Downtown Elgin, Illinois

I tried to do this with the equipment that I had, which unfortunately did not include a tripod. These images show several of the architecturally significant buildings and sites that exist in the city of Elgin, IL. Not a whole lot of people know about Elgin and I thought that this would be a good opportunity to get the city's name out there. Most of the video was taken on Thursday, August 20, 2009 in the mid to late afternoon. I video I found of Chicago inspired me to make this video; I even found the same music that they used.

Category:

Travel & Events

Tags:

• Elgin
• Illinois
• Architecture
• Grand
• Victoria
• historic
• Chicago
• Sears
• Tower
• Buildings
• city
• travel
• town
• video
• pictures
• photography

[g1stealth]

cool video... I was born and raised in elgin 26 years and still here. I never realized you can see the Sears tower from here either. Do they let anyone up top of the Elgin Tower building?

[notBMW18]

@g1stealth glad you're still here. my family has been in Elgin since about 1890. and no, not just anyone can go up there. The guy that owns the building is a friend of my family; thats how i got up there.

[PegsHouston]

Really nice video. : ) I was born in Elgin, grew up in Carpentersville (mumblesomething years ago). Those streets in Elgin were paved with brick back then (damn, I'm old!). It's great to see some of the older buildings & architectural jewels. Thanks for preserving them on film, for when they get torn down for condos. I've been in Houston for 20 years, so I really reeeeeeally enjoyed this.

[notBMW18]

@PegsHouston im glad you enjoyed it. Elgin has a lot of amazing buildings and a extensive history. hopefully the city and citizens can promote that more and get outsiders to come back and see what Elgin has to offer.

[finaltrinity5]

Hell yeah my hometown!

[SidWSodnagel]

@NinianReid About the milk, Gail Borden invented a process for condensing milk in the 1800's , and set up a plant in Elgin. In the 1950's it was still boiling down milk in an old building near downtown with a label over its stone arch that said "The Cecoon." What an aroma! Borden was a benefactor to Elgin (the library is named after him) and planned to retire there but died before doing so. The milk condensory is now inhabited by an antique store owned by a relative.

[SidWSodnagel]

@notBMW18 I was there. A big crowd flooded downtown streets. The speaker's platform was at, IIRC, Grove Avenue, in front of the Spiess department store, facing east up DuPage street (now court).

[SidWSodnagel]

It is a very wierd building, with interior and exterior stairwells in the oddest of places; partly becuase the bldg is pentagonal. Hmmmm. I wonder if it was designed by Evo Sandor. (Ghostbusters reference, there.)

[SidWSodnagel]

My family moved to Elgin when I was seven, indirectly because of the watch company. I worked for a while at a radio station (WELG) in the Tower Bldg and had access to the roof. I took a night shot down Grove Avenue in 1965. Still have that slide in my collection. A few years ago, I went back and took photos of the interior of the bldg, including where our studios had been (now an abandoned dentist's office)

[SidWSodnagel]

@NinianReid As to the watches, the Elgin watch was the antithesis of the Timex. The Timex, a cheap throwaway watch, eventually killed all quality watchmaking in the US. (Another factor was cheap good quality watches from mainly Switzerland.) The watch company was founded by Chicago and east coast venture capitalists during the War of Southern Independance. It soon adopted the name of the town.

[SidWSodnagel]

@NinianReid Most Elgins, including the Scottish Lord (who eventually lost his Marbles :) and the town, use the hard "g." The Illinois town, I have read, was named by the founding Giffords after the hymn "Elgin," which may have been pronounced with the soft "g." This may be how Elgin IL got itsw unusual pronunciation.

[wampaAWESOMEsauce]

im goin down there in a few weeks. gonna see my aunt. then im riding amtrak into chicago :)

[theloganmaster1]

i live elgin :D

[hep2jive]

haunted