THE SPINNING WHEEL RESTAURANT, 1950s (Chicago, Hinsdale: hotel, zoning, suburb)

[jack swilling]

Greetings! All my family came from Chicago, but I was born in Phoenix in 1945 and moved to San Diego in 1989.
When I was a boy, we visited Chicago often. I had three great aunts who often drove us from the southside to a very green, forresty suburb (west, I think) where there was a restaurant called The Spinning Wheel or The Old Spinning Wheel. This was in the 1950s. I have tried to find its location, but I can't. I suppose it has not existed for some time.
I would like someone to tell me the answer, or redirect me. Thank you for your time.

[williepotatoes]

Photos of Spinning Wheel Restaurant - Hinsdale, Illinois - YouTube

There's another youtube video available besides this

[chet everett]

Several of buildings are still standing -- the site is owned by Hinsdale Hospital and they've used some of the buildings for adminstrative needs over the past few years. It adjacent to a Cook Co Forest Preserve sandwiched between County Line Rd and 294 (the TriState tollway) just north or Ogden Ave. as I recall the resturant ceased operations some time in the late 1970s, done in by competition from a place across Ofden called The Cypress. The Cyrpress soldiered on through the early 90s until it style failed to get enough support from folks that wanted less formal surroundings and more adventurous / lighter fare...

There have been proposals to utilize the site for a higher end hotel / conference center but local opposition to re-zoning along with the fickle nature of that business and relative abundance of such facilities nearby in Oak Brook have caused prudent investors to keep their powder dry..

The long term employmwnt trends of the region are likely to result in some sort of health care oriented facility on the site eventually ,but with Obamacare throwing a monkey wrench into even that sector I would not hold my breath...

The odds of "high end suburban decay" being fostered by the bizarre confluence of local, county , and Fedral levels of governments that are highly non-functional are evidence enough to me of just how bad things are likely to get over the coming years.