Hauberg Estate Newsletter for January – March 2021
Hauberg Rain Garden Restoration
Project Receives Recognition
The Association of Illinois Soil and Water Conservation Districts (AISWCD) in conjunction with the Rock Island Soil and Water Conservation District recently presented the Hauberg Rain Garden Restoration Project as the 2020 Project Spotlight. This project was funded through the Illinois Department of Agriculture’s Partners for Conservation (PFC) program with support from the City of Rock Island.
Conservation Districts work to protect the rich, fertile soils and water resources of the state through strategic conservation efforts. Soil and Water Conservation Districts, working in conjunction with agricultural as well as environmental stakeholders, have for decades played a central role in efforts to protect and sustain the viability of Illinois’ natural resources for future generations.
According to Todd Linscott, chair of the Hauberg board of directors, “The Hauberg Rain Garden Restoration Project is a great urban conservation and historic project story. Only 35 of the 350 original estate gardens designed by renowned landscape architect Jens Jensen exist today. The Hauberg property is one of those rare gems.”
Hauberg family member and member of the board, Steve Scott explained, “Significant pond construction of the Hauberg Rain Garden is underway with native plants being planted in the Spring. The basins will help control stormwater flooding in the Broadway Historic District, Rock Island and the surrounding area.”
The Director’s Desk
Dear Friends,
As we begin 2021, we are looking forward at the Hauberg Estate. Venture out for a walk through the grounds. They are beautiful in winter. We’ve been able to take some striking photos. Take a stroll and look at the major pond renovation and when the snow melts a bit, look for the painted rocks in our scavenger hunts.
If you’re staying in to keep warm, our website www.haubergestate.org, offers you a virtual tour, or a quick video tour, of the Mansion. There will be virtual concerts and a new “Kids at the Hauberg” section is filled with activities, photos and coloring pages. We are currently working on Educator Resources and lesson plans.
You can now schedule our Friday afternoon docent-led tours of the Mansion where you can see the restoration projects completed during the shutdown. Watch for the Tipsy Art small group painting activities. Also, small Celebrations of Life can now be scheduled to honor those we have lost.
We’re here. We’re opening slowly. We’re Looking Forward.
Deb Kuntzi
Executive Director
Around the Gardens
Enjoy the outdoor beauty of the Hauberg Estate any time of the year. The grounds are beautiful this Winter. Come and take a look.
And, in the Spring, make plans to attend Jens Jensen Day, take a self-guided walking tour with our new brochures, attend a Native Plant Sale or come and help us plant the area around the Rain Garden. We look forward to seeing you soon.
The Magnificent Mansion
A frequent question here at the Hauberg Mansion is were tulips Susanne Hauberg’s favorite flower. Why so many tulips? Let me try to explain. Prairie School design was born in Chicago, at a time when architects Robert C. Spencer and Frank Lloyd Wright moved into offices referred to as “The Lofts” in the Steinway Piano building in 1896.
Prairie School design selects a natural motif as a theme. Robert Spencer’s choice of tulips was inspired by Susanne Hauberg’s love of flowers. He included Tulips throughout the home – inside and out.
Several attempts have been made to count all the tulips inside the mansion but have failed to be completed after hundreds have been spotted and the task was far from done. Next time you visit the mansion, take a few minutes and see how far you get “Counting the Tulips.”
An Historical Perspective:
The Staff at the Hauberg
Visitors to Hauberg love to imagine living on the estate, but often give little thought to the work required to maintain the home and grounds. Rooms need to be dusted and swept, rugs and furniture cleaned. The children required supervision. Laundry had to be done. There were meals to cook, dishes to wash, silver to polish. The lawn had to be cut, flower and vegetable gardens weeded. Carriages and cars needed to be maintained. It was the staff, some known and many unknown, who kept the estate running.
The Haubergs had both live-in and day staff. There are maid’s rooms on the 2nd floor above the kitchen and a room for men on the 3rd floor. The 2nd floor of the carriage house is a 3-bedroom apartment. Barbara Ross was the nurse and governess for the children from the time they were infants. She lived in the house, traveled with the family and even as the children grew older, stayed on providing nursing care as needed.
Pearl Bennett managed the kitchen for 25 years. She worked 6 days a week (Thursdays off) ordering supplies, planning menus, keeping the kitchen clean, cooking 3 meals a day for family and staff, and most importantly, keeping the cookie jar full.
To learn more about these and other staff, watch our website: www.haubergestate.org for a new selection under the History menu “Hauberg Family Staff,” coming soon.
Hauberg Estate
Participates As Food Drop-Off Site
For Upcoming Food Distribution Event
The Friends of Hauberg Civic Center Foundation was created for charitable and educational purposes. So it was only logical when Charly Heber-Spates and Omnia Salih, local high school seniors at Rock Island High School and United Township High School respectively, called with a community outreach idea, we said YES!
The girls felt the coronavirus and the winter months were taking a toll on our community. These two wonderful young women decided to do something about it and organized collection of food for an upcoming Food Distribution Event.
The Hauberg Estate will be a drop off site (not a distribution site). Drop off at:
Hauberg Estate
1300 24th St.
Rock Island, IL 61201
Drop-off time is 9:00 am –3:00 pm and dates are:
Wednesday, Feb 3rd,
Thursday Feb 4th and
Friday Feb 5th from 9:00 am - 3:00 pm.
Continuing every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday through the month of February.
Please no perishables
Needed Food Items:
Canned tuna
Pasta
Canned vegetables
Oatmeal
Baby formula
Pasta sauce
Canned fruits
Peanut butter
Canned corn
Canned soup
Crackers
Beans
Beef jerky
Canned salmon
Rice
Mac n Cheese
Pop-tarts
Canned chicken
Cereal
Instant potatoes
Granola bars
Other needed items
Hand sanitizer
Diapers
Feminine hygiene products
Masks