Goeselville

Many ride by Goeselville Grove on the Tinley Creek bike trail at 145th and Ridgeland. If you search for Goeselville, Illinois on Yahoo Maps, it points you to 147th and Oak Park in Oak Forest.

So whats the story of Goeselville ? Christian Goesel and several relatives settled near 147th and Oak Park Avenue (then Bachelor's Grove Road) beginning in about 1861. In 1884, a post office named Goeselville was established by Christian Goesel, Sr. which replaced East Orland and operated until 1903. "Goeselville" can still be seen on many current maps, atlases, and gazetteers of the area:

At its peak the Goeselville area was home to 30 people with a few general stores and a blacksmith to serve local farmers. The area was visited by many more because of its strategic location on the main wagon road between Tinley Park and Blue Island. The tiny village was even a stop on the pony express route. But when the Rock Island Railroad bypassed Goeselville in 1852 and routed its tracks through Tinley Park, the town's development opportunities ceased. As the years went by, traffic through Goeselville diminished and Christian Goesel eventually sold his original homestead to the Midlothian Golf Club and moved to Tinley Park. The area was absorbed by Oak Forest with earlier settlements now abandoned and forgotten. So what did Goeselville look like ? What can we see of it today ?? The original Goesel barn still stands on Camp Sullivan property at 147th and Oak Park:

Here is an aerial of the area from 1938, well past the hey day of Goeselville.

Note the structures with the entrance at about 149th and Oak Park:

There are remnants of these buildings still in the Forest Preserves, first how to find them (follow the red line to the area in the green circle):

What did we find ? First a bridge across a stream:

After a short walk following the trail we come to the entrance of the area:

Various building foundations:

Steam Pipes ?

Boiler:

Various artifacts:

Well ? :

So what were these structures ? Likely a farm or processing plant of some type from the early 1900's.