of the all-volunteer Winfield Volunteer Fire Company in 1935. 45 years later, his son John Karwoski II was made Chief of the expanded Winfield Fire Protection District in 1980. Winfield was served by The Winfield Glimpses newspaper from October 1947 to October 1976. The Glimpses changed its name to the Winfield Examiner in November 1976 and ran until February 1992. A full collection of these newspapers is available on microfilm at the Winfield Public Library. Historical places Schmidt's Pond Winfield is also home to another remnant of the past, called Schmidt's Pond. In the late 1800s, Peter Schmidt dug a pond to provide a place to harvest ice in the winter. Schmidt used the ice for his meat market, but also provided ice to the village in general. The property which is located between Park Street and Summit Avenue, just south of Town Center Winfield, also featured an ice house to store the harvested ice. While the ice house has since been turned into a private residence, the pond survives. The pond all but disappeared in the 1970s and 1980s due to lowering water tables, but has since returned, thanks in part to the village hooking up to Lake Michigan for its primary water use and a rising water table. The pond is home to many ducks, geese, muskrat, crayfish, frogs, toads and fish, and while the pond is on private property, it can be seen from Park Street and Summit Avenues. Numerous lots adjacent to Schmidt's Pond today are open lots left this way intentionally for flood control purposes. Hedges Station "Besch House" Hedges station is the oldest train depot in Illinois. It was built in 1849 on the west side of Church Street, where the police station is currently standing. In 1977, Winfield Township bought the station after all the owners had died. Their plan to demolish the building to construct a parking lot and more village offices was opposed by citizens who wanted the oldest building standing in Winfield to be turned into a historical site instead. After many arguments, the Township decided to move into another location. In 1981, Hedges station was moved to Winfield road, where it is currently located, and is now a museum. Chicago-Winfield Sanitarium In 1897, a rest home was constructed in Winfield. This rest home was owned by Jessie P. Forsythe until she retired in 1908 and sold it to Emanuel