Bishop Hill
Arts Council

Contact us for more information:
Bishop Hill Arts Council
P.O. Box 47
Bishop Hill, IL 61419
Bishop Hill State Historic Site (309) 927-3345
Bishop Hill Heritage Association (309) 927-3899
www.bishophillartscouncil.com
Road Map & Directions To Us

Programs of the Bishop Hill Arts Council are partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency

Come, See the Working Windmill!

Here at the Henry County Historical Museum, we are very proud of the addition of a working windmill. It really pumps water using wind power, the more wind, the faster it pumps. No longer used to supply water on farms, these windmills use to dot the rural Illinois’ landscape, but in recent years most have been lost to disuse, storms, and general clean-up.

Talk of getting a windmill for the Museum started about eleven years ago, but not until April 2001 did the project begin in earnest. Challenges abounded—where to find a windmill, how to dismantle and move the structure, where to find needed parts, who could repair parts, and finally how to reassemble and set in place the restored windmill.

Many members of the Henry County Historical Society donated their time, expertise, and equipment, not to mention the donations that came to the Society for this project. Two men especially need to be cited for their dedication to this project, Mahlon Love and Bob Young. Those two men gave their time and also donated their out-of-pocket expenses. The expertise of Paul Berhends, Foosland, Il was especially useful. Paul has spent twenty years traveling all over to help restore and set windmills.

On June 4, 2005 the finished windmill was set in place. Dedicated on Sept. 24, 2005, the windmill now teaches the young of a bygone time on the farm while older visitors can reminisce about the farm windmills from their past.