Author Archives: editor

Illinois State Fair settles in Springfield (1894)

Posted on December 26, 2019 by editor

An unelected board designated Springfield as the permanent site of the Illinois State Fair in 1894, after lawmakers spent 15 years proving they couldn’t do the job. From 1853, when the first state fair was held in Springfield, the show … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Amusements, Farming, Illinois State Fair, Spectacles | Leave a comment

The jelly-cake controversy of 1891

Posted on December 13, 2019 by editor

When Springfield shoe merchants J.F. Miller and P.P. Powell offered a grand piano as top prize in the jelly-cake bakeoff at the Sangamon Fair and Springfield Exposition in 1891, they expected a bushel of free publicity. They got more than … Continue reading →

Posted in Amusements, Celebrations, Social life, Spectacles, Women | Leave a comment

Thanksgiving Day earthquake (1939)

Posted on November 25, 2019 by editor

People experienced the second earthquake in recorded Sangamon County history on Thanksgiving Day 80 years ago. The quake hurt no one and caused no damage. But it did restart Joseph LaVoo’s eight-day clock. The quake struck at 9:30 a.m. Nov. … Continue reading →

Posted in Disasters | 4 Comments

Bank holiday scrip (1933)

Posted on November 23, 2019 by editor

Springfield kept its economy going during the “bank holiday” of 1933 by printing its own money. State and federal officials ordered banks across the nation to close in early March 1933, amid a wave of bank collapses caused by the … Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Depression, Local government, State government | 1 Comment

WMAY Shower of Stars, 1959

Posted on November 17, 2019 by editor

This entry has been edited to correct the date of the plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and the Big Bopper. On Feb. 15, 1959, the curtain opened on the stage of the Illinois State Armory, and Harry … Continue reading →

Posted in Amusements, Communications, Media | 4 Comments

Barbed wire

Posted on November 11, 2019 by editor

See Osage Orange (hedge apple).

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Osage orange (hedge apple)

Posted on November 11, 2019 by editor

The heyday of living fences on farms lasted less than 30 years. But Osage orange trees, descendants of fencerows planted as early as the 1840s, still line country roads and fill hedge lines throughout central Illinois. As the name suggests, … Continue reading →

Posted in Agriculture, Farming | 5 Comments

Italian Villa fire (1932)

Posted on October 28, 2019 by editor

The explosion that wrecked the Italian Villa nightclub on East Monroe Street in 1932, killing two, was never explained. Suspicion, fueled by testimony from passersby, the track records of the club’s owners, and a rash of explosions around central Illinois … Continue reading →

Posted in Disasters, Hotels & taverns, Italians, Prominent figures, Restaurants, Social life, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

YMCA Athletic Park (1890s)

Posted on October 20, 2019 by editor

For a brief period in the 1890s, the Springfield Young Men’s Christian Association maintained what it called an athletic park. The park was on 10 acres leased by the YMCA at the southwest corner of Pasfield and Allen streets. A … Continue reading →

Posted in Amusements, Parks, Sports and recreation | Leave a comment

A&P supermarkets

Posted on October 14, 2019 by editor

A&P was the first grocery chain to label its Springfield stores “supermarkets.” One A&P on South Grand Avenue was converted to the supermarket concept in April 1940. A second A&P at Fifth and Mason streets was the first local store … Continue reading →

Posted in Grocery markets, Uncategorized | Leave a comment