Vol. 8 No. 3 HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF ISLAND LAKE NEWSLETTER
FALL 2015 PICTURES FROM THE PAST
Thanks to the Reckwerdt family for this 1958 picture of the Island Lake Volunteer Fire Department. I imagine most of us have pictures in our mind of bells ringing, men sliding down poles, and fire engines racing out of the station. But how much do we really know about the history of firefighting in America? Note all these men are volunteers, who dropped whatever they were doing in their regular jobs to rush to fight the fire. In the beginning ALL firefighters in America were volunteers.
Left to right: Steve Grek, John Lindstom, Roy Reckwerdt, Mitch Bienkowski, Jim Mantzoros, Joe Pesz, Danny Dau, Red Anderson, Chief Clarence Gainer, Orlando Sera and Marv Taylor.
The first volunteer fire company began in Philadelphia in 1736; founded by a man who had moved there at the age of 18 from Boston, invented bifocals, wrote and printed Poor Richard‘s Almanack, and helped draft the Declaration of Independence. Yes, it was Benjamin Franklin. The company, called the Union Fire Company, was really a sort of club. Each member pledged to provide two leather buckets for carrying water and four cloth bags for rescuing goods, ready and in proper order at all times. Members would meet monthly for inspection and consideration of policies (absent members would be fined one shilling). The 25 charter members pledged to protect their own homes,
NOT those of nonmembers, which is understandable. Of course, there were soon more fire companies, until much of the city fell under the protection of one company or another. Franklin’s company devoted the fines it collected to purchasing equipment, and in 1743 bought a fire engine. Franklin co-founded America’s first mutual fire insurance company 16 years later. Since we know Franklin believed “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”, soon fire laws were passed mandating chimney inspections, requiring every home to have a fire bucket, and imposed a fine of 40 shillings to anyone who allowed their home and chimneys ‘to become so foul as to take fire.’ Each of the companies became social as well as protective associations, made up of citizens who were professionals, tradespeople and wealthier merchants, able to afford to purchase equipment; setting a pattern for volunteer firefighting that would dominate America for a century and a half, and to this day is prevalent in most small towns and rural areas. Some Americans who served as volunteer firefighters were George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Hancock, Paul Revere, and Alexander Hamilton.
In 1853 Cincinnati introduced the first steam powered fire engine. Instead of a bucket brigade throwing water on a burning building, the day of the trained, professional fireman was here. Instead of pulling engines by hand, professionals used horses, and heavy steam pumpers to direct streams of water where they would do the most good. By 1865 New York City had a paid fire department. Today we see many improvements in firefighting methods, modern equipment, building inspections and fire prevention.
The history of fire-fighting in Island Lake reflects that national history. From the beginning, firefighting in Island Lake was handled from the fire station in Wauconda. As the Village of Island Lake grew, it was decided to open a facility in the town of Island Lake. Here’s a view of the laying of the cornerstone of Wauconda Volunteer Fire Department Station No. 2, on Route 176 near Eastway, in 1966. Notice the familiar names of some volunteers. Both stations remained all volunteer for many years.
Pictured left to right are: Fire Chief Clarence Gainer, Mitch Bienkowski, Island Lake Mayor Bill McDonald, Police Chief Steve Grek, Deputy Fire Chief Roy Krueger, and Trustee Marv Taylor.
Island Lake, and its Fire Depart- ment, continued to grow, and it looks like we made the front page of the Waukegan News- Sun in 1969. Note some still-familiar names of the volunteers.
In 1987 a $300,00 addition was added to the Island Lake Station No. 2. Note that another familiar name, Charles Amrich, the current Mayor, was the Mayor of Island Lake for this groundbreaking. The Island Lake fire stations went full-time professional in 1978.
Picture courtesy of the Wauconda Township Library.
By the way, Island Lake’s ambulance service for many years was provided by Mr. Mackey of Mackey’s Funeral home, located at Route 176 and Roberts Road; it had no connection to the fire department.
We LOVE receiving pictures and articles about our history. Please search your attics and family albums and if you have anything that you would like to share with us, we would love to share it too. Give us a call, send an e-mail, or message us on Facebook. You may post photos to our Facebook page inbox. We can arrange to pick up your pictures or old newspapers, copy and scan them. If you desire, we will return the originals to you.
