WESTERN SPRINGS — A red, white and blue flag with the word “Open” waved at the Western Springs Water Tower Museum Saturday, a sight that had been absent for months.

But the historical museum’s doors were open once again after being closed during construction of a new entry staircase that started in October.

“We are excited to be open again,” said Allyson Zak, president of the Western Springs Historical Society Board. “We had to take everything off the walls and cover everything with tarps to get ready for the project. Our volunteers have worked hard to get everything back in place and ready to re-open.”

The museum, which features two floors of exhibits and a children’s play area on the third floor, opened in 1979 and has been managed by the Western Springs Historical Society, an independent nonprofit organization, ever since.

And with its reopening on Jan. 26, the museum features a new exhibit honoring Dr. Anthony J. Hospers, one of Western Springs’ first full-time physicians.

Born in 1894, Hospers ran his practice for 49 years at the corner of Lawn and Hillgrove avenues, above what is now Prudential Realty. He died in 1974.

The exhibit features his exam chair, which was donated to the museum, as well as instruments and information about his career. Also on the first floor, visitors can see digital slides of the village throughout the years as well as a timeline of key dates in its history.'

“We’re the library of Western Springs history,” Zak said. “A lot of people all come to see their family history, to see what the town started as.”

Two years ago, volunteers re-designed the second-floor exhibits, adding a tribute to early Western Springs businesses and one on sports and recreation in Western Springs.

The mission of the museum is to share with residents how Western Springs started and what it was like each step throughout history.

“We are very blessed to have a committed core of volunteers who help and do research,” Zak said. “They’re a committed group who want to share the history with the residents.”

Western Springs resident Grace Pekar is one of those volunteers.

“When I first visited there, I didn’t even know it existed,” Pekar said of the museum. “And I had lived there for five years at the time.”

But once Pekar found out about the Western Springs Historical Society, she became involved. She now serves as a historical society board member.

“The museum is really unique,” Pekar said. “Our physical location, it’s a real historical water tower. You don’t find a museum too often in a round striking place.”

The historic water tower was constructed in 1892. The design and construction of the tower was a collaboration between Benzette Williams and Edgar Williams of the firm of Williams and Williams (which later became known as MacRichie and Nichol) and Ethan Philbrick.

All three were civil engineers and residents of Western Springs. Benzette Williams and Philbrick eventually served as village presidents.

The tower, which cost the village about $79,119, served as village offices, a police department, jail and police magistrate court until 1968.

It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1981.

“It’s not in the best shape, but it’s survived and it’s a great place to have a historical museum,” Pekar said.

For Pekar, the reward of arranging exhibits comes from the residents who want to share experiences with their village’s historical roots. The museum is open once a week, from 10 a.m. to noon Saturdays.

“It’s always very fun to see the first families come up the stairs on Saturday,” Pekar said.