Wirtz's ties to Lake County
William W. Wirtz was visible as the Chicago Blackhawks' owner, but Lake County is where he pursued some of his other interests.
One of the few herds of beef cattle in the Chicago area have been on his Ivanhoe Farm in Fremont Township near Mundelein. Fremont Township Supervisor Pete Tekampe recalled Wednesday that Wirtz's father, Arthur, was the original farm owner more than 55 years ago.
Ivanhoe Farm covers roughly 400 acres off Route 60 near St. Mary of the Annunciation Church in the township. Wirtz's property has farm buildings, a house and the livestock.
"He's one of the few guys who has a beef herd yet," said Tekampe, who dealt with Wirtz over the years in his job as supervisor.
Wirtz didn't live in Fremont Township every day, but he clearly kept an eye on local development issues.
MORE COVERAGESTORIESWirtz had a good side that people never sawWho will run the team now?Those who knew him say Wirtz will be missedWirtz's ties to Lake CountyBarry Rozner: Let's hope Rocky Wirtz fights for what's rightMike Imrem: Sadly, Wirtz never did correct error of his waysAUDIOLegendary player Stan MikitaHead coach Denis SavardGeneral Manager Dale TallonPlayer Martin LapointeIn 2004, Wirtz expressed concern about the Mundelein Crossings mall. Target, Home Depot and Best Buy are among the stores built at Mundelein Crossings, on Route 60 north of Route 176.Wirtz said Mundelein Crossings created "tremendous" flooding problems for some of his Ivanhoe Farm neighbors. He wrote a letter to a Daily Herald reporter about his displeasure with Mundelein Crossings."A successful development is a development that does not affect neighbors," Wirtz wrote. "Indeed, this development does."Wirtz, a widower who remarried, will be buried Monday at Ivanhoe Cemetery in Fremont Township. His first wife, Joan Roney Wirtz, and father are among those who have been laid to rest in the family plot.Arthur Wirtz purchased several graves at least 40 years ago, said Jack Fredrick, trustee of the Ivanhoe Cemetery Association. Fredrick said the Wirtz family had the burial site set up to its specifications.Joan Roney Wirtz's ties to Lake County were as strong as her husband's. Her family's Roney Farm, where the Liberty Lakes subdivision in Wauconda was built, was close to the Wirtz property.