1920's Wildlife

An example of the Countryside Lake area’s profusion of wildlife in the 1920s is contained in the diary of Diamond Lake resident, Gordon Ray:

“In the autumn of 1927 I hunted with Bob at a new lake in Fremont Township, another of Insull’s projects called Countryside Lake. On October 5 we got 17 mudhens, the next morning 11 Ruddy Ducks and 5 mud-hens and the next morning Bill Poulton joined us

and we shot 57 mudhens and 8 ruddies. On October 10: 8 mudhens and 4 ruddies. October 13: 3 ducks, 10 mudhens, October 14: 14 hens and one ruddy. …”

(Gordon Ray, Gordon Ray: His Life and Times 1893-1987)