Editing Chester, Illinois (section)

==History==
===Founding===
Samuel Smith is said to be the town's founder because he built the first home in Chester, established a [[ferry]] system, and began the construction of a [[Mill (grinding)|mill]] in 1829. The town was named after [[Chester]], England, the city from where his wife Jane Smith was from.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=2MwfAAAAIBAJ&sjid=mNgEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1176%2C754300 | title=Place Names Have Colorful History | work=The Southeast Missourian | date=January 11, 1963 | access-date=27 April 2015 | author=Allen, John W. | pages=6}}</ref> The first business in Chester was a [[general store]] that opened in 1830 along with a [[castor oil]] press established by R. B. Servant, who furnished farmers with [[seed]] and growing methods to later buy the beans they produced for [[Expeller pressing|oil extraction]]. This was a flourishing business until the [[petroleum industry]] made it obsolete.
The first wedding in the town of Chester was held on February 4, 1834. Content Walker, the bride and Amzi Andrews, the groom held their wedding in a 16 feet square [[log cabin]].<ref>Gordon, Eileen.''A History Of Chester, Illinois 1829-1979.''Taylor Publishing Company, 1979. Print.</ref>

===Cole Milling Company===
The H.C. Cole Milling Company was founded by Nathan Cole in 1839. It started out as a small [[sawmill]] with a [[corn (disambiguation)|corn]]-grinding attachment which encouraged the townspeople to plant [[Food grain|grains]], and in a short time the first Cole [[flour mill]] was built. The mill still exists in Chester but it is now operated by Ardent Mills. Nathan Cole also brought the first [[electric generator]] to Chester and used the surplus of power from the mill to operate [[street light]]s. This was a modern convenience that was not even available in [[Chicago]] at that point. The generator is now on display at the [[The Henry Ford|Ford Museum]] in [[Dearborn, Michigan]].<ref name="Gordon, Eileen 1979">Gordon, Eileen."A History Of Chester, Illinois 1829-1979." Taylor Publishing Company, 1979. Print.</ref>

===International Shoe Company===
In 1916, Messrs. Bronson, Albert Gilster, Frank Wolff and John Herschbach developed the site for the [[Furniture Brands International#International Shoe Company|International Shoe Company]] in the center of town where the Gilster Mary Lee Corp. is today. In 1922, a second building was built, and the company had more than 1000 employees and was producing thousands of pairs of children's shoes. During World War Two, the factory operated primarily by women produced military/combat boots for the troops in service. In 1953, payroll reached over $2,000,000. The factory was closed by the company in the early 1960s after 45 years of operation.<ref name="Gordon, Eileen 1979"/>

===Prim Hosiery Mill===
In 1925, the Prim Hosiery Mill was a knitting mill that began operations under Joshua Richman with 50 employees. The mill grew to employ more than 275 people and produced over 300,000 pairs of [[stocking]]s a month with annual payroll exceeding $700,000. The knitting mill continued operations through the 1960s. The building still stands as one of the Gilster Mary Lee Corp. factory buildings.<ref name="Gordon, Eileen 1979"/>

===Chester Pool===
Construction began for the Chester Pool in 1939 as part of a [[Works Progress Administration]] (WPA) public works program to create employment during the [[Great Depression]]. It was completed in 1941, although due to the delivery of the filtration system being delayed it did not officially open until May 30, 1942, under the management of William Weber. A total of 250 swimmers visited the [[swimming pool]] in the first week and were charged 15 cents for weekdays and 25 cents for weekends.

Due to leaks and other deterioration issues, as well as high repair costs, the pool has been closed since 2014.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.randolphcountyheraldtribune.com/news/20180418/fate-of-chester-swimming-pool-murky-city-thinking-about-other-uses-for-site|title=Fate of Chester swimming Pool Murky|date=18 April 2018 }}</ref>