The stories of La Grange and La Grange Park belong to the families who live here — and keeping those stories alive takes the whole community. This spring, residents have a chance to celebrate more than a century of neighborhood history while helping to preserve the landmark that holds it.
The La Grange Area Historical Society is hosting its signature spring fundraiser, "An Evening Through Time," on Friday, May 8, and Saturday, May 9, 2026, at the Samuel Vial House Museum & Archive on La Grange Road in La Grange. Guests will stroll through the society's newest exhibit, A Walk Through Time, while enjoying era-inspired cocktails, desserts, savory bites, music, artifacts, and stories that bring each decade to life. The immersive experience moves visitors from decade to decade — from the 1890s all the way to the 1970s — using items drawn directly from the Historical Society's own collection. Along the way, the exhibit highlights the tastes, fashions, and everyday details that defined each era, along with a special look at how the La Grange area grew and changed over those eight decades.
The La Grange Area Historical Society was founded in 1972, when civic-minded residents gathered at the La Grange Public Library with a shared goal: to preserve and promote the cultural heritage of La Grange and La Grange Park. More than five decades later, the all-volunteer, member-supported 501(c)(3) nonprofit continues to collect, preserve, and share the stories that shape the community. Its mission is to protect, promote, and celebrate those stories for generations to come. The Samuel Vial House itself — built in 1874 by Samuel Vial, whose family first settled the area after receiving a federal land grant in 1834 — serves as both a public museum and a research archive, with rotating exhibits on the main floor and historical records on the second floor.
For tickets, event times, and information on how to support the Historical Society through a donation, visit lagrangehistory.org.
