Category Archives: Women

Springfield, “The Flower City”

Springfield’s sometime-nickname, “The Flower City,” apparently originated with a Chicago newspaper story published in 1857. But it didn’t catch on for another 20 years, at first mainly when local improvement advocates complained that the city – particularly its muddy streets … Continue reading

Posted in Amusements, Celebrations, Illinois State Fair, Local government, Spectacles, Women | 2 Comments

“The Gay ’90s” in Springfield

In 1943, V.Y. Dallman, longtime editor and columnist for the Illinois State Register, published a three-part reminiscence of the “Gay ‘90s” – at least, as they were experienced by Springfield’s upper crust. The series was written by a certified member … Continue reading

Posted in Amusements, Celebrations, Histories, Military, Prominent figures, Social life, Sports and recreation, Women | Leave a comment

First women lawyers

Erma Garrison Templeman was the first woman to practice law in Sangamon County. She wasn’t, however, the first to pass the bar exam; at least two other women beat her to that distinction. All three had noteworthy life stories, good … Continue reading

Posted in Law enforcement, Prominent figures, Sangamon County, Women | 1 Comment

Bell Miller, businesswoman

Bell Miller was only 22 in 1892, when she opened a small flower shop at her home on South Second Street. One greenhouse soon grew to seven, covering the area around First and Canedy Streets. The Illinois State Journal took … Continue reading

Posted in Buildings, Business, Hotels & taverns, National Register, Prominent figures, Women | Leave a comment

‘Advice to Housekeepers’ (1871)

“Advice to Housekeepers” is a general introduction to Mrs. Owen’s Illinois Cook Book, compiled and written in 1871 by, apparently, Mary Hurst Owen of Springfield. (Why “apparently”? See below.) Owen (1826-1907) wrote that her  Cook Book was aimed at “middle … Continue reading

Posted in Family life, Lincoln, Abraham, Prominent figures, Women | 1 Comment

Andrew McFarland (mental hospital administrator)

Update: On Aug. 9, 2023, Gov. J.B. Pritzker renamed the former Andrew McFarland Mental Health Center the Elizabeth Parsons Ware Packard Mental Health Center. Read the news release here. This entry has been lightly edited to reflect the change, as … Continue reading

Posted in Medicine, Social services, Women | 2 Comments

Springfield Sallies (professional women’s baseball)

The Springfield Sallies were one of the least successful, and also shortest-lived, teams in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. The league, whose memory was revived by the 1992 movie “A League of Their Own,” lasted from 1943 to 1954. … Continue reading

Posted in Amusements, Parks, Prominent figures, Sports and recreation, Women | 2 Comments

Women’s golf, 1899

“A crowd of young society women in 1899 shocked the conventions of the day by reckless indulgence in a game called golf,” the Illinois State Journal recalled in 1931. Most of that sentence was nonsense. There’s no evidence anyone was … Continue reading

Posted in Amusements, Media, Parks, Photos and photosets, Prominent figures, Social life, Sports and recreation, Women | Leave a comment

‘The Story of the House,’ by Alice Bunn

Alice Bunn (1867-1953) was born and died in the spacious home at 435 S. Sixth St. that was built by her father, Jacob Bunn, in the 1850s. The house was torn down for a parking lot in July 1953, a … Continue reading

Posted in Amusements, Architecture, Buildings, Children, Early residents, Family life, Histories, Prominent figures, Social life, Women | 2 Comments

‘Bird Lady’: A Lithuanian immigrant mother’s life in Springfield

On the day in 1912 when 16-year-old Mary Ann Yezdauskas arrived in Springfield from Lithuania, her brother took her to the elegant Bressmer’s Department Store to buy a new coat. Then the sister and brother posed together in their finery … Continue reading

Posted in Coal mines and mining, Family life, Lithuanians, Lithuanians, Women | 10 Comments