In 1839, German and Dutch families began to move
into the area as well. The town began to use the name of Hartford.
The first store in Homewood was Hasting's General Store; Dr. William
Doepp was its first doctor. Attracted by the country life after
his Chicago practice was burned down, he moved to the area in 1851.
His practice extended from Crown Point, Indiana to New Lenox, Illinois,
and he was required to keep two teams of horses in order to make
all his calls. In 1853, the Illinois Central Railroad (IC) established
a station in Hartford, calling it Thornton Station, as most of the
passengers came from nearby Thornton.
This began a serious period of confusion, as mail for the two separate
towns was regularly mixed up. In 1869, settlers petitioned the post
office to be renamed as Homewood, after the woods that the residents
lived among. The 1870s brought a new era to Homewood, ushered in
by trains and by the crowded conditions of the city. country clubs
such as the Homewood Country Club (later changed to Flossmoor Country
Club), Dixmoor, Ravisloe, Idlewild and Calumet brought in trains
just for golfers. The IC established the Calumet station specifically
for their convenience. Wealthy families impressed by the area, and
ease of getting to the city, established residences in the area,
as permanent or summer homes. |