Bird's Eye View Pt. 3

          The old water tower made photographer's eyes light up with excitement. Many would climb the monument to photograph the town from above. This three part series shows a panoramic view of Huntley from about 1910.
          The final of the panoramic view shows the north-west side of town. The rest of Main St. and its businesses can be seen, and some of Huntley's earliest businesses can be seen near the left side of the photo.  The Devine and Skeels general store can be seen on the left hand side, about half way up the card. This two story, wood frame structure is nestled amongst the large brick Hawley Building. Constructed in 1876 as a hotel, Wm. Devine and John P. Skeels doubled the size of the structure and began operating their general store at the site in 1881. They would remain in operation through 1917.  Another early structure was located north of the store. Pictured at the center of the photo was the Hotel Huntley. Said to have been one of the earliest on the square, this two story, gable roof structure once housed a hotel, the post office, and later a restaurant. Half the structure was razed before the mid '30s, and in the 1940s, the entire structure was razed for a new single story brick structure to house Heineman Hardware. Other structures in the photo include the W. G. Sawyer mill at far left, Sawyer and Kelley mill and the Borden's condensery about half way up the photo on the left, and the Kelley house, a pre Civil War house located on the square (right side of the photo). 
          It's a shame that the water tower is long gone. No more photos will ever be taken to compare then and now, but at least these exist as a reminder of the early days of this growing town.