Chicago’s south side. His favorite movie was Warner Brothers “God is my Co-Pilot“. They prayer (see below the movie poster image) recited in the movie was used during my father’s memorial services at Assumption Cemetery following his death.

“They who had scorned the thought of any strength except their own to
lean on,
Learned at length, how fear can sabotage the bravest heart.
And human weakness answering to the prod of terror calls, “Help us oh God”.
Then silence lets the silent voice be heard, bringing it’s message like
the spoken word.
Believe.
Believe in me.
Cast out your fear.
For I am not out there beyond the sky,
But here, right here in your heart.
I am the strength you seek.
Believe!

And they believed.”

The above photograph was taken in the City of Wheaton Milton Township DuPage County Illinois at St. Michael Roman Catholic Church. I am posting this photo due to the fact that it is a mystery. There is nothing written on the back of this photograph. Casper and Susan (Daleiden) Schlick (my great-grandparents) are in this photo, they are in the second row and just above the baby in the front row. In looking at this photo it would appear to be a baptism. The baby in the front row in a women’s arms is dressed in what appears to be a baptismal or christening gown. I would like to see if anyone out in cyberspace can provide some suggestions on who is in the photo.

I spent some time this past week searching online past issues of the Hampshire (Illinois) Register via the Ella Johnson Memorial Public Library in Hampshire Illinois website. I ran across several interesting articles from the “Burlington” column of the Register. Some of the articles are from the 1940s and 1950s. The Schlicks were a very social group of people. They were always visiting each other on the weekends or staying for awhile at Mary Anne (or “Annie) Armbrust/Schlick and Joseph Schlick’s home at Main and Water Streets in beautiful downtown Burlington Illinois in Kane County. I will be sharing several of these postings online.

Today, I am going to feature Martin Armbrust’s obituary. Martin was the father of Mary Anne Schlick and the father – in – law of Joseph Schlick, Sr. The obituary featured below was published in a January 1914 issue of The Hampshire Register.

I think it is interesting to point out the last sentence of the obituary. We forget that many families ended up taking in family members unable to take care of themselves later in life. Annie Schlick also took care of Marie Sittler (Hoffman/Lycke) when her mother, Annie’s sister Caroline Armbrust/Sittler died after giving birth to Marie. Today’s times we live in move family members to assisted or long term care facilities.

The town of Hampshire is located in Hampshire Township in Kane County Illinois. The Schlick family lived near Burlington, Illinois in Burlington Township in Kane County. The Village of Hampshire played an important role in the Schlick family history. The family attended the St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in Hampshire.

One excellent resource for Hampshire and area history is the Ella Johnson Memorial Library District located in a building on the main street of downtown Hampshire Illinois. The library has two excellent resources that I have used. The first is a digitized and searchable copies (1885 -2009) of the Hampshire Register newspaper via their website. The second source of visual and documentary information is the Library’s Illinois Digital Archive Ella Historical Collection. There are many historical photos available for research and viewing at the IDA website. Here is one example of a photo available at the IDA website.