Deep behind Salt Creek at the end of a dead end road behind recessed trees is the last part of “old  Elmhurst.” Bill Davis has lived on the property since 1940 when his family made the move there from the corner of 22nd Street and York Road, and,man oh man, walking in his house is like stepping back in a time machine.

The walls are lined with antiques, and no modern electronics hinder the room. Everything in the house has been meticulously taken care of from the furniture to even the door knobs. If anything breaks, Bill will fix it. He’s truly one of the last innovative people around.

Davis has lived in Elmhurst his whole life and, more so than anyone, else has seen the small town blossom into the chic suburb that it is today.

“When I was a kid, Route 83 used to just be a two lane road that we played baseball next to,” Davis said.

Back then Elmhurst was still somewhat rural, as Bill’s family had a barn out back which they used as a stable for their horses that they rode around town.

Bill attended our very own York Community High School from 1945 to 1949.  He recalls loving the Industrial Art Department at school, especially the metal shop.

“I used to fix projects and tools around the metal shop when everyone else would just break them and throw them away,” Davis said. “I even made a little steam engine and a vice. I still have the steam engine and I use the little vice to this day.”

In high school, Davis also used to play guitar and yodle, and he even did it in the talent show his senior year.

“I remember hopping on my motorcycle in the dead of winter in my full cowboy apparel and riding down route 83 in the snow with a guitar strapped to my back.”

He didn’t win the show, but afterwards he was so good at it he went from school to school in the area performing.

“Myself and a few other guys used to drive together from school to school doing our own act,” Davis said. “I was pretty good at it, and we all had a good time.”

After high school Davis found himself in the United States army fighting at the DMZ (demilitarized zone) in South Korea against the North. His job was to find bases and soldiers across enemy lines through a telescope, so he could order strikes to wipe them out. Although he wasn’t involved in hand to hand combat, the job was still extremely dangerous. However, he came out of the war alive and well, and returned home to Elmhurst.

Upon returning home, Davis became a garage door repairman for a company in Melrose Park and was one of the best repairmen in the area. He used his earnings to fund his custom built hot rod, a 1953 Ford with an Oldsmobile 303 “Rocket” engine swapped in.

“One day when I was going home down North Ave. a cop pulled up next to me in his new Plymouth Fury and asked if I wanted to race,” said Davis. “I decided to take the chance, and man I blew his doors off.”

For those who aren’t into cars, they would think that the Oldsmobile engine was meant to be there from the factory because he took his time by running the wires and hydraulic lines in a factory looking way along with a dress up kit on the engine to make it look that much better. He even had a hydraulic clutch set up in the Ford, which is mind blowing because Ford vehicles still used a clutch cable design until the mid 2000’s. His car was way ahead of its time. He used to go to the old O’Hare race track in Franklin Park where he would test and tune his car along with racing others.

Throughout all the years, Davis still lives on the same property that he was raised on and never plans on moving away.

“I’ve stayed on my property for so long because I like it here and have no reason to leave.”

The city of Elmhurst a few years ago tried to force Davis and his wife off of his property so it could be used for the cities water treatment plant, and he believed he was going to lose his home until his wife fought it in court. The judge was so appalled at the city for trying to throw Bill and his wife out of their beloved home that he ordered the city to pay Bill for the property and damages. With that, he can remain there until he passes away. Sadly, his wife passed away in 2013.

Bill spends most of his day out back in the old barn workshop, fixing the unfixable and creating his own tools to make his jobs easier. Davis is a treasure of the community and a last of his kind. No one takes the pride in their work like he does or has the immense knowledge of mechanics to match his. We can all learn from Davis to take better care of our possessions, to work through problems strategically, to become more innovative, and to live life to the fullest.