History

Guest post by Beth in our Conservatory: Do you remember the first time you ever played “cards”? I don’t remember the first time I played a card game, but I do fondly remember spending many hours playing cards with my brothers and our childhood friends. One particular summer when our families went on vacation together, I […]

Welcome to 2020! It’s hard to believe we’re already entering a brand new decade. Before we go charging full steam ahead into the 20s, we want to take time to reflect on the past decade. You’ve probably noticed that we’ve made a few changes around here during the past 10 years. We thought it would be […]

We’re celebrating another anniversary at The Little Traveler. Celia has been with the store for twenty-five years! We’re so lucky to have her. From the beginning, it was apparent that she was a treasure. On the September day in 1994 when she interviewed with then store manager Arlene Brown and co-owner Mr. R, they hired […]

That’s right—a Geneva distillery. And it’s award-winning, to boot.When you live in or near a destination town like Geneva, IL, you don’t need to travel far to find interesting things to do. Downtown Geneva is renowned for its unique shopping and dining choices, as highlighted by local blogger Basically B. But on the other side […]

Graduation season will soon be upon us. It’s time to honor long-held graduation traditions that all started because…because…wait—why now? We were wondering the same thing, so we did a bit of internet sleuthing to answer questions about the most traditional traditions. What’s the Most Popular Graduation Gift?This one’s no mystery. Money has long been the most […]

I’ve begun a tradition with my 2 young granddaughters of hopping aboard the train and riding it to our destination stop at Geneva, then strolling our favorite destination in town – The Little Traveler.During our recent pint-sized trip on the train, we talked about the towns along the way. Kindergartner Adeline remarked, “It would be […]

If The Little Traveler has a secret weapon, it’s Joe Greenberg. He’s our behind-the-scenes guy who keeps operations running smoothly and makes us smile every day. You might also recognize him as our chief photographer, the Easter bunny, Tie-dye Santa, and Leprechaun Joe.While we celebrate the 242nd anniversary our nation’s independence, we want to honor […]

Do you recognized these murals? In the mid-20th century, Kate Raftery, founder of The Little Traveler, commissioned Art Institute of Chicago student William Moulis to paint these and other murals throughout the store. From 1947-1952, he kept an art studio in the “penthouse” of The Little Traveler and is the creator of the very first Almanacks, […]

Earlier this month, Little Traveler employees gathered at The Geneva History Museum, just north of The Little Traveler at 113 S. Third Street, to learn more about the history of our store. Terry Emma, executive director of the museum, presented The History of The Little Traveler, the same presentation she’s been doing for customers in our Atrium […]