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| Aux Sable |
Looking west from Veteran's Memorial to downtown Minooka
The Village of Minooka has a rich and proud history. Minooka was originally home to the Potowatomie Indians. They lived in this and the surrounding areas with many Indian villages. They were a warring tribe and fought valiantly to protect their land from other surrounding Indian tribes.
The village itself dates back to the 1852 when the Chicago, Rock Island and Peoria Railroads came through the area on the recommendation of surveyor, Ransom Gardner. George Comerford, an Irish immigrant and railroad surveyor also helped bring the railroad to Minooka. Both of these men purchased land in the area, part of which was used for the railroad. George Comerford became the first agent at the Minooka Depot. He also was instrumental in establishing a post office in 1853 and served as its postmaster for nine years. By the time the village incorporated in 1869, Minooka was home to three grocery and liquor stores, a post office, a grain elevator and two churches. The grain elevator wasand still is an integral part of the village. A grain elevator was located every ten miles on the railroad because ten miles was as far as local farmers could take their grain. With the growth of industry in the 1860s, Minooka had a firm base on which to incorporate.
The town is said to have been named by Dolly Smith, wife of Ransom Gardner's agent, Leander Smith. She was familiar with the Potowatomi Indian language. Minooka means contentment, good land, high hill, a happy place. The village sits higher than any of the surrounding land and has fertile soil for growing farm crops. It was the highest point in Illinois on the Rock Island Line. Mrs. Smith also named many of the streets in the older part of the village which reflect the Indian language. It is said by many original Minooka residents that Chief Shabbona would often come on the train from Morris, Illinois (12 miles west of Minooka). He would sit and talk with Mrs. Smith speaking in Potowatomi about the good old days.
Located near I-80 within 65 miles of Chicago, the Village of Minooka is conveniently located to Chicago, yet far enough away to retain a distinctive local presence. It still retains a small town atmosphere. Minooka village residents are provided with a full time police and fire protection district, public library, public water system and wastewater treatment plant, K-12 school districts, volunteer recreational organizations, a postal service, small businesses, St. Mary's Catholic Church, the United Methodist Church and others. The backbone of the community remains the same: education, service, business and traditional values. All four institutions still thrive in Minooka today.
Special thanks to Michele Roberts Houchens, lifelong resident of Minooka, for the historical information. She is the local history clerk at the Minooka Branch of the Three Rivers Library.
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