HISTORICAL SOCIETY NEWS
HISTORICAL BOAT TOURS
We again this season treated passengers to the beauty and serenity of our lake. The modest donations were split with the Village Lake Management Committee and earned us over $300. We offered over a dozen pontoon boat tours to local residents and passengers from the area, and as far away as South Africa! Thanks are again due to Village Lake Management and Historical Society Member Liz Nelson, who again worked all summer coordinating boat owners and passengers’ schedules. Thanks are due, too, to “first mate” Peter Nelson, and Historical Society docents Dona Willard and Jenny Nebgen Monday. Liz already has big plans for next year, including group tours and perhaps coordination with our planned picnic event in the Spring. Oh, yes, we could not have done it at all without the generosity of our “boat people” Carol Wiesbrach, Sam and Lin Cicero, Harold and Anne England, Connie and Mike Mascillino, Bob and Donna Carpenter, Joe and Jennifer Villarreal, Mike Guernard, Trevor and Laura Mock, and Sue and Jeff Stinson. They cheerfully donated their time, their boats, the cost of the fuel, and their joy in sharing the pleasure of boating on Island Lake.
FACEBOOK FEED
In response to a recent posting of a 1930’s picture of the dam on our Facebook page, Village Public Works director Brian Bartnick responded with a picture of the dam today from the same angle. The little tree on the right side still grows!
Comments
Mike Maguire slipped down that thing 3 stitches if i remember right. Like · Reply · Message · 1 · October 29 at 6:58am
Gail Hoffman Longworth It was easy to open until they put a lock on it. My bad. Like · Reply · Message · October 29 at 8:24am · Edited
Frank Samuel Ponio Jr. I spent many days exploring at the Island Lake Damn back in them good old days. Like · Reply · Message · October 29 at 1:34pm
Merrily Fantus Good fishing off the dam. Like · Reply · Message · November 18 at 7:05pm
Have a picture you’d like to share? Post it on our Facebook page, and watch the responses.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Again this year we will be displaying our holiday tree in the front lobby of the Village Hall. Stop in to see our vintage ornaments, old pictures of Island Lake, and take a trip back in time.
LIBRARY DISPLAY
We have again been invited by the Wauconda Township Library to display some of our artifacts and Island History in their front hall display case. Stop by during the month of May and view some rare pictures of the early days of Island Lake, some old newspaper articles from long ago, and help us celebrate the 10 th Anniversary of the founding of the Historical Society of Island Lake by participating in the showcasing of our history.
ISLAND LAKE RETRO PICNIC
Now in the planning stages is an old-time picnic such as we used to have on an annual basis in Island Lake. Come back to the 50’s, dress in that retro outfit you may have in the back of your closet, and bring your family for a day of food, fun and games. We’ll celebrate the 10 th Anniversary of the Historical Society by returning to the happy days we used to have at our community picnic. We’re hoping to have some boat rides, too! Watch for more news in our upcoming Newsletters.
MEETING DATES
The Historical Society of Island Lake normally meets on the first Monday of the month. Future meeting dates are set for January 4, 2016 and February 1, 2016 at 7:00 P.M. at the Senior Center in the Island Lake Village Hall. Please come and join us if you can; many times pictures and items from our archives or new acquisitions are available for viewing.
MEMBERSHIP
It’s time to renew your membership for 2016. We reached 50 members in 2015, the largest number ever. If you haven’t renewed your membership, please fill out the membership form below and mail it with your check today. We continue to keep our dues at a nominal rate to encourage membership and depend upon our loyal members to renew promptly. We actively seek new members to share our enthusiasm for preservation and history. Help us break another record next year!
HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF ISLAND LAKE ANNUAL DUES for 2016
YES, I would like to renew my membership and continue to support the Historical Society of Island Lake!!!
Regular Membership …………………………………….$10.00/year Family Membership (husband, wife & minor children)….$15.00/year Senior Membership (65 years or better) …………………. $5.00/year
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Historical Society of Island Lake, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation
Please return to Historical Society of Island Lake 3706 Lakeview Drive, Island Lake, Illinois 60042
CONTACTS
Contact Connie Mascillino at 847-526-5049 or @ [email protected] , or Dona Willard at 847-526-3408, or @ [email protected] , or