Durant House and Sholes School

Durant House and Sholes School Schedule a school tour today!

The 1843 Durant-Peterson House is recognized as Kane County’s own “Little House on the Prairie.” The 1872 Sholes School is one of the few remaining one-room schoolhouses in Kane County.

Become a Civil War soldier!Kids can muster into a Union regiment and learn basic drill (marching maneuvers) starting at ...
05/16/2026

Become a Civil War soldier!

Kids can muster into a Union regiment and learn basic drill (marching maneuvers) starting at about 2:30pm.

Sunday, May 17, 1-4pm
Durant-Peterson House Museum
37W700 Dean Street, St. Charles

$3/adult and $1/child donations appreciated.

⛺ Experience a small-scale Civil War Camp on Sunday, May 17 at the Durant-Peterson House Museum.
05/15/2026

⛺ Experience a small-scale Civil War Camp on Sunday, May 17 at the Durant-Peterson House Museum.

What did Civil War soldiers eat?What did Civil War soldiers wear?What did Civil War soldiers carry with them into battle...
05/14/2026

What did Civil War soldiers eat?

What did Civil War soldiers wear?

What did Civil War soldiers carry with them into battle?

What questions do you have about the lives of Civil War soldiers?

Learn the answers to these questions and more on Sunday, May 17, 1-4PM at the Durant-Peterson House Museum located inside the LeRoy Oakes Forest Preserve at 37W700 Dean Street in St. Charles.

Donations of $3/adult and $1/child are appreciated.

Sign your kids up for the Civil War!Civil War reenactors of the 19th Illinois and 6th Wisconsin are "recruiting" this Su...
05/12/2026

Sign your kids up for the Civil War!

Civil War reenactors of the 19th Illinois and 6th Wisconsin are "recruiting" this Sunday at the Durant-Peterson House Museum. Kids can learn basic marching skills and then reenact a brief battle scene.

Donations of $3/adult and $1/child are appreciated.

Durant-Peterson House Museum is located inside the LeRoy Oakes Forest Preserve at 37W700 Dean Street. Civil War Day is Sunday, May 17, 1-4PM.

Step back in time to the Civil War!
05/10/2026

Step back in time to the Civil War!

Try out some tools that would have been used in the 1800s!
04/17/2026

Try out some tools that would have been used in the 1800s!

While mom and dad try some of the tools from the 1800s at the Durant-Peterson House, kids can try some old-fashioned gam...
04/15/2026

While mom and dad try some of the tools from the 1800s at the Durant-Peterson House, kids can try some old-fashioned games from the 1800s at the Sholes School!

Play games such as:
- Graces (as seen in the photo)
- Cat and Mouse
- Ring the Hob
- Corncob Darts
- Stilts
- Wooden Hoops
- And more!

You can even make these games at home!

Suggested donation $3/adults and $1/child 18 and under

What kinds of tools did pioneers use in the 1800s?
04/14/2026

What kinds of tools did pioneers use in the 1800s?

Living on the prairie in the 1800s required knowledge and skill at using the tools to manage your farm. See some of the ...
04/12/2026

Living on the prairie in the 1800s required knowledge and skill at using the tools to manage your farm.

See some of the important tools in the pioneer’s life and watch how they are used: axes, adze, hammers, drills, corn shellers and corn planters, plows, carpenter’s bench for shingle-making.

Try on the wooden yokes and haul full buckets of water. And, see if you can get the laundry clean using an old-fashion wringer washing machine. You’ll be sure get some exercise during your visit!

🔨⛏Demonstrations on tools used on the farm in the 1800s.$3/adult; $1/child suggested.Includes both the 1843 Durant-Peter...
04/06/2026

🔨⛏Demonstrations on tools used on the farm in the 1800s.

$3/adult; $1/child suggested.

Includes both the 1843 Durant-Peterson House and Sholes School Museums.

For early Illinois pioneers, sugar was expensive and hard to get. Maple syrup, however, was plentiful. Just tap some tre...
03/05/2026

For early Illinois pioneers, sugar was expensive and hard to get. Maple syrup, however, was plentiful. Just tap some trees, let the sap run, boil, and YUM!

See how pioneers sweetened many of their foods from maple sugar.

The Durant-Peterson House and Sholes School Museums are located within the LeRoy Oakes Forest Preserve at 37W700 Dean Street, St. Charles.

Suggested donation is $3/adult and $1/child.

Forest Preserve District of Kane County

Address

37W700 Dean Street
Saint Charles, IL
60175

Telephone

+16303776424

Website

http://ppfv.org/sholes-school

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