Wauconda Twp. Historical Society recognizes 60-year-plus residents

Dorothy and Herbert Daun were visiting Bangs Lake in Wauconda 60 years ago. After going to the beach, the Dauns walked around the town. On that walk, they decided to make Wauconda their permanent home.

"As kids we used to come out on the weekends and go swimming at the lake. One day we took a walk and we decided that this would be a nice place to live," Dorothy Daun said.

Similar stories were shared by Wauconda residents who have lived in the area for 60 years or longer at a Wauconda Township Historical Society event honoring them last month.

"We haven't done it (the event) for a while. We lost a lot of them (longtime residents)," historical society Trustee Peggy Redmore said. Redmore has lived in Wauconda off and on for 59 years.

Although Wauconda's small-town charm remains intact, residents said, the biggest change in Wauconda has been its growth.

"A lot of new subdivisions, which are beautiful, but (Wauconda's) not growing too rapidly, which is good," Dorothy Daun said.

The Dauns built the house they still live in by hand, without electric tools.

"We just had a frame. That was it. We'd lay on a mattress on the floor and look up to the top of the roof and see the stars," Dorothy Daun said.

Dale Buttolph, secretary for the historical society, also had some family history to share. She recalls her great grandfather's ice business. He was the only "ice man" in town and chiseled ice away from the lake to sell to residents for their ice boxes.

"His ice pick was there and his ice saw. In the summer, he had the ice barn to store it (ice) and between each layer he would keep saw dust so he could deliver ice into each cottage here," Buttolph said.

Residents remain happy that the town, especially Bangs Lake and Main Street, have not changed too much.

"(Wauconda has) a nice history. We have old buildings, old memories, many people who have lived here all their lives," said Doris Aimers, Wauconda resident for 65 years. "It's a country town. It has had a lot of development recently but it still has that atmosphere of a small town."

Dorothy Daun was surprised to learn how many residents have lived in Wauconda 60 years or longer.

"I thought (I had lived here a long time) until I went and met people that had been born and raised here," she said.

Although historical society officials were a little worried about the turnout, at least 40 longtime residents attended the event, which featured a tour of Cook House and an ice cream at the Wauconda Public Library. Cook House, at 711 N. Main St., was the first permanent home built in the township in the 1850s. The historical society has worked hard to preserve it, but has encountered problems in recent years.

"We've had a couple of tough years. A flood in the basement, that set us back. Moisture in this little closet. It's been nice to have this many people come through (the house). It hasn't been open the last couple years because of the problems," Buttolph said.

This annual gathering was put on hold in recent years, largely because of the problems with Cook House, but the historical society hopes that this year's event will restart the tradition.