Monthly Archives: October 2013

Philip Crowder’s Revolutionary War pension application

Posted on October 29, 2013 by editor

Philip Crowder (1759-1844), who is buried in a family plot in on the west side of Old Chatham Road across from Illini Country Club in Leland Grove, was a veteran of the American Revolution. He applied for a military pension … Continue reading →

Posted in Early residents, Military | Leave a comment

Culver Marble and Stone Co.

Posted on October 29, 2013 by editor

The Culver Marble and Stone Co. and its offshoots, headed by Col. James S. Culver (1852-1911), were among the Springfield area’s most prominent builders from the early 1870s until 1912. As a contractor, the Culver firm was given credit for … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Buildings, Business, Industry, Museums, Prominent figures | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Darling’s Mill

Posted on October 29, 2013 by editor

Darling’s Mill was on the North Fork of the Sangamon River in Clear Lake Township, south of the modern Mechanicsburg Road crossing. One of the lesser known mills today, Darling’s Mill is actually well documented in the historical record. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Early residents, Industry, Mills | Leave a comment

The Deep Snow

Posted on October 29, 2013 by editor

Snow began falling in central Illinois on Christmas Eve 1830 and didn’t let up for nine weeks, according to a later memoir by the Rev. John Bergen. At the same time, the temperature fell to zero and below — as … Continue reading →

Posted in Disasters, Early residents, Prominent figures | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Desegregation of the Illinois State Armory

Posted on October 29, 2013 by editor

Springfield journalist and activist Simeon Osby  (1909-93) was among a group of African Americans who forced indifferent white officials to open all seating areas in the Illinois State Armory to anyone. Previously, blacks had been relegated to upper areas of … Continue reading →

Posted in African Americans, Amusements, Buildings, Ethnic groups, Journalism, Local government, Prominent figures, Sports and recreation | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Illinois State Fairgrounds Dome Building

Posted on October 29, 2013 by editor

The Dome Building, which was on the Illinois State Fairgrounds from 1895 to 1917, originally was built for the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. The glass dome, 222 feet in diameter, was the world’s second-largest unsupported dome. Following the … Continue reading →

Posted in Buildings, Disasters, Spectacles | Tagged , | Leave a comment

William Donnegan’s memoir of the Underground Railroad

Posted on October 29, 2013 by editor

William Donnegan, an 80-year-old Black cobbler and entrepreneur who was lynched during the Springfield Race Riot of 1908, earlier wrote a memoir about his role in helping an enslaved black woman travel through Springfield on her way to Canada in … Continue reading →

Posted in Abolitionism, African Americans, Ethnic groups, Law enforcement, Prominent figures, Race riot of 1908 | Tagged | Leave a comment

Honor Book of Sangamon County, Illinois, 1917-19

Posted on October 29, 2013 by editor

The Honor Book of Sangamon County is reporter Nellie Browne Duff‘s compilation of information on every county resident who, in one fashion or another, overseas or on the home front, contributed to the U.S. effort in World War I. Nearly … Continue reading →

Posted in Journalism, Military, Resources | 2 Comments

Nellie Browne Duff

Posted on October 29, 2013 by editor

Nellie Browne Duff  (1888-1971) was a reporter, screenwriter, veterans’ advocate, aviatrix and provocateur in Springfield from 1917 until the late 1920s. She later moved to the Bellingham, Wash., area, where she apparently continued with some of the same pursuits. Duff … Continue reading →

Posted in Arts and letters, Journalism, Military, Prominent figures, Resources, Transportation, Women | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Col. Otis B. Duncan

Posted on October 29, 2013 by editor

Lt. Col. Otis B. Duncan (1873-1937) was the highest-ranking black officer to serve in the American Expeditionary Forces in Europe in World War I. He was awarded the French Croix de Guerre for his war service. Duncan, who came from … Continue reading →

Posted in African Americans, Military, Politics, Prominent figures, Race riot of 1908 | 1 Comment