Jacob Haish historical marker in the works

Jacob Haish photo courtesy of Joiner History Room

DeKalb Area Agricultural Heritage Association, or DAAHA, is in the beginning stages of bringing a Jacob Haish historical marker to town. 

The non-profit organization has been behind many other historical markers around DeKalb, including the location of the first DeKalb brand hybrid corn breeding plot.

Donna Langford, DAAHA operations manager, said the organization hopes to have a historical marker honoring Haish at the DeKalb Public Library on Oak Street as soon as this year. In his will, Haish bequested $150,000 money to build a public library, the Haish Memorial Library.

Langford said the location is pending library board approval. The project is also on hold until funds are raised to pay for the marker, which could cost as much as $4,000, she said.

Donations to the project can be made at DAAHA's website or by calling DAAHA at 815-756-8737. Langford asks that donors specify that the money is going toward the Haish historical marker project.

Interview With: Arthur "Artie" Haish

This Jacob Haish project was jumpstarted in April by a trip to Lanton, Missouri to visit my great grandfather, Arthur "Artie" Haish. Artie lived in northern Illinois before he retired in Missouri, and I wanted to see if he knew anything about the barbed wire baron. 

Arthur "Artie" Haish, 85, of Lanton, MO, riding his lawn mower with "no hands" in April 2016. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

Visiting him to see what he knew seemed like a shot in the dark; I wasn't sure what would come of it, but I figured he had to know something. Although he never knew Jacob Haish (Jacob died in 1926 and my great grandfather was born in 1930,) he shared with me the few stories he had heard.

He started by pulling out his small but interesting collection of Jacob Haish-related news articles. When he showed me an image of Jacob Haish he said, "God, he's handsome! He looks just like me!" (To give you some context, my great grandpa is a funny, laidback guy.) 

Although Artie didn't get a chance to meet his great uncle Jacob Haish, he said his brothers had known him. Artie recalled hearing a story about Jacob Haish coming to see his brother Calvin "Kelly" Haish when he was born in 1925. He said Jacob Haish held the baby and visited with the family. Artie's siblings have since passed on.

Great grandpa Artie showing me how to draw a cowboy hat. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

Parts of our interview are below.

Jessi: Did you ever hear stories about Jacob Haish?
Artie: I heard my mother tell stories for years about him. He wanted to give my mother a farm and she was too proud. She said, when you're dead, that'll be the time for that. And of course when he died, nobody got nothing. 

Jessi: Did you ever hear stories about his personality?
Artie: No, not really. I know that his main maid, he gave her the right to the house as long as she lived [after Haish died.] He had feelings for people. And as far as I know, he had feelings for a lot of people. He used to come out to our house, of course I wasn't born yet. We had a big concrete slab there, and his chauffeur would drive the horses right up along that slab. They could step out of that buggy and on to the slab to step onto the ground.

Jessi: Did you ever have people ask you about being a Haish?
Artie: Kind of. I even run into people down here [near West Plains, MO] that went to college up there. They'd hear my name and want to know why the hospital and streets were named after him, and all that stuff. They had gone to college up there and never knew why it was that way.

Artie told me that Jacob Haish (who immigrated to the United States from Germany when he was nine years old,) spoke German. Artie said his own mother could speak German, but his father couldn't understand it.

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Do you have Jacob Haish stories you'd like to share? Please contact the author of this blog, Jessi Haish-LaRue, at JHaish09@gmail.com. Thanks!

Find of the Week: Jacob throws the switch

In the first few weeks of Jacob Haish research, I've come across some pretty neat documents and photos. I'm going to post a "Find of the Week" every week just to share an interesting piece of history that I discover along the way. Check it out!

Courtesy of Joiner History Room

On Saturday I visited the Joiner History Room and requested to see what they had regarding Jacob Haish. Files and files of photos and documents came out. Needless to say, I've asked for copies of....everything. I'll be sharing it all here very soon.

Sue Breese of the Joiner History Room made me a copy of this photo so I'd have something while I wait for the other copies to be made. This photo is incredible.

According to an Oct. 23, 1916 article of the Daily Chronicle, provided to me by Jeff Marshall, the photo illustrates Haish "throwing the switch" at the formal opening of Nehring Electrical Works. Throwing the switch would start the factory's machines, the article states. Haish would have been nearly 90 years old at the time of this photo, and the building had previously housed one of Haish's factories. 

