History of 7047 S. Ada Street

A while back, Julie Sayles mentioned a number of her memories about 7047 S. Ada and suggested that we write them down. Here is the beginning of a list of things we know or recall about that special place.

History of 7047 S. Ada Street

By Dave Jordan, Julie Sayles, Harry and Jack Schodrof

Updated January 2005
A while back, Julie Sayles mentioned a number of her memories about 7047 S. Ada and suggested that we write them down. Here is the beginning of a list of things we know or recall about that special place. The house at 7047 S. Ada street was a brick two flat on the South Side of Chicago. Altgeld School was across the street. The school was brick and part of the wall had a painted box to practice pitching and batting. At the front of the house was a set of wooden porch steps that led to a single glass front door. After entering the door, to the right was the first floor apartment and to the left was a set of stairs to the 2nd floor. Jack Schodrof wrote that "these stairs were thru a door on the 1st floor, north of the living room, west of the front bedroom, and east of where the piano sat." See Memory Sketches by Jack and Harry Schodrof. From inside the first floor, there was also another door to go downstairs to a basement. Jack indicated that there was a "finished basement room in the front part of the basement. Harry and Don used it for weight training. No toilets, just a square concrete shower Don built." The first floor had a living room in front and a dining room behind it. There were small wing type bookshelves to separate the living room from the dining room. Going further back, there was a bathroom behind the dining room and then the kitchen. To the left of the bathroom was the first bedroom, followed by the pantry and then a 2nd bedroom. In the back was a large wooden porch with a stairway up to the porch on the second floor. Harry Schodrof recalled hearing that a doctor built the house and sold it to Adrianus Vanderkloot for $3500. Adrianus never lived there until his wife Martha died in 1920. He then made the rounds among his daughters for the rest of his life, sometimes staying at 7047 S. Ada and other times elsewhere. The earliest mention so far of 7047 S. Ada in our records is in the 1910 Chicago Directory. The Chicago Directories lists 7047 S. Ada as the home of Art Vanderkloot, the second son of Adrianus and Martha. Art is listed there each year from 1910 to 1913 as a patternmaker and then again in 1914 to 1916 as an ironworker. From the same Chicago Directory address records it is known that Adrianus and Martha lived at 811 W. 27th from 1914 until 1920. From the Title Search (see below) it appears that the property was purchased on July 22, 1912. So perhaps the property came to the attention of Adrianus and Martha Vanderkloot when their son, Art, stayed there and then they bought it as an investment property in 1912. They may also have seen it as a retirement home or a place where they and some of their children could stay or gather in the years to come. The property was south of the Chicago Stockyards and away from the smells that drifted north. The area was newly developed so land and housing may have been cheaper there and the Vanderkloots saw it as either an investment or a retirement home in a less congested, newer, cleaner area than the old neighborhood around 27th Street. It would be useful to sort out who was living there on each floor at different times. As follows are a few of those times. At one time Art and Anna Vanderkloot lived upstairs and Aletta Schodrof lived downstairs. Art was Adrianus and Martha Vanderkloot's second son and Aletta was their first daughter. Both Art and his wife died of tuberculosis and Jeanne recalls that at the time it was thought that fresh air and sleeping outside was helpful and they both used the covered open air back upstairs porch. This was in the mid-1920s. At one time Art and Anna Vanderkloot lived upstairs and Aletta Schodrof lived downstairs. Art was Adrianus and Martha Vanderkloot's second son and Aletta was their first daughter. Art died in 1929 in Detroit, so this might have been as early as 1910 or 1915. Adrianus Vanderkloot died there in December 1933 at age 81. Julie Sayles, granddaughter of Marie Vanderkloot Denker, mentions that she was "interested in the people who resided at the house on Ada Street because I lived there myself when I was very young and I have vivid memories of being there and I always remember it with fondness and intensity. My mother was separated from my father and I lived there with mom and my brothers, Jim and John. I remember the fire flies in summer, the sandbox in the backyard, the school yard across the street, the dead mouse in the mousetrap and how we all cried. And Aunt Alette living upstairs making pies and saving pieces of dough to make small little pies for me, which she would sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. Around 1951 James and Grace Filipek returned to 7047 S. Ada where they lived on the first floor and Aletta lived on the second floor. James died in the back bedroom in December 1961. The Sale of 7047 S. Ada Grace and Alette continued to live at 7047 S. Ada Street after Jim Filipek died in December 1961. Grace lived downstairs where she had lived since the early 1950s and Alette lived upstairs where she had lived for many years. Around 1965 it was decided to sell the property and move on. There were initial bids for the home in the spring of 1965 but it would take more than a year to sell it do to an ownership issue. Alette always thought that her father had given the house to her. While Jim and Grace lived there, Grace insisted that Jim pay the rent to Alette because Alette had no income, although it is likely Jim, being a lawyer knew Grace was part owner. However, when it came time to sell, it was found that the deed was still in the name of their parents Adrianus and Martha Vanderkloot as no will had been processed for either. After some research it was determined that the actual owners were Adrianus and Martha's 4 living children and the heirs of Matthew Vanderkloot who had recently died and Art Vanderkloot who had died in 1929. Thus followed a year of research and coordination with the extended family members to get understandings and agreements in order to bring forth a final sale. The Chicago Title and Trust did a Title Search and the particulars of the property are below. From this data it appears that the property was bought on July 22, 1912. Someday it might be nice to obtain the original deed to see who it was bought from and how much. Item: 486-3 54-91-055 unit A 20 Lot 707 in Weddell & Cox's Add to Englewood sd addn bng a sub of E 1/2 of SW 1/4 of Sec 20 38 14 E etc in CCI Cont abst since July 22/12 (tr 7492 opn bk) Cd HJM TMK no prob 3 Ultimately the house was sold for $15,500 on May 1, 1966 and after legal and other fees, the proceeds were divided among the 4 children and the heirs of the other two. According to the real estate transactions, the property was approximately 30 x 125 feet or 3750 square feet with a two-story brick building and a two-car garage. I didn't realize the garage was part of the property. The garage was to the south of the rectangular property and I always though Grandpa Jim rented it. Grace Filipek was the point of contact for the heirs and she worked with Charles T. Kropik who did the legal work. Charles was the law partner of her husband at 120 S. LaSalle in Chicago. As the sale was being finalized Grace moved to a new apartment at 105th and Hale where she said she was very content. All the proceeds of the sale went to her and then she wrote the final distribution checks her brother and sisters and to Matt's wife and children and her nephew Art. Thus ended a 54-year reign of ownership by the Vanderkloot's of the 7047 S. Ada property. There were many happy memories there and many stories of which I have listed only the few I recall just now. Please let me know if you can add anything to the story.

