Glen Ellyn
Indian village No. 22

Trail H, the most direct route from the mouth of the Chicago to the Fox river, crosses trail U from Lake Zurich to the Desplaines river at Joliet, at a very large spring in Indian village No. 22. This is the old St Charles and Geneva road passing through "Babcocks Grove", now called Lombard. Trail U at this spring, as can be seen by the map, forks into three trails. The one to the right for the Desplaines river at Sag Island. The other and the most travelled one to the left for Naperville or Plainfield. And by trail U itself you could reach the Desplaines river at Joliet.

The refuse of an Indian village including Indian mounds and tepee circles were found here in 1834 by Mr Ackerman when he bought his land in the northwest quarter Sec 12, town Milton, DuPage county. The tepee circles were found upon the highest part of the bluff, north and east of the DuPage river here, one hundred feet south of the St Charles road, opposite the spring, consisting of several discoidel stone floors, the size of an Indian tent, built from small water-worn boulders.

West of the east branch DuPage river and south of the St Charles road and the Ackerman house in the northeast quarter Sec 11, same town, six or seven Indian burial mounds were located. Here a silver brooch the size of a small tea saucer was found by the family. The spring (the Glen Ellyn mineral spring) here was southeast of the Indian mounds at the time the Ketcham family settled here in 1836, but since then it has traveled one hundred yards further southeast where it is found today.

South of the spring and running with the gravel ridge there were also camps and chipping stations. This gravel ridge makes a bold and high front to the east and is there semi-encircled by the little DuPage river. This was a most important trail center west of the Chicago region for large travelling parties, not a home village, from where trails could be changed to any desired direction.

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