Soup-er Sunday: Jacob Haish in Downtown DeKalb (Steve Bigolin)
Schedule
Sun Feb 18 2024 at 12:00 pm
Location
J. F. Glidden Homestead & Historical Center | Dekalb, IL
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Learn more about Jacob Haish’s impact on downtown DeKalb and the buildings that are gone but not forgotten.At 12 p.m. on Sunday, February 18 at the Glidden Homestead, 921 W. Lincoln Highway, local historian Steve Bigolin will showcase buildings constructed by carpenter and barbed wire baron Jacob Haish, most of which have been demolished. Bigolin, who has researched Haish and DeKalb history for decades, will explain why the buildings were torn down, what replaced each, and share the controversy surrounding the loss of his 1881 barbed wire factory building.
Admission is $5 per person, free for Homestead members, and includes the program, a bowl of soup, and a house tour.
From the time that Jacob Haish of barbed wire fame arrived in DeKalb in 1853 until his death in 1926, he was responsible for constructing approximately a half dozen structures along East Lincoln Highway between Third and Seventh Streets, none of which survive today.
Jacob Haish was born March 9, 1827, in Germany and came to America in 1835 when he was nine years old. In his youth, he learned the carpentry trade from his father and “possessed natural mechanical ingenuity and displayed ready aptitude in the use of tools.” At 19, he moved to Illinois and then to DeKalb in 1853 where he entered the lumber business. He built many of the city’s most notable buildings, past and present, including the Glidden Homestead. His first barbed wire patent is dated January 20, 1874. His “S barb” was patented August 31, 1875. He followed these with many later designs for wire and other innovative devices.
Soup-er Sunday programs support the J.F. Glidden Homestead & Historical Center in DeKalb, a not-for-profit organization working to preserve the home and barn, both listed on the National Register of Historic Places. These programs will be held at 12 p.m. on the first and third Sundays of January, February and March. Visit GliddenHomestead.org for the full list. For more information, call 815-756-7904, visit www.gliddenhomestead.org or visit J.F. Glidden Homestead & Historical Center on Facebook
This year marks the 150th anniversary of Glidden’s “The Winner” patent, the most widely-used barbed wire in the world, which also earned Glidden the title “The Father of Barbed Wire.” In September 2024 the Homestead will celebrate by hosting a barbed wire exposition show in coordination with the Antique Barbed Wire Society, and other community-wide events.
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Where is it happening?
J. F. Glidden Homestead & Historical Center, 921 W Lincoln Hwy,DeKalb,IL,United StatesEvent Location & Nearby Stays: