Alsip

By: Susan L. Bruesch and Patrick E. Kitching

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Synopsis: The village of Alsip got its name from the area's first big business, Frank Alsip's Brickyard. Although Alsip is now known for its tight-knit neighborhoods and large industrial community, it was not always so. Recorded area history goes back to the 1600s, when a Catholic mission stood at 122nd and Loveland Streets, and the first European settlers began farming the area in the 1800s. The historic farmhouse featured on the front cover was homesteaded by DeWitt and Amy Baxter Lane in 1835. Area maps identified this homestead as "Lanes Island" because it was surrounded by marshy swamps. DeWitt's father, Joseph, opened a smithy along a busy Indian trail that passed by Lanes Island and worked until he died in 1839. The tough-as-nails pioneers featured in Images of America: Alsip drained the swampland, which gave rise to a future of fertile farming, eventually leading to the first Village of Alsip board meeting, held on April 26, 1927.