Before John Heisler Sr. sold harnesses or shoes, he cut ice. He came to America at 19 and found work with Knickerbocker, back when ice harvesting on the lake that gave Crystal Lake its name was a booming business. In 1908 he opened a harness and shoe shop in what people then called North Crystal Lake. That area didn't officially become part of the city until 1914.
That shop later became Heisler's Bootery. On the night of Friday, November 27, its 118-year history will light up in Depot Park. A hybrid spruce, planted there by the city in March, is now called the Heisler Holiday Tree. It gets its first lighting right after this year's Festival of Lights Parade.
A Tree With Roots in the Ground
For years, the Festival of Lights Parade ended at a tree at Brink Street Market. In 2023, Downtown Crystal Lake described the finale as lighting "the majestic Christmas Tree in the courtyard of the Brink Street Market," with Santa tossing his magic dust to turn the lights on.
This year the parade ends somewhere else. The 2026 Festival of Lights Parade listing asks people to "stay for the lighting of our new community holiday tree in Depot Park." The new tree is a living hybrid spruce, planted during the multimillion-dollar Depot Park renovation. The Northwest Herald reported in April that it was planted in late March, while crews were still working on the park.
Because the tree is planted, it stays in Depot Park after the decorations come down. According to the Northwest Herald, the plan is for the Heisler Holiday Tree to be the meeting place for special occasions like the annual tree lighting. Jim Heisler, the third-generation owner of the business, sponsored the tree and told the Northwest Herald he sees it as a family legacy that can stand far into the future. He summed it up simply:
"It kind of makes it complete."
Three Heisler Addresses, One Short Walk
Jim Heisler told the Northwest Herald he chose the spot because the tree sits within sight of the family's original store on Woodstock Street. So the parade-night walk also passes the places where the family business has stood over the years:
- 83 E. Woodstock St. An early-1900s photo in the Northwest Herald shows John Heisler Sr. standing outside his shop at this address. The original Heisler store on Woodstock Street now houses the Judith Svalander School of Ballet.
- 50 N. Williams St. This has been Heisler's Bootery's home since 1966, around the corner from the original.
- Depot Park. The newest Heisler landmark, a spruce planted in 2026 and lit for the first time on November 27.
The parade itself is listed at the corner of Williams and Brink, which puts the whole evening a few blocks from the Bootery's Williams Street storefront. The parade runs 7 to 9 p.m., and the tree lighting follows it.
Santa House Opens Its First Season in the Renovated Park
The tree is the newest thing in Depot Park, and Santa House is right there with it. Downtown Crystal Lake's 2026 Santa House sign-up welcomes Santa "to the newly renovated Depot Park," so the tree and Santa share the park the night after the lighting.
Santa House can get busy. In its 2023 preview, Downtown Crystal Lake said the 2022 season set a record, with more than 2,000 children visiting. Visits now work by reservation, in five-minute slots. The first slot opens at 10 a.m. on Saturday, November 28. Reservations run on select days through Friday, December 18, and the last weekend, December 19 and 20, is walk-up only.
The first slots each day are set aside for people with disabilities and their families. These visits run slightly longer, with no music playing. The Santa House has no ramp, so Santa will move his chair outside to meet visitors who use wheelchairs. Families can email [email protected] ahead of time to ask about other accommodations. The sign-up also has an automatic waitlist. If someone cancels, the next person in line gets the open slot.
Brink Street Market Gets Its Own Display
The parade finale moved to Depot Park, but the area around the Brink Street Market lot still has plenty going on. Christmas Tree Lane lines Grant Street and Brink Street around the outside of the lot. Each of its real trees is about five feet tall and decorated by a sponsor with 300 to 500 LED lights. Downtown Crystal Lake says local clubs and organizations decorate the trees, each one differently.
Here's how the timing works out. The trees go in the week of November 16. Sponsors decorate November 23 through 27 and take everything down by January 4. The lane's public run is listed as November 27, 2026, through January 4, 2027. That means the whole display is finished on parade night, the same night the new tree is lit. Both spots are a short walk apart, and on November 27 both are lit.
