LOG CABINS
'The oldest record we have'
by Richard Clark

Galena-"log cabins are the oldest record we have of what was left by the early settlers," says Carolyn Dodds, "They have a real story to tell, and if we allow them to be destroyed, we lose that historical record."
That conviction has led Dodds and her Diamond construction Co. associate Terry Fisher into the ultimate home improvement project: rescuing log cabins.
One of their most recent rescues will become a part of a remnant hill prairie site near Schapville.
"We're hoping to move that one in one piece-it was moved to its present location," Dodds told the Gazette. "It was originally a home, but it's been a chicken coop for years. We're guessing it was built prior to 1850."
"We'll jack it up and brace it-it only has to be moved about half a mile," fisher said. "Once it's relocated, we'll clean it up and re-roof it, put in new mortar and windows and flooring. We use either old material or authentic replacements-we try to find as much old material as possible."
Fisher said they scavenge and store pieces from log structures and other old buildings that are too far gone to save.
"Log cabins are usually one room with a loft," he said. "If you're lucky only the very bottom logs have to be replaced."

'We like challenges'
"We like challenges, and nobody else will do it," Dodds said, explaining their interest in preserving log cabins. "We dismantled and moved one from Monroe, Wis., to Galena in pieces because it was going to be burned. Terry (Fisher) has a stiff-leg derrick and he can disassemble structures if we have to."
Although newly-built, Fisher's stiff-leg derrick is almost as much of a 19th century survival as the cabins they save.
He had it built to order, following a description from a stone mason in Dubuque. Stiff-leg derricks were a standby of 19th century construction for everything from buildings to the rock walls so common in Jo Daviess County.
They consist of a fixed upright mast secured by guy wires with a moveable boom attached near the base of the mast and powered and operated by a winch. Their great advantage, particularly in rough terrain, is that they can be literally carried by hand in pieces to a work site and assembled on site, thus eliminating the road-building needed to allow access by ordinary heavy construction equipment.

Specialists
Having salvaged four log cabins to date, Dodds, Fisher and Diamond Construction Co. Are becoming known in the area as log cabin specialist.
"One of our cabins is now a guest house, and another is part of the 'Streets of Old Dubuque' exhibit in the Riverboat Museum in Dubuque," Dodds said. "That one was donated to the museum already knocked down-it was just a jumble of logs. The museum called Galena looking for anybody who could help, and got in touch with us.
"That job was tricky, because we had to figure out which logs went where," she recalled. "They hadn't been numbered or anything when it was dismantled. But after you've worked on a few, you get a feel for what to look for in the way of notches in the timbers, and weathered outside versus protected inside surfaces."
"Each cabin has its own story to tell, but to understand it you sometimes have to do research in courthouse records and museums," she explained. "We try to find out as much as possible."

History lost
Dodds and Fisher are concerned that surviving log cabins are being lost because people don't recognize their unique importance.
"Now that we have a reputation for working with log structures, people call us," Dodds said. "But not nearly enough! People are still burning and destroying old log buildings-almost every month we hear of one that's been burned or bulldozed."
They believe there are more log cabins left than most people realize.
"We think there are still quite a few log cabins in the tri-state area," Dodds stated. "Many of them are covered with siding and plastered inside, and owners don't even realize they're log structures until they start to tear them down."
"If you know what to look for, you can usually tell from the outside," she explained. "For example, windows are in the same general locations, away from corners and door openings. We think there are a lot of them left, but they are disappearing."
"We're both interested in history," she concluded, "and we see a danger of part of our history being lost."

Drawn to the unusual
Galena Gazette, May 12, 1994

Couple logs many hours restoring cabins
Telegraph Herald, May 02, 2001

The Home Place
344 E. Menzemer Road
Elizabeth, IL 61028
(815) 858-2221
dennisgu@elizabethstatebank.com