The Kammeyer Collection

The Washington Historical Society was created in 1980.  Before that, one couple made a hobby of creating their own museum of Washington history and general history.

Carl Kammeyer became the minister at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in 1940. The church's parsonage was at 136 South Main Street, a house that was razed in 1969 to construct the First National Bank.

Carl and his wife Julia spent their free time acquiring items at auctions and sales, restoring them, and creating wondrous displays in their home's basement.

Some of the items that were part of the Kammeyer museum collection that were specific to Washington include:

• A spice mill used in Benford Grocery

• An herb mill used in Alphono’s Drug Store

• A coffee grinder used in the Model Grocery Store & Bakery

• An apple butter kettle from Model Grocery Store & Bakery

• A paint mill used by Onno Habben

• A flax wheel used by Anna Nafziger, who came to Washington in 1838

• Hitching posts from the original St. Mark’s Church

Beyond the Washington-specific items were hundreds that told the story of most aspects of early American living.

The photos above were taken right before Carl and Julia’s collection was boxed up in 1964, as they were moving to Moline, Illinois.  Except for a few items they took with them, the museum’s items went to a Peoria warehouse until the proper time to display them.

In 1962, the Heart of Illinois Fair constructed a special exhibit featuring items used on the farm over 100 years ago.  The popularity of the exhibit led to plans for a permanent museum.  In 1965, an architect was hired to design a permanent structure on the grounds of Exposition Gardens for the museum, and the local Grange organizations helped to secure donations for items to be featured in the collection.  The largest of which, by far, was the collection of Carl and Julia Kammeyer.

The Museum of Central Illinois Agriculture opened on July 16, 1966, at the Heart of Illinois Fair. The vast majority of the museum's items were from the Kammeyer collection. Central Illinois was finally able to see the fruits of Carl and Julia’s labor of love.

The museum continued at the Fair until 1988, but it was decided to close the exhibit due to low numbers of visitors.  In early 1989 the controversial decision was made to auction off the donated items housed in the collection.  Many people spoke out in the media against the auction; some tried to claim items as theirs, while others questioned the morality of auctioning off donated items altogether.  On March 29, 1989, the auction was held, and the museum’s contents, including the vast Kammeyer collection, were scattered to the winds to various highest bidders.