Originally, Bald Knob Marina had its beginnings as a resort/marina in the early 1900’s. Bald Knob had a picnic area, boat slips, a tavern and a hotel. The ad for the resort read:
Would you want a recreation
From toils and worries of the day?
Then make at Bald Knob a reservation
Where nature laid its best creations
Of woods and waters, fish and birds
Where gloom or worries are never heard.
Where health grows with sunshine
And gloom fades with smiles.
Where the scent of the lake and fragrance of pine.
Come flowing over the cool summer breezes.
Where boating and swimming, fishing and hunting is great
And the eating and sleeping is cannot be beat
For the rates it certainly is a treat.
On February 14, 1989 Bill and Phyllis Wehrs purchased the Bald Knob Resort and renamed it Bald Knob Marina. The property consisted of 7 ½ acres of land with 1200 ft of prime beautiful waterfront, some wobbly old piers, a small rustic tavern, 2 small cabins and a large home.
Soon Bill Jr. (a CPA at a Chicago accounting firm) joined them. Together they toured marinas around the country compiling ideas for a new marina to be built on the property.
Bill Wehrs had owned an engineering/architectural/project management firm that aided in the construction of many large commercial and industrial projects. Later he developed subdivisions and built residential housing. Bill’s experience helped in his quest to design and build a state of the art marina.
The office started in Bill and Phyllis’ home, which was not too far away. Walkie-Talkies were used to communicate with employees. Also, the existing tavern was used as both a tavern and a place to explain to potential customers how the dry-stack would work. It has since been demolished.
Shore master floating docks were the first major project to be constructed. Ten foot wide main docks and 30 and 35 foot fingers comprise the most stable pier structure known to the Chain O’ Lakes. A year later, the first modern dry-stack building was constructed on ground that been leveled. The original massive hills of sand were hauled away by thousands of truckloads over several years. A newspaper article from 1997 lists the Dock-n-Shop as a major contributor as to why “Bald Knob Marina is “The Place to Be” on the Chain O’ Lakes.”
Since then, many other features have been added to bring us to the optimal marina that stands here today: another dry- stack building, 18 ft. wide fuel dock, a convenience/ship’s store called “Dock-n-Shop”, an indoor showroom, office/customer service area, service area with parts storage, private toilet and showers for slip and dry-stack customers, and a public toilet building. In 2004 an outdoor trailer/boat rack was erected.
Bald Knob Marina
515 Bald Knob Road
Johnsburg, IL 60051