|
Surviving Windmills |
|
Fischer Windmill (Old Dutch Mill, Ehlers’ Mill, Mount Emblem Mill) |
|
Copyright 2005—2008 Thomas Haskell |
|
Mount Emblem Cemetery 510 East Grand Avenue Elmhurst, IL 60126 |
|
Status Permanently disabled ENDANGERED! Tours Windmill is closed to the public. Hours Mount Emblem Cemetery open daily from 9:00 A.M. to dusk. The cemetery office features some rare old photographs and has pamphlets available. Website No official website. Tower Height 51’ Sail Span (original) 74’ Sail Span (current) 50’ (estimate) Uses (1867—1894?) Wheat (1867—1917?) Corn Constructed (1865—1867) Millwrights Henry Frederick Fischer (original) Christian Heidemann (original) Henry Korthauer (original) Two Dutch Millwrights (original) Henry Ehlers (restoration) Franklyn Ehlers (restoration) Owners Henry Frederick Fischer (1867—1877) Edward Ehlers (1877—1925) Mount Emblem Cemetery (1925—present) Honors 1956: DuPage County Historical Society |
|
History
Facing toward the northeast to the entrance of Mount Emblem Cemetery is the Fischer Windmill, the oldest standing windmill in the state of Illinois. Although it is now beautifully adorned by planned landscaping—including Lake Emblem, evergreens, and lilac bushes—the mill has fallen into a state of disrepair. Sadly, of the four original windmills in Illinois, it is the only one that is not, nor has plans to be, restored and operational.
Henry Frederick Fischer began mill construction in 1865 on the farmland in section 25 of Addison Township in DuPage County of his father, Frederick L. Fischer (as an interesting side note, Henry’s brother-in-laws, William Asche and Frederick Graue, bought a sawmill further down Salt Creek that was later replaced by a grist mill now known as the Graue Mill). Fischer built the mill with parts from a prefabricated kit imported from Holland that was assembled with the help of two Dutch millwrights and local farmers including: Christian Heidemann, whose own mill would later be based on Fischer’s design; and Henry Korthauer, a cabinet maker from Bensenville. Design changes during its construction postponed its first grinding until 1867 (despite being constructed without machinery, most mills took just a year or so to build).
The windmill’s structure was crafted traditionally; it is completely made of hand-cut cypress beams, hickory and white oak gearing, and white pine sails all resting on a foundation of stone that rises two stories. Technologically speaking, Fischer’s mill is very advanced; it features grain elevators, a fly-ball governor to automatically tenter the stones, an auxiliary drive system, built-in wings for shipping (east wing) and receiving (north wing), and a 25-horsepower steam engine to drive the stones on calm days (in a separate building just to the west).
A small cart was used to ease the transport of grains from the receiving wing to the mill’s center, where wheat cleaning and corn shelling machines prepared the grains. Other innovations include a spiral conveyor that transported the freshly-ground flour from the grinding stones to a shaft (that was used to collect an operating toll of 10%), then to a bolting machine that separated and bagged the flour for shipping. The mill’s office was probably located in a small building to the north of the shipping wing.
The mill began grinding with two run-of-stone (one for wheat, one for corn) by 1867. During Fischer’s ownership of the mill, business was probably outstanding, especially with the mill conveniently located near what is now the Chicago and Northwestern railroad and the rail yard in Bensenville. Heidemann’s windmill, which began grinding in 1868, was the only real competition in the area. With both mills capable of 40 barrels per day, local needs were just barely met; yet, just ten years after opening, Fischer sold the mill and ten acres to Edward Ehlers for $10,000. Fischer moved his family to Oregon where, three years later, he sold another 21 acres to Ehlers. Fischer used the money to purchase a water mill capable of 50 barrels a day.
Business for Ehlers probably started good and gradually declined. Competition from other area mills and a steady decline in wheat farming in Illinois began to hurt Ehlers’ “Addison Mills.” It is likely that the windmill ceased wheat grinding around 1894 when profitable wheat farming in Illinois hit an all-time low. As profits dropped, the windmill began falling into a state of disrepair. The west wing lost its chimney by 1896, and the engine was removed in 1910.
The widow of Edward Ehlers, Caroline (daughter of Henry Korthauer, one of the original builders), sold the farm and the windmill to the Mount Emblem Association for $10,000 in 1925. Although the windmill and farm buildings were scheduled for demolition, the association instead hired Henry and Franklyn Ehlers, Edward’s sons, to preserve the mill as a museum. They rebuilt two missing sails, installed new windows, shingles and trim, replaced the stage and hand rails, painted the mill, and purposely dismantled some of the inner gearing to better show their use. The sails were turned to an ‘X’ formation, which traditionally means the mill is in “a long rest period,” and the cap was turned to the northeast toward the cemetery’s entrance. It was not long, however, before the prevailing west winds lifted the cap of the mill off the dead curb track. To prevent future damage, the cap was permanently strapped to the tower.
The barn was the only other structure that survived demolition; it is now the home and headquarters of the cemetery custodian. What was left of the windmill’s steam engine house was destroyed when the area was cleared for construction of the administration building. The iron drive shaft is still visible from the west wall of the mill. The cemetery’s administration building, along with the entrance gates and bridges, were designed to resemble English architecture of the 1850s to “match” the styles used when the windmill was built; however, these copper and stone English structures only contrast with the German and Dutch woodwork of the mill.
