Residents of the village of Bishop Hill worry state funding may not come in time to save the community's unique 19th century Swedish-American heritage.
The Illinois Department of Natural Resources [IDNR] is responsible for maintaining four buildings there. That includes the Bishop Hill Colony Church, which was listed Tuesday as one of the state's top 10 most endangered historic places by Landmarks Illinois. The Shawneetown Bank and Alexander Buel House State Historic Sites also are on the list.
Bishop Hill was founded as a religious commune in 1846, lasting around 15 years before the colony's dissolution. Today, just a smidge over 100 people call the Henry County village home.
In all, 19 of the village's buildings were erected pre-Civil War, said Todd DeDecker, administrator of the Bishop Hill Heritage Association. The community's historic district is listed both on the National Register of Historic Places, and as a National Historic Landmark.
John Taylor is owner of Bishop Hill Creative Commons, and a historic preservation advocate. He said the state properties need some major attention beyond chipped paint.
"There's more pressing things that are happening that are unseen with the foundation and the roof, structurally," Taylor said. "Serious issues that eventually, we're going to get to a point where it may not be able to be saved."
The Colony Church was built in 1848. In addition to the foundation and roof, it's also in need of new gutters, plaster repair, and the replacement of rotted wood.
The IDNR has a $22 million, two-phase renovation plan drafted for its properties in Bishop Hill, but there's no current timeline for the project. There's now more than a billion dollars worth of deferred maintenance needs at the more than 400 sites managed by the agency.
"I appreciate Landmarks Illinois and its efforts to raise awareness about preserving the state’s historical and cultural resources," said IDNR Director Natalie Phelps Finnie in a prepared statement. "IDNR is deeply committed to this mission, and we’ve already started working with Landmarks Illinois and others to find creative solutions for repairing and maintaining these historically significant properties.”
Quinn Adamowski is the regional advocacy manager for Landmarks Illinois.
"The issue of state historic sites, I think, in general, is just that there's limited resources. And the IDNR has done the best they can with what they have. And they clearly need more so a place like Bishop Hill can have their Colony Church revitalized," he said.
The IDNR works with the governor's budget office and the state Capital Development Board to obtain project funding. The latter provides most funding for larger projects like Bishop Hill. The amount available for capital projects varies each year.
State Rep. Travis Weaver, R-Edwards, represents Bishop Hill in the General Assembly. He said while he does have confidence in current IDNR director Natalie Phelps Finnie, there wouldn't be a need for multimillion dollar repairs now if the state had been more proactive in the past.
"Small holes in the roof have become large holes in the roof, which are now causing the roof to sag," Weaver said. "So, I get that it's a big price tag, but it's a big price tag because of their neglect."
Republicans are a superminority in the House. Weaver said he has reached out across the aisle regarding funding for Bishop Hill, but he thinks "beating the drum" about the condition of the properties is driving the progress to make it a spending priority.
Adamowski does credit Gov. JB Pritzker with increasing funding for state historic sites over the past several years, but he said it's not enough to make up for the 15 years of backlogged projects that piled up before his administration.
DeDecker fears the state may eventually decide demolition is a better option than restoration. Nine of Bishop Hill's historic buildings are owned by the Heritage Association. Through $1.5 million in donations, DeDecker said the association has been able to restore the buildings they maintain back to their original conditions over the past decade.
"What we're trying to encourage the state to do is to do the same thing with their buildings," he said.
DeDecker said the village as a whole sees anywhere from 80,000 to 90,000 tourists each year from up to 20 different countries, including a sizable number of Swedes. Pre-COVID, he said a study determined each tourist to Henry County spent an average of $110 per visit.
The IDNR says their sites in Bishop Hill attracted about 22,000 people last year. That's far fewer than the 149,000 visiting the Cahokia Mounds Historic Site, let alone the 2.2 million visitors drawn to the agency's Starved Rock State Park. The agency said Bishop Hill is among their top 10 priority capital projects.
The IDNR took over management of state historic sites in 2017, when it absorbed the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency.
