Boulder Hill was born 70 years ago this month

It was a decade after World War II ended and the ship- and planeloads of ex-servicemen and women had long landed their human cargos back home in the U.S. In addition, a second war – dubbed a “police action” at the time for political reasons – had been fought to a standstill on the Korean Peninsula, drawing some of those vets and hundreds of thousands of new draftees vets back into the military. Those most recent vets also had arrived back home.

All of them, whether from the world war or the Korean Conflict, were hungry for homes where they could raise families. A native Pennsylvanian named Don L. Dise, a successful housing developer in northern Illinois, was eyeing sites to help tap this potential market. In fact, Dise had already put together a group of investors and was zeroing in on land in the central Fox River Valley 40 miles due west of Chicago.

The area was far enough west, in fact, that land prices were reasonable. And there was a sufficient road net (three state highways began at nearby Oswego) to access to the fast-growing business and industrial areas between the Fox River and Lake Michigan. Further, word was a new U.S. Route 30 Bypass around downtown Aurora was in the works as was construction of a tollway connecting Aurora with Chicago’s existing – and growing – superhighway system.

At the same time, in a prime example of historical synergy, two industrial giants had plans well advanced to open manufacturing plants near the Fox River immediately south of Aurora. Western Electric, the manufacturing arm of the Bell Telephone System, was ready to repurpose a former wallpaper and World War II munitions factory in Montgomery to make telecommunications equipment for the Bell System.

In addition, Peoria-based Caterpillar Tractor Company had closed on a huge site on the west side of the Fox River in unincorporated Oswego Township served by the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad’s mainline where they planned to manufacture heavy construction equipment.

Dise and his partners completed their deal and closed on their favored site, the Bereman Family’s sprawling Boulder Hill Stock Farm. It was located on the brow of the valley overlooking the Fox River in Oswego Township just south of Montgomery. Dise, who was familiar with the Levittown planned developments in Pennsylvania and New York, aimed to build an entirely new community on the 716 acre former stock farm.

Officials in neither Oswego nor closer Montgomery were interested in annexing such a huge planned community to their small municipalities—Oswego’s population was only 1,220 in 1950 and Montgomery’s was even smaller at just 770 – so Dise approached Kendall County, which proved receptive.

As the July 28, 1955, Oswego Ledger reported: “Announcement was made last week of the sale of the James H. Bereman Farm, located on the east side of Route 25, East River Road, north of Oswego, to a group of individuals headed by Orion J. Stover, a farmer of Milledgeville, Illinois, and Don L. Dise, who heads the firm of Don L. Dise, Inc., Lyons. No statement has been made as to the specific use to which the land is to be put but the possibility of a housing development of somewhere in the neighborhood of 1,400 homes is very likely. The development would possibly be over a period of eight to ten years. There is about 675 acres in the parcel of land and all of it is located in Oswego Township.

“Dise has been the builder of a number of housing developments in the Chicago area including one at LaGrange Park and another at Homewood.

“Dise stated that there will be no announcement of plans for another two months. He also said that there was no connection between the transaction and the recent purchase of the Montgomery plant of United Wall Paper, Inc., by the Western Electric Co.”

Crews started moving dirt soon after, with model homes quickly going up. The first families moved into some of those models in 1956, followed soon after by Bev and Ruth Skaggs, who bought the first non-model from Dise at what became 22 Briarcliff Road in May, and moved in in October. By Christmas 1956, 11 families call “The Hill” home.

Changes and growth for the unincorporated development came fast and furious. The farm well that supplied the initial homes was eventually replaced by Montgomery municipal water, schools were provided by the Oswego School District, fire protection from the Oswego Fire Protection District, police protection by the Kendall County Sheriff’s Department and road maintenance by the Oswego Township Highway Department.

Initially, the only access into and out of The Hill was via Illinois Route 25. But in July 1959, the U.S. Route 30 Bypass opened, offering another access point at Briarcliff Road. That gave quick access to the Western Electric and Caterpillar plants via the Bypass’ new Fox River bridge. The Route 30 intersection quickly became The Hill’s busiest, but not until 1971 were traffic signal lights installed there.

In June 1961, Guy Gimble opened his Phillips 66 gas station at Route 25 and Boulder Hill Pass, followed in September of that year by both Boulder Hill Elementary School and the permanent home of the Boulder Hill Neighborhood Church of the Brethren.

Dise’s plan for a complete community including a shopping center was realized in April 1965 when the first unit of the Boulder Hill Market just east of Route 25 on Boulder Hill Pass opened featuring Gromer’s Supermarket, Grimm’s Rexall Drug Store, the Yankee Clipper Barber Shop and Illinois Cleaners and Dyers.

This month marks the 70th anniversary of Dise’s official purchase of the Boulder Hill Stock Farm, and the success of his vision as well as the profound change it brought to northeastern Kendall County. While it was never, as many believed, the largest unincorporated subdivision in Illinois, it did eventually boast almost 3,000 households. Today, Boulder Hill is a mature, still unincorporated, community of more than 9,000 residents that continues to reflect Don L. Dise’s vision of 70 years ago.

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