Huntley's Bandstands

          Since Huntley's earliest days, a bandstand has stood on the town "square" (I put "square" in quotes because even with a structure standing on the east end of the park in Huntley's early years, the park has been more of a rectangle than a "square"). With the square being the hub of the town, the bandstand has always served as a main gathering place, whether it was for festivals or picnics, or for bands or choirs to grace the town with music. In the town's history, there have been three different bandstands to adorn the square (depicted below).  The first was constructed some time before the turn of the 1900s. This was an octagonal, all wood bandstand with a wood railing and a low pitched roof. Around 1910, a new bandstand was constructed. The cement block foundation was constructed by local mason Andrew Schmidt. The railings were made up of two rows of metal poles held up by cement block pillars. From there, round wood, tapering pillars supported the steeper pitched roof. This bandstand was plaqued by the McHenry County Historical Society, but sadly the prestige did not save the structure from the wreaking ball. In the winter of 1993, after being deemed "unstable," it was razed by the village.  Little warning was given of its possible demise and the demolition occurred rather quickly (this action has been compared to a similar act would occur years later by Mayor Daley with Meigs Field in Chicago). The demolition of the bandstand infuriated many of the residents, but the deed was done. So the new question was what should the new bandstand look like? The three options were to build one like the first, construct one that looked like the one that was razed, or construct a completely different bandstand. In the end, the choice was to construct a new style bandstand, which was completed in June of 1994. In 2001, for the town's sesquicentennial, a time capsule was placed in the center of the bandstand to be opened in 2051, the village's 200th birthday.



Photo circa 1900

Photo circa 1912

Photo 1999