Plainfield Historical Society Moves Headquarters To Plainfield Plaza

PLAINFIELD, IL — After 36 years on Main Street, the Plainfield Historical Society has moved its headquarters.

In 2024, the Historical Society sold its building on Main Street — the old scale house for the Plainfield Grain Company — and moved out July 15.

"Leaving the little brick scale house building was bittersweet," staff wrote on Facebook. "It was once the busiest spot in Plainfield."

The new owner of the building was temporarily leasing it to the Historical Society but planned to raise the rent "pretty substantially, so we needed to find something that was more affordable and more accessible to the public," President Michael Lambert told Patch.

"It was becoming more and more difficult for more people to find us because it was a fairly hard location to see with traffic," he said. "Parking was very limited, and the building was not accessible to those with physical disabilities."

To learn about Plainfield's history, residents and visitors can now visit the Historical Society's new — albeit temporary — abode at the Plainfield Plaza Shopping Center, 15412 S. Route 59, Unit 120. Its permanent home, purchased last year, will be in the historic Phillips service station on Route 59.

"Unfortunately, the Society has been unable to undertake the anticipated renovations at the former Phillips service station site due to Village of Plainfield permitting delays," historians wrote on Facebook.

The museum at the Plainfield Plaza hasn't reopened yet to the public, but once it's up and running, it will feature an exhibit gallery, expanded research space, more storage, and additional access to collections. The extra space will help the Historical Society continue to work toward its long-standing goal of creating a full inventory and catalogue of its archives.

By being on one level, the new home will also solve the former accessibility issues.

Lambert said he anticipates the museum to reopen by late August.