Three weeks later, both sides of downtown come together for Home for the Holidays, on Thursday, December 17, from 5 to 8 p.m. The Naturally McHenry County listing calls it a new event, with luminary-lit streets, live music, downtown shopping and story time. It also counts as a stop on the Merry McHenry County Holiday Passport. Check in at 10 of the 30-plus stops with the free Naturally McHenry County app and you earn a commemorative ornament. Heisler's Bootery lists the evening on its own events page and mentions extended shopping hours.
The Season, Date by Date
Downtown's calendar comes from Downtown Crystal Lake. The Crystal Lake Park District and the Raue Center fill out the weeks around it, so it helps to see everything on one calendar.
| Date | Event | Where | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri, Nov 27, 7 to 9 p.m. | Festival of Lights Parade and first Heisler Holiday Tree lighting | Williams and Brink; tree in Depot Park | Lighting follows the parade |
| Nov 27 to Jan 4 | Christmas Tree Lane | Grant and Brink streets, around the Brink Street Market lot | Sponsor-decorated real trees |
| Sat, Nov 28 to Fri, Dec 18 | Santa House, by reservation | Depot Park | Five-minute slots on select days |
| Dec 2 to 5, 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. | Luminaria | Veteran Acres, 431 N. Walkup Rd. | Free; Dec 5 adds campfires, cocoa, carolers and Mrs. Claus |
| Fri, Dec 11, 8 p.m. | Elgin Symphony Orchestra holiday performance | Raue Center | Check ticket availability |
| Dec 12 and 13, 2 to 4 p.m. | Saint Lucia: A Swedish Holiday Tea | Colonel Palmer House, 660 E. Terra Cotta Ave. | Ages 5 and up; $45 resident, $59 nonresident |
| Thu, Dec 17, 5 to 8 p.m. | Home for the Holidays | Downtown Crystal Lake | New event; luminaries and live music |
| Fri, Dec 18, 5 to 9 p.m. | PJs, Popcorn and the Polar Express | Main Beach, 300 Lakeshore Drive | $15 resident, $20 nonresident, per child |
| Sat, Dec 19 and Sun, Dec 20 | Santa House, walk-up only | Depot Park | No reservations |
| Dec 19 and 20, noon and 5 p.m. | The Nutcracker | Raue Center | Two shows each day |
The Park District's Luminaria is free. December 2 through 4 are trail-walk nights only, and Saturday, December 5 adds a Candy Cane Forest along with the campfires and cocoa. The Park District appreciates a donation of $1 per person, up to $5 per family, which goes toward Nature Center education programs. Parking is available at the Nature Center, Veteran Acres and Oakwoods Lodge. The Park District will also send a personalized reply to any letter mailed to Santa, c/o Crystal Lake Park District, 1 E. Crystal Lake Avenue, Crystal Lake, IL 60014, if it includes a self-addressed stamped envelope. The deadline to send letters is December 14. The Raue Center lists the Elgin Symphony Orchestra on December 11 and The Nutcracker on December 19 and 20. Those Nutcracker shows fall on Santa House's walk-up weekend, so a Depot Park visit fits easily before or after a matinee.
Parking for Depot Park
The Santa House sign-up gives the clearest parking directions for anything in Depot Park. Head toward the Crystal Lake Metra station and use one of the Metra lots at Grant and Woodstock, park on Williams Street, or use the Brink Street Market lot, which the sign-up describes as the Raue Center and Starbucks lot. Park in the Brink Street Market lot and Christmas Tree Lane is right around you, with the Heisler Holiday Tree a short walk away in Depot Park.
When a downtown adds something permanent, like a living tree with a family name and a century of history behind it, the people who live nearby get a new landmark. I love seeing changes like this around Crystal Lake. If you're thinking about what your own place near downtown is worth these days, Jennifer Haug is happy to put together a free home valuation, with no pressure, whenever the timing is right for you. Get Your Free Home Valuation.
