Namesake of iconic Mt. Prospect business dies

The namesake of one of Mount Prospect's most iconic businesses has died.

Fred Meeske, a co-owner of Meeske's Market, which had anchored downtown Mount Prospect for 59 years, passed away Wednesday after a long battle with prostate cancer. He was 87.

His passing came about 16 months after a fire tore through the historic building that had housed his family's store on the corner of Busse and Main streets.

For many years, Meeske's Market was the only grocery store in Mount Prospect, and was famous for its extensive butcher shop and the family's celebration of the community's German roots.

His father, Fred Meeske, opened the market in 1926, renting the storefront space in a new building built by his brother-in-law, William Busse, a Cook County commissioner and local businessman. Meeske's mother, Helen, was one of the Busse family, whose ancestors had settled in the area as German farmers and helped develop the village of Mount Prospect.

The Busse Building, with its distinctive Tudor-style brick construction, had a sister building across Main Street that still stands, and was home to the Ye Olde Town Inn up until December, when it closed abruptly.

According to records with the Mount Prospect Historical Society, farmers would bring their eggs to the Meeske's Market in exchange for credit at the store. They also brought their live chickens, which Meeskes kept in the back of the store.

"If you wanted a fresh chicken, we'd just go back and kill one for you and dress it," said Meeske's brother, Earl, in a 1991 interview with the historical society. "Everything was done the hard way."

At the time of the fire, Meeske expressed sadness at watching some of the town's history go up in flames.

"You go back and start reliving some days there," Meeske told the Daily Herald in 2014.

Meeske worked for the U.S. Postal Service and co-ran the grocery store with his brother. The brothers sold the store in 1973, and new owners continued to run the market with the Meeske name, before ultimately closing it in 1984.

Meeske is survived by his wife, Gladys; his daughters Patti (Raymond) Haunsz of Lexington, Kentucky, and Julie (Tim Twitchell) Meeske of Barrington; and four granddaughters He was preceded in death by twin sons, Dennis and Douglas.

A celebration of his life will take place at 10 a.m. Monday at Messiah Lutheran Church, 2522 West Ivanhoe Road in Wauconda.