$1.00
Breaking news at Daily-Chronicle.com
Serving DeKalb County since 1879
T y, July 8, 2014 Tuesday,
SYCAMORE • MARKETPLACE, A8
BEARS • SPORTS, B1
Juice bar promotes healthy lifestyle
Battle to back up Cutler worth watching
Korean Making his War vet looking for DeKalb’s Haish remembered lost ring in historic home of rival
mark
Jacob Haish’s “S-barb” barbed wire hangs on the wall Wednesday at an exhibit at the Ellwood House Visitor’s Center.
By KATIE DAHLSTROM
kdahlstrom@shawmedia.com DeKALB – Leon Hodgson can count on one hand the number of times in the past 37 years he’s taken off the ring a fellow Korean War veteran gave him more than 60 years ago. But now Hodgson fears he might never wear it again. “Every morning now I see I haven’t got the ring and it bothers me,” he said. “I feel lost without it.” Hodgson, 80, of DeKalb, lost the ring June 30 at Big Lots. He’s been on a mission to get it back since. “It’s got sentimental value, that’s all,” Leon Hodgson said. “It would be a miracle if someone found it.” Hodgson said a fellow Air Force veteran with the last name of Hays who was killed in action during the Korean War gave him the ring in 1953 shortly before he died. Both were 18 when they served in the 92nd Fighter Bomber Squadron in South Korea. They bonded during their time in the service, becoming close friends, Hodgson said. That’s when Hays gave him the gold ring bearing an “H,” their shared initial. Hays died about two months later, Hodgson said. After getting out of the service in 1957, Hodgson gave the ring to his dad, Charles Hodgson, because the memories it evoked meant he couldn’t bear to wear it himself. Charles Hodgson wore the ring from 1957 until he died in 1977. That’s when Leon Hodgson put the ring on. For 37 years he wore the ring dutifully, taking it off maybe a couple times. He planned to give the ring to his son, Leon Hodgson Jr. That is, until he realized he’d lost it at Big Lots last week. The ring fell off Hodgson’s finger in the men’s room at Big Lots at 1700 Sycamore Road in DeKalb and has yet to be found despite Hodgson’s best efforts. While he and Big Lots managers scoured the
Photos by Danielle Guerra – dguerra@shawmedia.com
Historian Steve Bigolin explains the story behind Jacob Haish’s nearly 20-foot tall headstone in Fairview Park Cemetery on Monday in DeKalb. At the time the headstone was installed, the main entrance to the cemetery was designed to be a winding road off of 1st Street, but the entrance later was changed to 4th Street in DeKalb. The barbed-wire baron originally bought the plot thinking it would be the first seen upon entering the cemetery.
By ANDREA AZZO
Jacob Haish biography n Born: March 9, 1826, in Bavaria, Germany n Died: Feb. 19, 1926 n Known for: One of original inventors of barbed wire n Legacy: Donations led to building DeKalb Public Library and Kishwaukee Hospital emergency room, among others
See RING, page A7
If you go n What: The Jacob Haish exhibit n Where: Ellwood House visitor’s center, 509 N. First St., DeKalb n When: 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays n Admission: Free
Voice your opinion Katie Dahlstrom – kdahlstrom@shawmedia.com
Leon Hodgson, 80, of DeKalb points to the place where a ring a fellow Korean War veteran gave to him used to be. Hodgson lost the ring June 30, when it slipped off his hand at Big Lots in DeKalb.
Which buildings that Jacob Haish helped build do you appreciate most? Vote online at Daily-Chronicle.com.
aazzo@shawmedia.com
J
acob Haish’s penchant for innovation continued for decades after his famous barbed-wire breakthrough. Haish lived from 1826 to 1926, dying three weeks shy of his 100th birthday. Decades after he invented the S-barb design of barbed wire in 1875, Haish kept busy crafting a table with animal designs and a three-wheeled wheelchair to help him get around. Although he was best known for barbed wire, Haish’s local legacy can still be seen today through his donations to area hospitals and libraries. Some of Haish’s furniture and other belongings are on display at a new exhibit at the Ellwood House Museum, 509 N. 1st St., DeKalb. “We’ve always featured Haish in the barbed wire gallery,” said Brian Reis, Ellwood House executive director.
“This is the first time we’ve looked at his decorative arts and furniture.” Haish is an icon in DeKalb since he was one of three original inventors of barbed wire. The other two barbed-wire barons are Isaac Ellwood and Joseph Glidden, who partnered against Haish and ultimately won in an 18-year battle to secure the patent for barbed wire. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Glidden’s patent in 1892. Although Glidden’s version of barbed wire was more popular and remains in use today, the Jacob Haish Manufacturing Co. was one of the largest U.S. manufacturers of barbed wire. Residents can learn about Haish at the exhibit, which is located in the Ellwood House visitor’s center and will be open for at least the next three years. Visitors can look at the exhibit for free from 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Some of the furniture that Haish
See HAISH, page A7
Voters pessimism shaping heated race for Illinois governor By SARA BURNETT The Associated Press CHICAGO – The people of Illinois are feeling particularly gloomy about their state, with its high unemployment, billions of dollars in debt, decades-long battles against corruption – and another possible tax hike waiting for them after the November election. The bad mood surfaces in public-opinion polls that star-
tle even the pollsters, with one survey showing that more people want to leave Illinois than anywhere else in the U.S. It’s also evident in the voting booth, where turnout in the March primary was the lowest on record. Now the cynicism is shaping one of the nation’s most competitive governor’s races, too. “People are down in the dumps,” said Rod Spears, a retired Army officer and conser-
vative activist from southern it’s not as bad as it used to be versus the Illinois who challenger’s said he hears exhortations the same conto throw the cerns from his bums out and golfing budstart over. dies, all union The race members and pits Demolifelong Democrats. Pat Quinn Bruce Rauner c r a t i c G o v . Pat Quinn, The goverwho portrays nor’s contest essentially boils down to the himself as a reformer, against incumbent’s insistence that businessman Bruce Rauner,
an untested multimillionaire on whom Republicans have pinned their hopes that Illinois could become the next blue state to elect a GOP governor. Rauner’s success depends on patching together the right combination of disaffected voters in a state where Republicans start at a big numerical disadvantage. He’s spending millions of dollars on campaign ads targeting blacks,
Hispanics, women, undecided suburbanites and downstate Democrats. While Illinois’ struggles aren’t new – some extend back to when the last Republican governors were in charge – it has not experienced a true statewide rebellion in the ballot booth for some time. “We are a disaster,” declares Rauner, who rattles
Inside today’s Daily Chronicle Lottery Local news Obituaries
A2 A3-4 A4
National and world news Opinions Sports
See ELECTION, page A7
Weather A2, A6 A9 B1-3
Advice Comics Classified
B4 B5 B6-8
High:
80
Low:
61