Enthusiasts’ finds help reveal the origins of a community and our region

Metal detecting enthusiast John Hynds has recovered hundreds of historical items from Diamond Lake in Lake County, including Civil War-era coins, jewelry, belt buckles, bottles and more.
Courtesy of Mundelein Heritage Museum

Given the thousands of square miles that comprise the total area of ​​the suburbs, Mundelein’s 153-acre Diamond Lake doesn’t exactly come to mind as an archaeological microcosm of the entire region. But enthusiast John Hynds’ discoveries paint a picture that can stimulate the imagination about the history of every suburban community, wherever we live.

Hynds, a longtime resident of the nearby Sylvan Lake area and retired Hoffman Estates firefighter, began metal detecting in 2017. A few years later, he came across a historical publication from the Lake County Stormwater Management Commission called “Our Gem: A History.” and Stewardship Guide for Diamond Lake,” which set in motion a journey of discovery that eventually led to an exhibit at the Mundelein Heritage Museum that is so popular in the region that its planned run was extended until next year.

Hynds’ finds from just one section of the lakebed and shoreline include items dating back a century and a half and perhaps longer.

As our Mick Zawislak reported on Monday, Hynds found a pocket watch that may have belonged to John Singer, who reportedly made a handsome return on a $500 investment in his brother Isaac’s Singer Sewing Machine Co. in the 1890s Built a resort on the east coast of Diamond Lake. But most of the discoveries have more mundane connections – arrowheads, hand tools, belt buckles, coins, keys, jewelry and more – but they tell a lot about life and society, particularly in Lake County, but also throughout what we call “the Suburbs”.

“I never know what I’ll find,” Hynds told Zawislak. “That’s the fun and it’s how I learn about history. It’s like an archaeological dig to find out who was where and what they were doing.”

The project, of course, suggests connections to a situation in Sylvan Lake where, as Zawislak also reported last August, excitement and a special sense of community have arisen around artifacts that have emerged as a result of lake subsidence associated with a local dam project. There, too, residents – including Hynds – discovered a wealth of historical memorabilia, including an empty safe, dentures, a bottle of Prohibition-era Canadian whiskey and much more.

Such historical discoveries say a lot about who we are today, and they can’t help but ponder what archaeological hobbyists will be digging up from the soil and lakebeds of our communities in 50 or 100 years. It may be a little unrealistic to encourage anyone with a historical bent to pick up a metal detector and go hunting for whatever relics or trinkets they can find.

But we certainly have to thank those like Hynds who do this.