Grace and Alette continued to live at 7047 S. Ada Street after Jim Filipek died in December 1961. Grace lived downstairs where she had lived since the early 1950s and Alette lived upstairs where she had lived for many years. Around 1965 it was decided to sell the property and move on. There were initial bids for the home in the spring of 1965 but it would take more than a year to sell it do to an ownership issue.

Alette always thought that her father had given the house to her. While Jim and Grace lived there, Grace insisted that Jim pay the rent to Alette because Alette had no income, although it is likely Jim, being a lawyer knew Grace was part owner. However, when it came time to sell, it was found that the deed was still in the name of their parents Adrianus and Martha Vanderkloot as no will had been processed for either. After some research it was determined that the actual owners were Adrianus and Martha's 4 living children and the heirs of Matthew Vanderkloot who had recently died and Art Vanderkloot who had died in 1929. Thus followed a year of research and coordination with the extended family members to get understandings and agreements in order to bring forth a final sale.

The Chicago Title and Trust did a Title Search and the particulars of the property are below. From this data it appears that the property was bought on July 22, 1912. Someday it might be nice to obtain the original deed to see who it was bought from and how much.

Item: 486-3 54-91-055 unit A 20
Lot 707 in Weddell & Cox's Add to Englewood sd addn bng a sub of E 1/2 of SW 1/4 of Sec 20 38 14 E etc in CCI
Cont abst since July 22/12 (tr 7492 opn bk)
Cd HJM TMK no prob 3

Ultimately the house was sold for $15,500 on May 1, 1966 and after legal and other fees, the proceeds were divided among the 4 children and the heirs of the other two. According to the real estate transactions, the property was approximately 30 x 125 feet or 3750 square feet with a two-story brick building and a two-car garage. I didn't realize the garage was part of the property. The garage was to the south of the rectangular property and I always though Grandpa Jim rented it.

Grace Filipek was the point of contact for the heirs and she worked with Charles T. Kropik who did the legal work. Charles was the law partner of her husband at 120 S. LaSalle in Chicago. As the sale was being finalized Grace moved to a new apartment at 105th and Hale where she said she was very content. All the proceeds of the sale went to her and then she wrote the final distribution checks her brother and sisters and to Matt's wife and children and her nephew Art. Thus ended a 54-year reign of ownership by the Vanderkloot's of the 7047 S. Ada property. There were many happy memories there and many stories of which I have listed only the few I recall just now. Please let me know if you can add anything to the story.