Harold Moser

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Harold Moser
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Born(1914-11-30)November 30, 1914
Fort Wayne, IN, USA
DiedDecember 17, 2001(2001-12-17) (aged 87)
NationalityAmerican
CitizenshipUnited States of America
Alma materNorth Central College
Occupation
  • Land developer
  • Civic leader
  • Philanthropist
Parents
  • Dr. Edward Moser (father)
  • Cecilia (mother)

Harold Moser (November 30, 1914-December 17, 2001) was a land developer, civic leader and philanthropist from Naperville, IL. Moser was born to the physician Dr. Edward Moser and wife Cecilia in Fort Wayne, IN.[1] In 1916 the family transplanted to Naperville, IL with Edward serving as physician to the town of roughly 4,000.[2] Moser attended SS Peter and Paul School in Naperville and St. Lawrence Academy in Fon du Lac WI. when he learned that he suffered from osteomyelitis following an injury in a basketball game. Moser’s condition stiffened his hips, exempting him from military service and limiting his mobility throughout his life. Moser spent 2 years at North Central College before leaving to start the newspaper the Naperville Sun with money given to him by his father in 1935 at the age of 21.[3] Moser sold the newspaper the following year to his friend Harold White. In 1941 Harold’s father purchased the Kluckhohn Coal Yard for his son to run.[4] As the price of coal fell Moser converted the coal yard into a lumber yard to meet the growing demand for housing following WWII.[5] After selling the lumber yard to brother Jim, Harold Moser focused exclusively on land development. Initially Moser constructed homes on in-fill or vacant lots in existing neighborhoods, but soon began construction on his own neighborhoods. With land purchased from the DuPage Forest Preserve, Moser began construction on the 62-lot community known as the “Forest Preserve” completed in 1949.[6] The success of the project compelled Moser to continue development at “an aggressive pace.”[7] leading to further development projects such as West Highlands, Saybrook, Maplebrook and Cress Creek, founding the development company MACOM in 1960. At the time of his retirement in 1993, Harold Moser had influenced the development of 10,000 residential homes, “about one-third of residential Naperville”[8] For the thousands of acres developed in his name and the numerous charitable donations to the “development of schools parks and churches around Naperville,” as well as a “$1 million gift to fund the 155-foot, musical bell tower”[9] Moser Tower and the Millennium Carillon, Harold Moser has been referred to colloquially as “Mr. Naperville.” Harold Moser died on December 17, 2001 at the age of 87.[10]

Significance to Illinois history

Moser’s preeminence as a land developer established his tremendous influence over Naperville’s growth and politics. Moser’s and Macom’s developments were typified by their high quality and luxurious amenities. At Cress Creek Moser allocated land for the construction of a country club and at Maplebrook established a bath and recreational club, limiting membership to neighborhood residents.[11] Saybrook, constructed in 1961, was notable for “reportedly being among the first residential developments in the country to have a swimming pool and a tennis club.”[12] In 1987 MACOM acquired land east of the Naper Aero Club runway to develop the Aero Estates, homes which tout attached private airplane hangars. The White Eagle Club, completed in 1989, included 1,150 housing units which sold for roughly $500,000, a 52,000 sq. ft. clubhouse and 7,150 yard golf course designed by Arnold Palmer.[13] In 1989 it was reported that at White Eagle “Big houses with three-car garages are popping up on the 700-acre site like 9-iron shots.”[14] The inclusion of these amenities was borne from Moser’s desire to maintain Naperville’s perceived extraordinary quality. Historian Brian Ogg writes “The desire to keep Naperville extraordinary was, in part, a response to community anxiety over Naperville’s expansion plans. Existing residents cited uncontrolled growth, poor planning and lack of infrastructure as their biggest concerns. An article published in local newspaper the Clarion advocated for tighter control of Naperville’s growth, reporting that development by large corporations from outside Naperville threatened “the charm and heritage of our community.”[15] African Americans were often excluded from participating in Naperville’s growth as a community. Censuses conducted in 1900 and 1940 indicate only one African American resident, in Naperville, while the remainder of the population of Naperville doubled from 2,600 to 5,200 during that same time frame. Donna Sack, vice president of Naper Settlement notes that “through the first half of the 1900’s Naperville was likely a “sundown town...People of color would have been allowed to work in town during the day, but aggressively discouraged from living here—both through unwritten practice and restrictive real estate covenants.”[16] In 1966 African American employees of Bell Labs filed a complaint of housing discrimination with a federal agency after being unable to find a realtor or builder willing to show them a property to purchase.[17] The complaint was dropped for “insufficient evidence.”[18] Four years later, a 1970 census showed that Naperville included 43 African American residents in a community of 22,600. As of 2010 African Americans consist of only 4.7% of Naperville’s population.[19]

