Bremen State Bank featured on 2012 Tinley Park historical ornament
BY STEVE METSCH smetsch@southtownstar.com November 28, 2012 4:54PM
Tinley Park treasurer Brad Bettenhausen shows the Tinley Park Historical Society's 2012 ornament Tuesday, November 27, 2012. This year's edition is the 24th in the Historic Ornament Series features the former Bremen State Bank building and recognizes the 100th anniversary of the bank's founding. | Brett Roseman~Sun-Times Media
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Updated: December 30, 2012 3:06PM
For the 24th straight year, you can have a bit of Tinley Park history hanging on your Christmas tree.
Bremen State Bank is featured on the 2012 edition of the Tinley Park Historical Society’s historical ornament series.
“It’s quite nice,” Brad Bettenhausen said of the silver-and-blue ornament.
Bettenhausen is village treasurer and president of the society.
He started the ornament series 24 years ago as a way to capture glimpses of the village’s rich history.
Bremen State Bank opened its doors on Oct. 1, 1912, at 17316 S. Oak Park Avenue, where the Tinley Park Chamber of Commerce now stands, he said.
The original bank building is depicted on the ornament. The bank was one of the few that remained open during the Great Depression, Bettenhausen said.
The bank eventually moved to 17500 S. Oak Park Ave., in 1966. It was acquired by Heritage Bank, which in turn was acquired by First Midwest Bank.
The original bank was home to Community Consolidated School District 146 offices until the building was demolished in 1988.
“Over the years, not everything we’ve had have been structures. One year we had Tony Bettenhausen and his race car because of his connection to Tinley Park,” he said.
Another year featured a photo of the Diamond Spiral washing machine “because it provided a nicer picture than the building.”
Twenty-four years into the series, Bettenhausen is far from running low on ideas.
“I’ve got a program laid out that has the subject matter identified through the next six years. That will take it through 30 years. At that point we’ll decide if we continue it, or if we do something else,” he said.
The ornament costs $6 and is available at the village hall, 16250 S. Oak Park Ave.
It will also be sold from noon to 6 p.m. Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday at the Tinley Park Historical Society Museum, 6727 W. 174th St., during holiday festivities in downtown Tinley Park.
Some 300 copies of the new ornament are available.