Click the photo to enlarge and take a close look at Jacob Haish's cane, gloves, hat, and stern-looking face. Isn't history amazing?
 
Special thanks to Sue Breese of the Joiner History Room for taking time to meet with me and fulfill a pretty large request.

Who was Jacob Haish?

Courtesy of Regional History Center, Northern Illinois University

Jacob Haish was an early inventor of barbed wire in DeKalb, Ill. 

He was born in 1826 in Brandische, near Carlsriche, Germany and came to the United States with his family as a young child. They first lived in Ohio and he learned the carpenter trade from his father.

He came to Illinois when he was 19 years old, first living in Naperville (in DuPage County) and marrying Sophia Brown there in 1847.

After they wed, they purchased a farm in Pierce Township, and in 1853 they moved to Buena Vista, which today is known as DeKalb.  

DeKalb was very small at the time and Haish saved $100 to purchase lumber and start his work as a carpenter. He would later build many prominent homes in the city of DeKalb, some of which still stand today, according to "Oxen to Jets." 

His idea for barbed wire stemmed from complaints from local farmers. According to "Oxen to Jets," "Mr. Haish first tried to use osage orange with its thorns for fencing but that proved impracticable ... He tried one wire, then two, then rather abandoned the idea as impractical. One day a farmer, F.W. Pierce, came into [Haish's shop,] saw the wire and purchased it for fifty-two cents."

That transaction is believed to be the first purchase of barbed wire.

Haish would experiment more with the design, and found improvement when he created his soon to be famous "S" barb. He applied for a patent for the design in 1874, but was not awarded the patent until 1875, which was almost 10 months after his rival, Joseph F. Glidden, received a patent for his own design, according to documentation at the Ellwood House Museum. Haish had earlier filed for patents on other designs, so until his death, just shy of his 100th birthday, he would proclaim to be the first inventor of barbed wire.

From his first patent, he would spend most of his life dedicated to his work, such as creating barbed wire and building a grand mansion to call his home. He would also spend countless dollars on charitable projects in DeKalb, along with his rivals Isaac Ellwood and Joseph Glidden. One of their greatest accomplishments as a team was bringing Northern Illinois State Normal School, now known as Northern Illinois University, to DeKalb.  

A sample of "S" wire on display at the Ellwood House Museum in DeKalb | Photo by Jessi LaRue

Haish was known as a philanthropist for these projects throughout his life, but some of his greatest contributions to the community came after his death. Because Jacob and his wife Sophia did not have children of their own, they chose to let their wealth benefit the community. 

Donations funded projects such as the Haish Memorial Library, now known as the DeKalb Public Library, the first books in the Northern Illinois Normal School Library, Haish Gymnasium and the DeKalb Public Hospital. His contributions even reached as far forward as 2006, when the final $450,000 of his estate went to fund part of Kishwaukee Community Hospital. In return, the emergency room wing was named after him.

At the Ellwood House Museum: Haish featured in one of his barbed wire advertisements. | Photo by Jessi LaRue

But who was Haish? Those stories are a little bit harder to track down.

The best description I've found of Haish comes from a Feb. 1900 edition of the "Northern Illinois," today known as the Northern Star, Northern Illinois University's independent campus newspaper:

"Mr. Haish's career seems phenomenal. It was due to labor, energy and perseverance. He made the most of his opportunities, was not extravagant, and is now reaping the rich reward of his labors. 

His manner is quiet and straightforward. He always says exactly what he means, without useless compliment; is not slow to condemn injustice nor to reward faithfulness. 

His greatest enjoyment is at his own fireside, where, with his wife and friends, he is found to be a delightful companion. He is retired and conservative before the public, and commands the respect and admiration of all who know him."  

This blog will tell in-depth stories on each of these aspects of Haish's extensive life. Please come back to A Twist in History to see more.

Sources: Feb. 1900 edition of the Northern Illinois
"Oxen to Jets: A History of De Kalb  County Illinois 1835-1963" Edited by Harriet Wilson Davy 
Ellwood House Museum in DeKalb, Ill.