Places

D Hill Nursery

D. Hill Nursery was an evergreen nursery operating in Dundee, Illinois during the late nineteenth century, specializing in Scotch Pine and a range of other evergreen species. The business was proprietored by a figure known in contemporary records as Dr. Hill, who built a regional and national reputation as an evergreen specialist. By 1895, the nursery was issuing printed catalogues in both English and German, reflecting the multilingual character of the Kane County area and the breadth of its intended customer base. In addition to live nursery stock, the 1895 catalogue documents the sale of evergreen and deciduous tree seeds, with pricing listed by ounce, pound, and hundred-pound quantities. (Source: *Catalogue of Evergreens* (D. Hill Nursery Co., Dundee, Ill., 1895))

Scanned newspaper page from Image 16 of The advocate (Topeka, Kan.), April 22, 1896, 1896-04-22 (Library of Congress, Chronicling America)
Scanned newspaper page from Image 16 of The advocate (Topeka, Kan.), April 22, 1896, showing a D. Hill Nursery advertisement offering evergreens and ornamental trees, 1896-04-22 (Library of Congress, Chronicling America) | Source: Library of Congress, Chronicling America

History

The nursery's 1895 catalogue offers the earliest documentary record currently held for D. Hill Nursery. At that time the operation was substantial: the catalogue lists 50,000 second-class Scotch Pine trees available for sale, standing between 34 and 44 feet tall, priced at $15.00 per hundred or $125.00 per thousand. Smaller stock — trees under three feet in height — was offered with free boxing and packing, suggesting the nursery was actively cultivating mail-order and long-distance trade with customers across the United States, Canada, England, and France. (Source: Catalogue of Evergreens (D. Hill Nursery Co., Dundee, Ill., 1895))

The same catalogue also offered tree seeds alongside live stock. Evergreen seed varieties included fir, spruce, cedar, juniper, and related species, while deciduous offerings encompassed maple, oak, hickory, locust, and others. Seeds were collected from a wide range of geographic sources, including Wisconsin, the Black Hills, Scotland, Japan, Siberia, and the Pacific Coast. Some seeds — such as Black Locust — were noted as native to the Dundee area itself. The nursery guaranteed new crop seeds, described as largely of their own collecting. (Source: Catalogue of Evergreens (D. Hill Nursery Co., Dundee, Ill., 1895))

Dr. Hill had exhibited evergreens at the World's Columbian Exposition (the World's Fair) in 1893–1894, an event he described in his catalogue as having drawn widespread praise for the landscape arrangement and artistic presentation of his display. According to the catalogue, the exhibit generated nearly 1,000 letters of compliment from patrons. Dr. Hill subsequently proposed offering an enlarged lithograph — 24 by 40 inches, printed in six colors — depicting his World's Fair exhibit, to be included with orders of $5.00 or more placed for spring 1896 delivery. He noted that producing the lithograph independently would cost between $3,000 and $5,000, framing the offer as an exceptional value to customers. (Source: Catalogue of Evergreens (D. Hill Nursery Co., Dundee, Ill., 1895))

The 1895 catalogue also advertised a sample order designed to introduce new customers to the nursery's stock: 200 two-year-old evergreens in ten varieties, available for $2.00 prepaid. (Source: Catalogue of Evergreens (D. Hill Nursery Co., Dundee, Ill., 1895))

By April 1896, the nursery was advertising nationally in out-of-state publications, including The Advocate of Topeka, Kansas. That advertisement offered 3,200 choice evergreens in ten varieties and 4,400 ornamental trees in eight varieties, indicating the nursery maintained a significant and diverse inventory of both categories. The advertisement also solicited local agents, suggesting the nursery was actively building a network of regional representatives to extend its reach beyond direct mail-order sales. An illustrated catalogue was offered free of charge to prospective customers and agents. (Source: The Advocate (Topeka, Kan.), April 22, 1896, Image 16, via Library of Congress Chronicling America)

Notable Associations

  • Dr. Hill — Proprietor and evergreen specialist, active at least from 1895 through 1896. The catalogue does not supply his full given name. He is noted for his participation in the World's Columbian Exposition, for cultivating an extensive mail-order and seed trade, and for advertising nationally in publications as far afield as Topeka, Kansas. (Source: Catalogue of Evergreens (D. Hill Nursery Co., Dundee, Ill., 1895); The Advocate (Topeka, Kan.), April 22, 1896)
  • World's Columbian Exposition (1893–1894) — Dr. Hill exhibited evergreens at the fair, sometimes called the White City, which he credited with substantially raising the nursery's national profile. (Source: Catalogue of Evergreens (D. Hill Nursery Co., Dundee, Ill., 1895))

Sources

  • Catalogue of Evergreens (D. Hill Nursery, Dundee, IL, 1895). Available via Internet Archive: https://archive.org/details/catalogueofeverg1895dund#offset-103228
  • Catalogue of Evergreens (D. Hill Nursery, Dundee, IL, 1895) — tree seed section