View from the Bluff Podcast Series

Did you know a world-renowned opera star grew up on Center Avenue? Born in 1902 to a pianist mother, prodigy Marion Claire Cook went on to star in European opera houses, perform on Broadway, and share movie billing with Basil Rathbone. Later, she became the prima donna of the popular Chicago Theater of the Air radio show alongside her husband, conductor Henry Weber.

This bonus episode shares the history of Lake Bluff's popular Fourth of July parade through stories beginning with the first parade in 1876 through to the present.

How did a small beach town with a population of 700 make national headlines during World War I? In the latest episode of our View from the Bluff podcast, we share the story of Lake Bluff's contribution to the Great War and how the village earned the headline "Most Patriotic Town." You'll learn the details of how our village sent 10% of its population to WWI and raised significant funds for the war...

Did you know that during the 1920s and '30s, Lake Bluff was at the center of several national crime stories? The village faced a surprising wave of lawlessness during the Prohibition era that reached all the way to Crab Tree Farm. Crab Tree Farm Part 2 of Lake Bluff History Museum's "View from the Bluff" podcast explores published accounts of events that kept federal investigators and newspaper re...

In the first of two episodes about Crab Tree Farm, O'Hara and Rolek take a closer look at the history of the property and the people who shaped it starting with Judge Blodgett's "Ashland" estate through dairy farmer Grace Durand's ownership.

2026

In the early 1900s, a number of artists and literary figures drawn to the beauty and proximity of Lake Bluff's lake and ravines lived  in an area that became known as "The Artists Colony".  The impact of these artists and intellectuals far exceeded the boundaries of the Village and built on a legacy of creative spirit extending back to the Chautauqua inspired Lake Bluff camp meetings. O'Hara and R...

The 1890s were a period of painful economic recession and a time of extreme social dislocation during which thousands of orphans and children whose parents could not afford to care for them were given up for adoption. The arrival of six children brought to Lake Bluff by the Metodist Deaconesses in 1894, the 75-year saga of the Lake Bluff Children's Home (LBCH) began. Its development, success and u...

Frances Willard and others who summered in Lake Bluff were instrumental in the adoption of the 18th Amendment. While intended to cure numerous societal ills, this nationwide prohibition of alcohol instead resulted in rise of crime and bootlegging. Tune in as hosts O'Hara and Rolek discuss how Lake Bluff played a role in prohibition of alcohol nationwide and in the illegal transport of alcohol duri...

In the mid-1870s, Lake Bluff was transformed into a summer resort modeled after New York's Chautauqua when a group of Methodist ministers and businessmen started the Lake Bluff Camp Meeting Association. The Camp Meeting offered an escape from the city and an opportunity to enjoy activities and lectures centered around education, religion, the arts and recreation. Hosts Joanna Rolek and hisorian, K...

The second episode in Lake Bluff History Museum's podcast series, First Families provides listeners a closer look at several of the families who moved to Lake Bluff in the 1830s as hosts Kathy O'Hara and Joanna Rolek share stories of the contributions these families made to the community. The Museum teamed with the Lake Bluff 250 committee to create 16 episodes of curated local history in honor of...

Why Lake Bluff? is the first in a weekly series of podcasts created in honor of the USA's 250th anniversary. Lake Bluff History Museum has teamed with the Lake Bluff 250 committee to create 16 episodes of curated local history — totaling 250 minutes of storytelling. In this introductory video, Museum co-founder Kathy O'Hara and Joanna Rolek (director of Lake Forest/Lake Bluff Chamber of Commerce)...