Dr. Preston Bradley dedicated the opening of the cemetery in June of 1936. Since then, the windmill plays music on Sundays and holidays from loudspeakers in the third floor windows. It took eleven years for the architects of Simonds, West, & Blair to transform 75 acres (now 160 acres) of flat farmland into a picturesque, tranquil scene with tens of thousands of new trees and shrubs in addition to the creation of Lake Emblem.
From 1926 to 1990, the windmill had been left untouched; it became an historical local icon in addition to the subject of artists’ paintings and the backdrop for weddings (as well as funerals). In 1956, Mount Emblem was awarded for its preservation of the mill by the DuPage County Historical Society. The sails eventually lost their wind boards, and three of the sails broke as a result of tail-winding. The replacement sails, nearly identical to the one remaining original (the lower left), were a few feet shorter with only 26 sail-bars instead of 30.
During the winter of 1990-91, a severe storm nearly destroyed the mill. Forces against the tail of the cap caused the brake to release and the sails to turn. The windshaft, lacking lubrication, did not turn but rather twisted apart. As the sails fell, the brake wheel rose until its teeth came into contact with the wallower which, thankfully, held together and prevented the machinery from causing further damage. The mill remained this way—with its damaged sails angled toward the ground as the unbalanced cap teetered on the tower while slowly being pulled apart by the brake wheel—for some time until the sails were finally removed and the cap repaired. The aging mill was deemed structurally unsafe was thus permanently closed to the public.
After the disaster within the cap in 1990-91, all four sails and the windshaft were replaced, but the replacement sails were purely for show; the new windshaft was permanently bolted to the brake wheel, and the sails (although, in many ways, staying true to the original sail design) built without an angle of weather, and this time only containing 19 sail bars each. In 1998, yet another storm tail-winded the cap, snapping its two upper sails. These were replaced, and the entire sail structure was reinforced with extra bolts, clamps, and cables.
A winter storm in 2003-2004 brought all four sails down again. For the bulk of 2004, the sails and wind shaft sat on the ground to the east of the mill as a gaping hole in the cap exposed the brake wheel. In early 2005 the sails were replaced again, this time apparently using light-weight aluminum bolted to the mill's cap. These new sails (with a mere 13 sail-bars widely spaced apart), combined with the broken windows and over-grown bushes, undoubtedly kill any grandeur the windmill ever had.
Apparently, the idea of reviving the windmill is not new. On a recent visit to the mill, I peeked into the windows of the North wing, and against the North wall I noticed a green-and-white sign that read “Windmill Restoration / Starting Spring 1996.” Unfortunately, the plans were not pursued. A campaign has been started by the WebMaster to Save the Fischer Windmill.
Sources
-Pirola, Louis. Historic American Buildings Survey. Heideman Mill, Addison IL. Chicago: HABS, 1934. -The History of the Old Dutch Mill. Mount Emblem Cemetery. -Vierling, Philip E. The Fischer Windmill. Chicago: Illinois Country Outdoor Guides, 1994. -“Windward ho!” Addison Press. 26 June 1998. -DuPage County Clerk land and tax records, 1850—1926 -photographs of the Bensenville Public Library -photographs of the Elmhurst Historical Society -oral history of Ernestine Ehlers Hackmeister -personal records / observations
Literature
The History of the Old Dutch Mill. Mount Emblem Cemetery.
Images
Etching of Henry Frederick Fischer's residence from the 1874 Atlas of DuPage County. Photo looking east, under Ehlers’ ownership from Bensenville Public Library. Photo looking southwest, with Ehlers family on the stage from Bensenville Public Library. Photo of the farm and mill from Bensenville Public Library. Photo after Ehlers’ restoration as Mount Emblem is constructed (1925) from Bensenville Public Library. Photo announcing the future site of Mount Emblem from Mount Emblem Cemetery. Photo Mount Emblem crew (1926) with the west wing still intact from Elmhurst Historical Society. Photo showing landscaping being performed from Mount Emblem Cemetery. Photo Mount Emblem, looking southeast (1927) from Elmhurst Historical Society. Photo showing the mill grounds, with finished cemetery office from Mount Emblem Cemetery. Photo of the cemetery from Grand Avenue from Mount Emblem Cemetery. Photo of newly created Lake Emblem and landscaping from Mount Emblem Cemetery. Advertisement in the Chicago Tribune to announce cemetery’s opening from Chicago Tribune. Fan depicting the cemetery’s opening. Scan of the official Mount Emblem rulebook. Painting of the mill, looking southwest (c.a. 1949) by John Dukes McKee. Photo prior to moving De Zwaan from the Netherlands to Holland, MI (1964) from the Chicago Tribune. Photo looking south-southwest (1980s) from History of DuPage County. Photo looking south-southwest (1980s) from A History of Hillside website. Photo looking southwest from across Lake Emblem (1990) from Bensenville Public Library. Photo looking southwest (1990) from Bensenville Public Library. Postcard depicting the mill. Photo of the removed sails sitting just east of the mill (2004) by Tom Haskell. Photo damaged cap in winter (2004) by Tom Haskell. Photo of the removed sails (2004). Photo looking east (2007) by Henryk Sadura. Photo looking southwest (2007) by Tom Haskell. Photo of the shipping wing, with bolting machine to the right (2007) by Tom Haskell.
|
|
The Fischer Windmill as it appeared in the Spring of 2007. Note the light-weight aluminum sails with just 13 sail-bars each (a far cry from the original 30), the broken third floor window, and the rotting shingles. Photo by Tom Haskell |
