Mount Prospect men vote for incorporation in February 1917

Mount Prospect was finally able to incorporate as a village, with full taxing and ordinance-writing authority like Des Plaines and Arlington Heights had, in February 1917. That was when it reached the legal threshold of 300 residents.

A vote by the men to incorporate (63 for and 12 against) was held in early February and papers requesting incorporation were signed and sent to Springfield. That is why the village of Mount Prospect celebrates its official anniversary on Feb. 3. But there are several notable dates which bear mentioning.

A caucus was held on March 20, 1917, to nominate the new community's first trustees. Cook County Commissioner William Busse, 52, the acknowledged leader of Mount Prospect, was the village president nominee and he hand-chose the initial trustees: Henry Beigel, a 30-year-old carpenter; Louis C. Busse, a florist and his cousin; Henry Haberkamp, a 45-year-old florist; Ernest Gosch, the 38-year-old school custodian and a creamery employee; Herman Wuerffel, the 28-year-old manager of Utility Battery Co. and the local electric company; and John Pohlman, the 26-year-old railroad depot master. Henry Ehard, Busse's son-in-law, was the village clerk.

Mount Prospect's growing status and exuberance at this time were well-recognized by its neighbors, most of whom were more developed. In a tongue-in-cheek editorial, the Cook County Herald announced, "County Commissioner William Busse has the German ambition that will make his hometown prosperous. The Busseville citizens are united and will not be satisfied until they annex Chicago as a suburb of Greater Mount Prospect."

The slate of candidates was elected on April 17 without opposition, running as the "Citizens' Ticket." They held their first official trustee meeting around a rough-hewed table in Wille Hall on April 28, after the ceremonial ringing of the fire bell.

The men drew lots to see who would get a two-year term and who would get a four-year term on that initial board and they adopted their first two ordinances - establishing the village and regulating and licensing dram shops (they had interesting priorities!).

Trustee John Pohlman often told the story of how he came to be on that Citizens' Ticket.

"Commissioner Busse had already picked five men for the board and had two old friends arguing over who should be the sixth," he said in an undated newspaper article. "The Old Man came down to the station and said, 'John, you know when to keep your mouth shut and when to listen. I'd like to have you on the board.'"

He served until 1927, receiving $1.50 per meeting.

The incorporation and subsequent election of the initial trustees was a clear demonstration of William Busse's immense power at that time. Because of his many connections and his strong, fatherly demeanor, Busse was Mount Prospect's political and social leader for many years, so his belief in low taxes and low expenditures prevailed for decades.

Another date of note is May 8, 1918. That is when Louis L. Emmerson, Illinois Secretary of State, finally got around to signing Mount Prospect's incorporation papers in Springfield.