A former University of Wisconsin boxer, insurance executive, and owner of Lifeline USA, Madison resident Bobby Hinds, along with his wife Joy, became immensely involved with preserving and reconstructing a local, historic farm after their recent purchase of the old Sawle farm in Iowa County.

After buying the Sawle house and an additional 70 acres of suurounding farm land, Bobby and Joy consulted Dan Viste, owner of Historic Properties Management in Mazomanie, about the history of the farm. Viste and his wife Nancy have already rebuilt a dozen historic buildings in Mazomanie, and are currently working on the house on the Sawle farmstead. While Viste’s company is restoring the farm’s historic buildings, the Hinds are learning the history behind their new purchase.

In the 19th century, William Sawle, the 17-year-old son of a sea captain, emigrated from Cornwall, England to Iowa County. Not long after, he married a neighborhood girl, and the couple bought the farm in 1889 from an adopted daughter of William and Elizabeth Rowe (who was the former owner of what was then known as the Rosevale Farm).

Since 1847, various mills and shops were built on the (Sawle) farm, making the farm an agricultural center for many years. The house on the farm was also a splendid construction: its long porch was perfect for sleeping during the hot months of July and August, as well as for dining and guest entertainment. The furniture from the Sawle farm is now at the Dodgeville Historical Museum. The final owner in the Sawle family, 102-year-old Ted Sawle, decided to donate the furniture to the museum and sell his family’s historical farmstead to the Hinds.

Despite the Sawles’ decades of dedication to their farm, the house, fountain, smoke house, apiary and grounds were in deep need of fixing after several decades. This is where Viste came in to help reconstruct the farm landmarks. Viste says, “We couldn’t go back to 1852 but settled on 1916 because of old newspapers we found in the wall which indicated the year of a major remodeling.” He hopes to restore the old grist mill, reconstruct the fountain, and rebuild the house, so the farm can become the amazing and well-known creation it used to be.

Stay tuned and keep reading the Simpson Street Free Press. In coming issues our reporters will explore the northwestern corner of Dane County and the northeastern corner of Iowa County. In the coming months, they will visit pristine trout streams, local galleries and museums, and some of the beautiful natural features of Wisconsin’s driftless area. They will also visit the Hinds farm and interview family members as they restore their family farm and capture the unique heritage of the region.

[Source: The Capital Times]