Who we are
The Luecht Historical Collection began nearly twenty-five years ago. It started as Mike Luecht’s desire to pursue items relevant to the history of the United States – and a theme emerged.
We feel the political parties, the ever-changing media landscape, and even our educational systems, were taking increasing liberties as they presented our country’s history. With The Luecht Historical Collection, our aim is to simply present history as we share our collection of historical documents factually and without opinion. It would be ideal if History were consumed by each individual in their own way, preferably through the lens of fairness and with the respect for historical facts.
For many years, The Luecht Historical Collection grew and was housed in a location available only for private viewing. We then invited various people, students, and groups to visit the collection. At the same time, we had an ever-increasing frustration in our country with the lack of civility and the general shutting down of collaboration.
Therein was the opportunity! With TLHC as the platform, we accelerated gatherings to encourage learning and the exchange of ideas as people engaged with and drew inspiration from our collection. It has worked, and in a nonpartisan fashion. Not only that, but we have had a lot of fun with folks from all walks of life….exactly what we envisioned!
We have also been able to lead programming for leadership development, which is one of the main focuses of TLHC, especially with our youth.
The Luecht Historical Collection was moved to McHenry County College in 2025 and the programming is now ever increasing. We hope this programming helps to fuel our forever goal – that all of us seek comprehensive solutions for the common good while recognizing that every life on the earth is of equal value.
Mike Luecht, Founder
Mike Luecht’s passion for history, education and philanthropy are the driving forces behind making the formerly private Luecht Historical Collection now available for students, community groups, researchers and lifelong learners of all stripes.
For roughly 25 years, Luecht collected unique historical materials – from an inaugural George Washington button to letters penned by U.S. presidents, centuries-old maps, important documents from around the world, newspapers and more.
Luecht spent more than 17 years as founder, president and CEO of Itasca-based ML Realty Partners. Previously, he worked for 14 years at McShane Corporation, where he also was president. Throughout those years, he served on various corporate and community boards as well as advising leadership for various entities. These included agencies assisting victims of domestic violence, those providing mental health services, as well as particular attention towards people in need of basic resources.
But his greatest focus, he said, came from his family’s devotion to educational access initiatives, an example being scholarship and mentoring programs he and his wife, Judy, founded in Chicago and Joliet. Additionally, the Luechts were part of the Promise Program, which offered free tuition to McHenry County College (MCC) students during the global financial crisis in the late 2000s. And it is in that vein, belief in access, that the Luecht Historical Collection now dwells at MCC.
“With its focus on learning, McHenry County College is central to creating an environment of curiosity, inspiration and innovation,” Luecht said. “For us, there’s no better location in the Chicagoland area for The Luecht Historical Collection.”
Optimally, the takeaways of those who visit will lead to greater civility in society, people seeking comprehensive solutions for the common good, and the recognition that every life on this earth is of equal value.
“We encourage learning and the exchange of ideas by having people engage with and draw inspiration from our collection,” he said. “The space is all about history, not politics, not division. It is our intent that each visitor will consume and value these historical artifacts in his or her own way, preferably through a lens of fairness.”
Luecht has been inducted into the Chicago Entrepreneurial Hall of Fame, is a requested speaker on leadership, and was a Fellow at Leadership Greater Chicago.
To contact The Luecht Historical Collection:
info@thelhc.org