A new event at the Old State Capitol on Sept. 10 follows an old tradition – showcasing artists and art in the building. It’s a practice that dates back to the 1800s. The event, “Celebrating Sangamon County History Through the Arts,” is sponsored by the Sangamon County Historical Society (SCHS) and will feature a visual […]
Community & Lifestyle
Posted inArts & Culture
Until it rains, water your trees
Second place is usually considered to be a good thing. But placing second for the driest August in history isn’t a good thing. With only a few days left in August, the Springfield area had received less than 1/4 inch of rainfall for the month. We need rain! We could ask for a miracle and […]
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When Lincoln held office hours in Springfield
When Springfield Mayor Mike Houston announced in July that he would hold regular open office hours, he was in good company. In 1860, after he became president-elect, Abraham Lincoln did the same, but his experience with Springfield office hours was quite different from Houston’s. The mayor says he began the practice because “the average person […]
Posted inArts & Culture
ELIZABETH ECKERT
What do “American Idol” and central Illinois music programs have in common? Springfield singer-songwriter Elizabeth Eckert, who is an American Idol Hollywood round finalist from season seven, will perform her Midwestern music, assisting area school music programs along the way. Eckert will perform in Springfield at Samuel Music Co., a full-service retail music company. The […]
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Ossie’s incredible journey
He’s lived in Springfield for nearly 70 years – most of it with his wife, Midge, and their 13 children in a rambling white clapboard house at the corner of Whittier and Laurel Ave. But at age 85, Ossie Langfelder says he still longs to go home. “Home was Vienna, Austria,” he says. “My relatives, […]
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The science lab at the Statehouse
Some people think there’s a lot of crud in the Statehouse. For more than 50 years, there was. From at least 1917 to 1970, the Illinois Department of Public Health’s (DPH) main diagnostic lab was housed there. Its staff examined saliva, blood and bodily excretions for contagious diseases. Today, it’s hard to believe that such […]
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Home-grown tomato time!
The most exciting garden event of the summer is picking the first red, juicy ripe tomatoes. This passion is shared with many gardeners as tomatoes are one of the most popular vegetables grown in the home garden. I commonly get asked, “What is the best tomato to grow?” The answer will be different for everyone. […]
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A famous warplane comes to Lincoln Land
The Boeing B-17 was the world’s first long-range, strategic heavy bomber, deployed to England in 1942 to help retake western Europe from the German war machine that had invaded in 1940. Before the war a newspaper reporter, commenting about machine guns protruding from almost everywhere on an early version, described it as an impregnable “flying […]
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A Garden Walk with Master Gardeners
A collection of 122 different hosta plants, an extension vegetable garden, a Japanese-inspired backyard with bamboo fencing, a low-mow yard and a pond with a waterfall are all features of an upcoming Springfield-area garden tour. Sangamon-Menard Unit Master Gardeners invite you to a Garden Walk on Saturday, June 25, 2 to 7 p.m. Most of […]
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Mt. Pulaski celebrates a colorful 175 years
Until the mid-1850s or so, much of Springfield was a mud bog. For decades our dirt streets were filled with trash and mud, and in summer, pools of rainwater stagnated on the streets and combined with refuse from roaming livestock to make the place smelly as well. Perhaps it’s no surprise then, that some Springfieldians […]
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Rebirth of a rivertown
Walking down the main business street in Cairo, Ill., it’s tempting to think that this spring’s floodwaters of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers were sent to put the languishing town out of its misery once and for all. Many buildings along Commercial Street in Illinois’ southernmost town have long been abandoned, left to decay since […]
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Outstanding country gardens on annual symphony tour
There are some remarkable gardens on the 22nd annual Illinois Symphony Garden Tour in Springfield. “A Symphony of Country Gardens” will be held from 11-4 Saturday, June 18. Shelly and Ken Hoffman’s garden south of Chatham is the most mature, the Hoffmans having moved into their shingled Cape Cod home next to a cornfield in […]
