Deerfield Area Historical Society

06/19/2026

On this Juneteenth we are sharing a post from Deerfield Massachusetts. It was in 1849 that the early settler John Millen suggested the name Deerfield for our town, in part because of the abundance of deer in the area but also after his Massachusetts hometown.

Tomorrow is Juneteenth, a celebration of freedom that traces its origins to June 19, 1865. More than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation took effect, Union troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, and announced freedom to more than 250,000 enslaved Black people in Texas.

Often overlooked, slavery also existed in New England. Join us tomorrow for walking tours featuring the Witness Stones that commemorate the lives of enslaved individuals who lived in Deerfield during the 18th century.

Tours depart from Hall Tavern at 11 a.m., 1 p.m., and 3 p.m. and are included with general admission. We hope to see you there.

06/17/2026

06/14/2026

The DAHS Historic Village will be open today, Sunday June 14, from 2 till 4PM

06/12/2026

Love this post from our neighbors at Highland Park Historical Society-

Artifact of the Week. Central Ave. Beach House, circa 1920. This beachfront ice cream shop was owned and operated by Anthony Lencioni.
Adone (Tony) Lencioni (1887-1965), brother of Filomena and Michael, owned Highland Sweets. Highland Sweets was also the name of the storied bowling alley at the same location and a competitive bowling team. Tony was one of the star bowlers. In addition to the bowling alley, Tony Lencioni announced the addition of the sale of fruits and vegetables in 1930. He and his wife Olga (1889-1932) had six children, Elsie Risdon, Mafalda Fesegallo, Paul, James, Edward, and Daniel.
Majestic Bowling was owned by Tony also.
Michael Lencioni (1891-1948) lived with his widowed sister Filomena Marchi (1881-1946), helping her to raise her family. He partnered with his nephew Pietro (Peter) Marchi (1902-1955) for his store on Central across from the intersection with Sheridan Road.
Pietro sang as a tenor with the Chicago Civic Opera and led Pietro Marchipera Productions in Chicago before establishing House of Marchi. Ravinia Opera stars establishments gave him informal voice lessons until he was able to make sojourn to study in Italy in 1927 or 1928.
A cousin, Julius Lencioni (1903-1962), owned South Chicago Ice Cream Company with other family members. Perhaps they supplied ice cream to the beachfront shop.
The in Lucca, Italy tells the story of families like the Lencioni who emigrated from the area in the 19th and 20th centuries. ...The History of the Republic of Lucca, circa 1115-1805, is fascinating too.
Gift of James Lencioni, Jr. Acc. no. 2011.10 .

06/11/2026

Deerfield Review April 4, 1954

06/10/2026

Student drawing of the DAHS Historic Village from 2024

06/08/2026

Board members Chris Cheney and Kay Siess in collaboration with the University of Illinois Extension Master Gardeners, Lake County have really transformed the gardens at the Deerfield Historic Village. The project which was first proposed in August of 2024 began in earnest in the spring of 2025. We could not be more pleased with the results of this ongoing project.