1896 Congregational Ladies Cook Book published by Chronicle Publishing Company, St. Charles, IL. This book was donated to Preservation Partners of the Fox Valley by Constance Mikiska, great-granddaughter of Jerusha and Bryant Durant, on October 16, 1977.
Constance Mikiska, a direct descendant of the Durant family visited her family’s home in 1977. Below is an account of the visit from volunteer Sharon K. Wendt and a thank you letter from Constance Mikiska.
“Sunday, October 16, 1977, was a special day for several members of the Restorations of Kane County [now Preservation Partners of the Fox Valley]. For a few, it was the last day of our annual three-day show at which they had worked very hard. For the others, the day was notable because Mrs. Constance Mikiska, great-granddaughter of Jerusha and Bryant Durant, came to visit the house in which her grandmother, Henrietta Durant Harrington had grown up.
Connie had spent Saturday night at Sycamore and had driven to St. Charles early that Sunday morning to search for the Durant-Peterson house on her own. She found it and took several pictures of its outside. Her next stop was the home of Jean and Norman Nelson who had opened their house to her. In the afternoon Jean and her husband accompanied Connie to the house so she could see the inside of it. LuJean and Jerry Williams were there serving as hostess and host for the final Sunday of the season that the house would be open to the public; several people went through the house while Connie was there. When I arrived, Connie was well into the house. George Keyser, president [of Preservation Partners], had already arrived too. The moment after I met her I felt as though I had know her a long time. She is a kind and enthusiastic person. She began talking about family history and the things she had read in the family diaries concerning the house. Connie noticed that we had the risers of the stairs painted white as was recorded in the diaries; she seemed quite pleased that this had been done. She was most anxious to see the upstairs bedroom that her grandmother had shared with her older sister Julia. A picture of Connie was taken standing in that room, the front west one. She went into the other bedrooms as well as the front east room which, according to the diaries, was a common closet.
While Connie was in the parlor, she mentioned that the walnut table in there was similar to the one her great-grandfather Bryant had made, except the one he had made was cherry, a little bigger and had plain, tapered legs. This table in in her possession. Also mentioned in this conversation was the fact that she has the sofa which belonged to her great-grandparents; it is wooden with stuffed upholstery. She has Bryant Durant’s candle stand too.
After much conversation and picture-taking, we left the Durant-Peterson house to go to the Nelson home where Connie Mikiska presented to our organization three family quilts and a Congregational church cookbook published in 1896 by the Chronicle Publishing Company; included in the cookbook are recipes of Jerusha Durant, Julia Durant Johnston, Emma Durant Lane and other St. Charles women of note. One quilt belonged to Jerusha Durant. Another quilt was made by some of the Durant and Shurtleff women as a wedding present for Henrietta who was married in 1872. The third quilt is a crazy quilt which was made by Abba Durant Allen in the early 1900s (pictured).
The time passed quickly and too soon, Connie had to be on her way. What a wonderful experience we had that day, not one that will soon be forgotten.”
Written by Sharon K. Wendt and published in the Restorations of Kane County Newsletter, November 1977.
Quilt made by Abba (Durant) Allen c. 1905. Donated to Preservation Partners of the Fox Valley by Constance Mikiska on October 16, 1977.
“Dear friends,
The two hours I spent in St. Charles on October 16 was a very happy time for me, fulfilling a life-time dream to see the inside of the Durant House. I heard so many stories about it from my grandmother, and from my mother, that I felt a journey there would simply have to come about, and it was an experience I will carry in my heart forever.
The hospitality of Mr. and Mrs. Norman J. Nelson in their beautiful home, the coffee and canapes, and visiting with them and Mrs. Sharon Wendt and Mr. George Keyser was so very pleasant. I thank each one of you for all you did for me that happy afternoon.
Having been gone from my little home here for nearly six months, there is much to do here. However, I mean to make a list of things that I believe came from the Durnat (sic) home, and perhaps take pictures of them. I will send this to you later. I will make a report about this later on and gather together things that might be of interest.
I have not forgotten Mrs. Lorraine Miller, and I trust her trip went nicely and she was safely home. Her letters to me the past year have always been delightful, and I have looked forward to them so much. I hope I will be hearing from her soon.”
A letter to Preservation Partners from Constance Mikiska, October 28, 1977 as published in the Restorations of Kane County Newsletter, November 1977.
