On June 23, part of Caroline Street leading to the river in the North Valley neighborhood was designated Thomas H. Detweiller Way in honor of the man who donated riverside property for use as a playground and other recreation — plus hundreds of acres about seven miles north, on Ill. Route 29.

Thomas H. Detweiller Way is a portion of Caroline Street now at Adams Street across from O’Brien Steel, which is trying to purchase the adjacent parcel for expansion.

BILL KNIGHT
Caroline Street at Adams has now been proclaimed the honorary ‘Thomas H. Detweiller Way’ in honor of the late Peoria icon.
BILL KNIGHT

Neighborhood residents are trying to block the proposed sale by the Detweiller Playground Trust, which was supposed to facilitate the property, which was left to the people of Peoria in the will left by Detweiller, who died in 1947.

“This honorary designation will help ensure that more people learn about the man behind the name,” said Tim Herold of the Detweiller Marina Neighborhood Association. “Detweiller believed that access to nature, recreation and the Illinois River should be available to the people of Peoria for generations.”

Karrie Alms, who is with the Detweiller Playground Protectors group, also praised Detweiller.

“His generosity created opportunities for families to enjoy the outdoors and building lasting memories,” she said. “Because of his generosity, generations of Peorians have been able to enjoy boating, fishing, picnicking, walking and spending time along the Illinois River.”

In addition to other local advocates, a distant relative of Detweiller, Keith Holtzman, spoke, urging the public to learn about the property’s history and to realize how fragile places like the playground area are.

There are “very limited possibilities of ever being able to restore this if you lose it,” Holtzman said.