News Archive

We are well into the COVID-19 summer and still waiting for the first pitch of the 2020 MLB season. People are marching in the streets, statues of oppressors are coming down, and otherwise reasonable adults are forsaking their PPE for an illusory moment of freedom, despite the risks of sickness and death. The news isn’t encouraging.

But we’ve been in pickles before. Pestilence, war, civil strife––even a canceled baseball season––are in our recent memory. Time to buckle down and…read your Illinois Heritage. The July-August issue is crammed with stories about Illinoisans who scraped through life and rose to challenges the likes we can only imagine. R. O. White, the farm-boy who fought in Mexico; lawyer Elisha Bentley Hamilton, who dodged bullets in the Civil War and politics afterwards; John Francis Snyder, one of the founders of the ISHS, who was a medical doctor, an archaeologist, and a Confederate soldier; and photographer Helen Balfour Morrison, whose photos challenged attitudes of white supremacy in the early 20th century. We also say goodbye to beloved friends and teachers John D. Buenker and Patricia Burnette, who shared their passion for history and inspired us.

Thanks to all of you for your support of the Society during the pandemic, which has challenged us to find new ways to sustain our mission. Your gifts help us keep the lights on, reach out to new audiences, and build on our successes.

Thanks for all you do for the ISHS. Share your Heritage, and keep your mask on.

The Illinois State Historical Society's Officers, Directors, and Advisers passed the following resolution on Tuesday, July 21, 2020, regarding the ALPLM's Board of Trustees decision to terminate the employment of Dr. Samuel Wheeler as Illinois State Historian. The Society believes the Illinois State Historian serves an important role and now is not a good time for the position to be vacant.

The Illinois State Historical Society seeks a new editor for the 112-year-old Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society, the leading academic publication for historical research about the state of Illinois.

The COVID-19 pandemic has delayed or forced the cancellation of many activities across the state and nation, including the election of ISHS directors and advisers, usually conducted at our annual meeting in April. Because we don't know how the pandemic will affect our ability to gather collectively in the coming months, the ISHS board has decided to conduct the election while we are social distancing.

A new online exhibit by the staff of the Madison County Historical Museum explores One Hundred Years of Cooking. Assistant curator, Mary Z. Rose, under the direction of curator Jennifer Van Bibber, has assembled another interesting and timely exhibit. With so many people at home during the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a resurgence in the interests of cooking and baking. The new exhibit is one of a dozen topics that can be explored at https://madcohistory.org/online-exhibits/.

The Madison County Historical Society (MCHS) is pleased to announce the receipt of two grants that will assist with operations and programming.

Although we weren’t able to celebrate this year, we delight in honoring this year’s winners.

The postponement and eventual cancelation of the ISHS’s “Best of Illinois History Awards and Gala” was a disappointment for many of us, as it is the one time of year we get to celebrate the achievement of the people and organizations, publishers, writers, and exhibitors, who each year demonstrate the variety and depth of Prairie State history. We really enjoy meeting our friends and partners in history and thanking them for reawakening our passion for the past, but shutting the celebration down to keep us all safe from the pandemic seemed a wise choice.

It’s hard to believe we are already six months into the year and time to start thinking about the 2021 awards. Before we do that, let’s toast the winners and salute those who sent in the nominations that made this year’s awards possible.

Click the "Read More" button for the list of this year's Best of Illinois History Award winners.

A new exhibit, Women’s Suffrage in Madison County, has just been added to the Madison County Historical Museum’s catalog of online exhibits available at https://madcohistory.org/online-exhibits/. Assistant Curator, Mary Z. Rose, under the direction of Curator Jennifer Van Bibber, has assembled another interesting and educational exhibit for local residents and students of history.

Secretary of State and State Archivist Jesse White announced that the Illinois State Archives has been awarded a $60,178 federal grant to preserve, digitize and provide online access to 21,000 photographs taken by longtime state photographer Eddie Winfred “Doc” Helm.

“Doc Helm served as the official state photographer for half a century, from the 1940s to 1992,” said White. “During this time, he took pictures of presidents, governors, celebrities, citizens, notable events and the ordinary day-to-day operations of state government. He left behind a vast historical record, and this grant will allow the public to view and enjoy his work.”

This issue of Illinois Heritage looks to the history of previous pandemics and offers some thoughtful instruction on how our ancestors coped with contagion without antibiotics, the CDC, or the Internet. Thanks to Allen Croessmann and John Hallwas for their research and fascination with public health history. 

We also meet some very interesting individuals who added art and perspective to our vision of the Prairie State through our ongoing series “Voices from Illinois History” and “Illinois Women Artists.”

Our other feature articles in the May-June issue deserve your attention too. Beth Young’s article about Civil War-era nurse Louise Maertz is a tribute to our current care providers on the frontlines of the war against COVID-19; the summaries of civil rights pioneer Frederick Douglass’s lectures from his 1866 visits to Springfield are revealing of Reconstruction-era politics; and Guy Fraker’s analysis of a forgotten Lincoln legal case should illuminate lawyers and arm-chair scholars alike.

Be safe, practice self-distancing, be kind to others, and share your Heritage.