KELLART LAKE HISTORY
Our Founders
Art Hislop - Co-Founder
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Original Lake Entrance
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Bob Kellerhals - Co-Founder
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This account of the historical timeline of Kellart Lake was taken from an authorized recorded interview between Gordon Winger and Robert Kellarhals in the summer of 1996.
1950's |
Robert (Bob) Kellerhals was employed as an electrician in the late 1950s. He remembers commenting to an employee as they drove past the Art Hislop farm located 3 miles north of Cissna Park, IL along State Highway 49 saying, “some day I’m going to build a lake in that spot.” Bob became acquainted with Mr. Hislop over the following 3-4 years while doing wiring jobs for him. In March of 1965, Bob and Art began talking about building a lake.
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June 1965 |
In June of 1965, conversations about a lake became more serious, and the two men arrived at a purchase plan: undivided ½ interest for 136 acres. A loan was acquired from Sam Martin at First & Trust Savings Bank in Watseka, IL to finance the project. Kellerhals and Hislop began searching for machinery to purchase or rent and found a company in Kankakee, IL that rented John Deere earthmovers. Initially, one machine was rented, but the duo ultimately purchased it because the rental fee was in excess of $2,000 per month. The men already had a bulldozer and a CAT; with the addition of an earthmover, they were officially in business!
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July 1965 |
Ground was broken on July 15, 1965 with five employees who ran the earthmover 24 hours a day. Around September of 1965, a second rented machine was added to the equipment along with three more employees. Both machines were running around the clock. Warren Knake, Irvin Tiarks, and Kenny Blanck were a few of the men employed on the lake project.
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Sept 1965 |
Toward the end of the digging, two more earthmovers were acquired, bringing the total number of big machines to four, along with one additional CAT from Wellington, IL. This decision was made in order to complete the job before inclement weather set in. Three wells had been dug and capped.
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Dec 1965 |
On December 16, 1965, the caps were taken off the wells, and the lake began to fill at a rate of approximately 50 gallons per minute.
The surveyor and planner was John Walker. Gordon and Aldine Winger purchased the first lot (Lot #59) at a purchase price of $3,500. The following day, George and Gladys Winger purchased Lot #60. Early lot owners were Carl Hickman, Al Hari, Charles Feller, Harold Cecil, Ken Gudeman, Glen Parcell, and Dave Baier to name a few. |
Sept 1966 |
By September 1966, the first overflow of the lake occurred…it was full.
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1969 |
The “back” lake was extended to the west and was opened in late summer of 1969.
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