In the media

References

  1. ↑ Millen, Kathy. “Harold Moser Leaves a Lasting Legacy in the Area.” The Sun. Accessed October 12, 2020. https://www.centurywalk.org/news/article.cfm?prID=73.
  2. ↑ Ebener, Michael H. “Harold Moser's Naperville.” Illinois History Teacher. Accessed October 12, 2020. https://www.lib.niu.edu/1999/iht719939.html.
  3. ↑ Millen, Kathy. “Harold Moser Leaves a Lasting Legacy in the Area.” The Sun. Accessed October 12, 2020. https://www.centurywalk.org/news/article.cfm?prID=73.
  4. ↑ Millen, Kathy. “Harold Moser Leaves a Lasting Legacy in the Area.” The Sun. Accessed October 12, 2020. https://www.centurywalk.org/news/article.cfm?prID=73.
  5. ↑ Ogg, Bryan J. Naperville: a Brief History. Charleston, SC: The History Press, 2018.
  6. ↑ Gottesman, Andrew. “Builder Who Shaped Naperville Retires.” Chicago Tribune, December 7, 1993. https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1993-12-07-9312070242-story.html.
  7. ↑ Ogg, Bryan J. Naperville: a Brief History. Charleston, SC: The History Press, 2018.
  8. ↑ Gottesman, Andrew. “Builder Who Shaped Naperville Retires.” Chicago Tribune, December 7, 1993. https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1993-12-07-9312070242-story.html.
  9. ↑ Lynch, Kevin. “Harold Moser, 87.” Chicago Tribune. Accessed October 12, 2020. https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2001-12-19-0112190132-story.html.
  10. ↑ “Harold E. Moser.” The Daily Herald, December 19, 2001. https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/dailyherald/obituary.aspx?n=harold-e-moser&pid=165142.
  11. ↑ Ebener, Michael H. “Harold Moser's Naperville.” Illinois History Teacher. Accessed October 12, 2020. https://www.lib.niu.edu/1999/iht719939.html.
  12. ↑ Ogg, Bryan J. Naperville: a Brief History. Charleston, SC: The History Press, 2018.
  13. ↑ Ebener, Michael H. “Harold Moser's Naperville.” Illinois History Teacher. Accessed October 12, 2020. https://www.lib.niu.edu/1999/iht719939.html.
  14. ↑ Lucadamo, John. “Moser, Naperville Grow Up Together.” Chicago Tribune, April 15, 1989. https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1989-04-15-8904040320-story.html.
  15. ↑ Ogg, Bryan J. Naperville: a Brief History. Charleston, SC: The History Press, 2018.
  16. ↑ Willhite, Christie. “Epidemic of Bias.” Naperville Magazine. Accessed October 12, 2020. https://napervillemagazine.com/2019/12/epidemic-of-bias/.
  17. ↑ Keating, Ann Durkin. "“Behind the Suburban Curtain”: The Campaign for Open Occupancy in Naperville." Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society (1998-) 110, no. 1 (2017): 59-86. Accessed October 12, 2020. doi:10.5406/jillistathistsoc.110.1.0059.
  18. ↑ Ebener, Michael H. “Harold Moser's Naperville.” Illinois History Teacher. Accessed October 12, 2020. https://www.lib.niu.edu/1999/iht719939.html.
  19. ↑ Demographics and Key Facts § (2018). https://www.naperville.il.us/about-naperville/demographics-and-key-facts/.

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