Aldis Family Papers

An inventory of the collection at the University of Illinois at Chicago

Biographical Sketch

Arthur Taylor Aldis - Wyoming rancher from 1885 to 1889 and Chicago realtor from 1890 to 1935 was born in Concord, New Hampshire in 1861. After graduating from St. Paul's School in New Hampshire. Aldis studied at Harvard University from 1882-1882 as a special student, and then at the Harvard Law School. Arthur Taylor Aldis married Mary Reynolds of Chicago in 1892 and established their residence in Lake Forest, Illinois. In 1895, a son Graham was born.

Arthur Aldis joined the firm of Aldis, Aldis and Northcote, which subsequently became Aldis and Company in 1880 with offices located in the Mondanock Block in downtown Chicago.

Aldis was also interested in the education of underprivileged boys; financing and promoting the work of talented artists and sculptors, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the Chicago Urban League, the National Conservation Association, the American Red Cross, and World War I relief commissions.

Graham Aldis, son of Arthur Aldis was born in Chicago in 1895. He graduated from Harvard University in 1916 with a A.B. degree and in 1917 with an A. M. degree. From 1917 to 1919, Aldis fought in World War I as a first lieutenant, in the United States Army. Graham Aldis married Dorothy Keeley of Chicago in 1922. They resided in Lake Forest, Illinois with three daughters and a son.

In 1919, Graham joined the real estate firm of Aldis and Co., becoming a partner in 1922. He specialized in management, renting of central property and office buildings and appraisals. Graham Aldis was also active in the Chicago Council on Foreign Relations, the Chicago Association of Building Managers, the Civic Federation of Chicago, and the Metropolitan Housing Council.

In 1941, Graham Aldis was called to active duty by the United States Army. During his absence, his partner, Bill Doughty succeeded him as trustee and voting director of various organizations. From 1941 to 1942, Aldis was the Army real estate director for Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Later, he served in Iceland and the United Kindom with the War Department, and on the General Staff Corps of the United States Army. He left the army in 1945 and returned to his real estate firm and to a participation in a number of civic organizations.

Scope and Contents

The collection consists of correspondence, reports, proceedings, minutes, by-laws, questionnaires, petitions, speeches, clippings, and published material of Aldis and Company, specialists in the management, renting, and appraisal of central property and office buildings. The collection also includes material pertaining to the Chicago Council on Foreign Relations, the Civic Federation of Chicago, the Metropolitan Housing Council of Greater Chicago and Chicago Land Clearance Commission. The collection also contains material on federal housing programs, low-rent housing, the Noland Land Bill of 1919, relief of European Refugees and housing of African Americans.

Detailed Description/Box and Folder Listing