Article: Haish kindred fight to break $800,000 will

Orrin Merritt of the Kishwaukee Valley Heritage Society reached out with this note and image:

"I was accessing a book into our collection today and ran across an interesting news article, stuck between the pages, about Jacob Haish's will."

Click image to enlarge

To read more about Haish's will, click HERE

The Death of Jacob Haish

"The Death of Jacob Haish," below, was written by local historian Stephen Bigolin and appeared in his writings "This Was Jacob Haish."

THE DEATH OF JACOB HAISH
By Stephen Bigolin

In the spring of 1916, after being in the Barbed Wire business some 43 years, having reached the age of 90, Jacob Haish decided it was finally time to retire. He sold his beloved Barbed Wire Factory to P.A. Nehring, for $35,000. For the remaining decade of his life, Mr. Haish's only business connection was with the Jacob Haish State Bank, which he was the active President of. He would come to the bank each day, sit in his rocking chair in the lobby, twirl his gold headed cane, conduct his business affairs, and occasionally reminisce about the early days of Barbed Wire.

On September 9, 1918, Mrs. Haish, who for twenty years had been practically confined to a wheelchair because of ill health, died at age 90. Although the loss of his helpmate of 71 years created a void in his heart, Jacob Haish's love of life proved strong enough to endure the hardship, as he came to rely more and more for care on his housekeeper, Anna Anderson. Mr. Haish's last goal in life became to see his 100th birthday.

On March 8, 1920, the day before his 94th birthday, Mr. Haish drew up his Last Will & Testament. Whether this was but one of a series of Wills he wrote is not clear, although several changes were made in this Will by the time Mr. Haish died in 1926. The changes appear to have resulted from the fact that all the people to whom Mr. Haish wanted to leave some small portion of his estimated $5,000,000 estate, were going to the grave before him! In the final form, the Will provided for practically everything to be left to charity. One provision remained unchanged from the Will of March 8, 1920; that being that no relative of Mr. Haish's got even one cent of his estate. Upon his death, Mr. Haish intended for his mansion to be left to Anna Anderson; with enough money for her to always live comfortably in it.

A copy of the DeKalb Daily Chronicle boasts the headline "Jacob Haish Dead." | Photo by Jessi LaRue

Late in 1925, Mr. Haish fell victim to pneumonia. His constitution fought it to the best of its ability, with the goal of reaching 100 years of age guiding the struggle. In the early weeks of 1926 he rallied from the bout, but was totally blind, and afraid of being poisoned, so as to be robbed of that last great objective. He knew the soft touch of Anna Anderson's hands, however, and would only take food from her, according to Beatrice Gurler. On the afternoon of February 19, 1926, just 19 days before his 100th birthday, Jacob Haish died at his palatial residence. His death made headlines in the DeKalb Daily Chronicle for several days. His funeral was held in his mansion, which was opened to the public. In his Will, Mr. Haish left money for construction of a monument in Fairview Cemetery over the spot where he & his wife rested.

Celebrating the Haish Memorial Library restoration

Dee Coover, executive director of the DeKalb Public Library, speaks during the "Grander Opening" of the Haish Memorial Library on Sept. 10 in DeKalb. The event celebrated the restoration of the historic building. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

Jacob Haish's monetary donation for a city library in the early 1900s was a big deal at the time, says Dee Coover, executive director of the DeKalb Public Library. 

"The library was dedicated in 1931, it was being built during the Great Depression," Coover said. "It was almost unheard of at the time. That could not have been done without his donation."

Haish had left $150,000 in his will for DeKalb to have a building for a library. Before that, the library had held odd spaces in other locations, such as the second floor of the city hall building. 

With Haish's major donation, a building was erected on Oak Street, and it served the community for decades. In recent years, however, issues came to light, such as the need for an updated HVAC system, and the fact that the building was not handicap-accessible.The community had also outgrown the 19,000 square foot building, so the library built a modern addition to add space.

The exterior wall and entrance to the Haish Memorial Library is seen from the lobby of the DeKalb Public Library on Sept. 10. Hundreds of people attended the dedication ceremony for the buildings. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

The former exterior wall of the Haish Memorial Library is now inside of the newly expanded DeKalb Public Library. It was cleaned up as part of the building's restoration efforts. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

Instead of razing the Haish Memorial Library building, it was restored and now features a variety of services, including a teen room, computer lab, 3D printers, and the fitting "local history room." The completion of both the Haish building restoration project and the brand new, 65,000 square foot addition were celebrated Sept. 10.

Coover said it was important to keep "the ambience of 1930," after all, the Haish building is featured on the National Register of Historic Places.

Cork flooring was added to the Haish Memorial Library to pay homage to the original flooring in the building in the early 1930s. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

The sign denoting the Haish Memorial Library as a historic building. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

The teen room in the Haish building features, books, TVs and even video game consoles. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

Library patrons learn about the three 3D printers that are now housed in the Haish Memorial Library building. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

Preservation and restoration efforts included installing cork flooring similar to the floor in the original building. The DeKalb Public Library's main lobby, which connects the Haish building and the new addition, shows off the exterior wall of the Haish building, with a large doorway added for entering the Haish building. 

"This wall is just stunning," Coover said while pointing at a wall of the Haish building, which is now part of the library's main entryway. "The entire thing was cleaned up with baking soda, and now it's inside. It's beautiful."

Members of city government and the library, as well as major donors to the expansion project, gather for the ribbon cutting at the entrance of the Haish Memorial Library building. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

Community members hold up a "Proudly DeKalb" sign during the dedication ceremony for the newly restored Haish Memorial Library building on Sept. 10. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

Contractors worked to keep "the ambience of 1930" in the Haish building, said library executive director Dee Coover. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

Details of the Haish Memorial Library building. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

The original desk is still featured in the Haish Memorial Library. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

The Haish Memorial Library was the appropriate building to house the local history room, said Steve Bigolin, local historian and library employee. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

The local history room features regional books and resources. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

For more information on the history of the library, click here. For more information on the library's new addition, as well as the Haish building restoration project, click here.

The enscription "This building is the gift of Jacob Haish to the City of DeKalb," can still be found in the original entryway of the Haish Memorial Library building. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

The original entrance to the Haish Memorial Library is now closed off. The art deco building was designed by Chicago architects White and Weber. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

Jacob Haish's will

A sign on the "Haish floor" of Barb City Manor, 680 Haish Blvd., DeKalb. Haish's will left funds for Haish Memorial Hospital, which today is the Barb City Manor retirement community. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

Jacob Haish's will seems telling of his character. The document emphasizes the projects he wanted to contribute to throughout DeKalb, while his entire family is mentioned in one brief paragraph, the eighth section.

In one document Haish expressed his desire for his money to go toward a public library, a hospital (now known as Barb City Manor,) and much more. I find that the document is an interesting read. Check out the document below; it's best viewed on a larger screen.


Thanks to Steve Bigolin for sharing.