On Wednesday, Sept. 10, a Flossmoor Public Works Department crew took down three telegraph poles, believed to be a century old, from a parcel of land in the southwest corner of Flossmoor Park. It is the first step in preparing the site for the construction of a new veterans memorial.
Kris Condon, an official with the Flossmoor Veterans Memorial organization, Flossmoor Mayor Michelle Nelson, Trustee Gary Daggett, who flew a drone over the site, and photographer Phil Lee were on hand to watch the poles come down.
Condon said the long-awaited first step in the construction of the memorial occurred five years to the day of the fundraising campaign being launched.
Her father, Richard Condon, came up with the idea for the new memorial. He was present as a youth 80 years ago when the original World War II veterans honor roll was dedicated. That wooden monument, which was located in the traffic circle downtown, eventually disappeared and was never located.
Dave Becker cuts the top section of a telegraph pole Wednesday morning, one of three poles removed to make way for the new veterans memorial. (Eric Crump/H-F Chronicle)
Kris Condon said in about 2018 or 2019 her father started talking about creating a new memorial. He shared his idea with former Mayor Paul Braun. The memorial began to evolve into a bigger, more inclusive memorial that will honor all veterans past and present, she said.
FVM formed and in 2020 began raising money through grants, merchandise and book sales and events. This year’s annual trivia night put the fund over the $150,000 mark, enough money to start lining up contractors and getting the construction process going, Kris said.
Those telegraph poles were the first impediment to construction. Removing them required the public works crew to be certified by Canadian National Railway. The property the memorial will be built on is owned by CN. Public Works Director John Brunke, Assistant Public Works Director Dan Milovanovic, Streets Supervisor Ken Schmidt and Forestry Maintenance Technician Dave Becker each had to get a perfect score on a safety test in order to be granted permission to work on CN property.
Neither Brunke nor Kris Condon could say for sure how old the poles were, but the weathering of the wood suggested they were installed many decades ago. Flossmoor was incorporated in 1924, but the railroad preceded the village by nearly a quarter century.
“When you look at pictures that are as early as about 1902 to 1904, you can see telegraph poles that look like this along this side of the track,” she said.
The crew removed insulators from the cross arms before cutting down the poles. Kris did some research and discovered most of the insulators were manufactured by Hemingray Glass Company between 1921 and 1938. Some of the insulators were manufactured in the 1890s, she said.
The crew also removed parts of several cross arms. One of them was given to Kris as a memento for FVM and three will be given to the Foundation for the Preservation of Flossmoor History.
Kris said FVM will explore the possibility of turning the insulators into collector items that can be sold to support the project. Even though the fundraising campaign succeeded, FVM will continue in order to raise money for maintenance costs.
Richard Condon was unable to attend the pole removal, but Kris called him to report on progress. It’s been 80 years since Condon witnessed the dedication of the first veterans honor roll. He said he was glad to know progress is being made on the memorial.
“I think it’s absolutely great,” he said.
“The journey begins with a step. That’s what it feels like,” Kris said.
