Parks police head quits – UPDATED
Capt. Jonathan Davis, head of the Springfield Park District Police Department, has quit. In a letter of resignation dated today, Davis said that the district has retaliated against him for speaking out about corruption and racism. He writes that has been forced to resign and has filed complaints with the Illinois Department of Human Rights…
Food fest
As I noted in another post, the topic of this week’s disquisition over at Dyspepsiana is farmers markets. In that piece, I note that such events have grown in popularity to such an extent that national supermarket chains mimic the off-the-back-of-the-wagon ambiance of the market in their produce sections. Well, it was only a matter…
An idea unprecedented in history
I meant to comment on it the moment I read about it – “it’ being the grand bargain being worked out between Michael Madigan and Bruce Rauner that would result in the orphaning of the Lincoln Presidential library and museum and the abandonment of our historic preservation agency to the Babbits at the Department of…
Farm markets
Next week I will be examining the phenomenon of the farmers market. The focus is on Springfield’s Old Capitol market, which has been operating continuously for some 20 years, after some years at a different location in the 1980s. Of course, Springfield’s is not the only venerable market of this type. This year will be…
Editor’s note 4/30/15
For the Funeral Reenactment weekend, there is a lecture about 1860s underwear (3:10 p.m. Saturday at Benedictine) and another on how Springfielders did their laundry 150 years ago (3:40 p.m. Saturday at Benedictine). There is something scheduled for many interests, from historic home tours in Enos Park (see p. 38) to an Illinois Symphony Orchestra…
Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys
Big Sandy & His Fly-Rite Boys Big Sandy is no stranger to Springfield, and you can bet in his 25-plus years of travels with the Fly-Rite Boys this guy made some stops across the country. A frequent guest of Sangamon Valley Roots Revival hosts Sean and Jamie Burns, and a welcome performer at the Bedrock…
‘Dr. Evil’ turns out to be ‘Dr. Silly’
Big Oil, labor exploiters, industrial food factories, frackers and other corporate profiteers have been paying a lot of money to a man that celebrates himself as “Dr. Evil” – the scourge of all progressive groups! But Rick Berman is not a doctor, not evil and not a scourge. While he is a wholly unprincipled little…
May music be
Hot Rod Walt & the Psycho-DeVilles rockabilly-rock-out at Bar None on May 1, with The Suicide Shifters and Los Injectors. Welcome, as we wind our way into the month of May, where the outdoor music starts seeping in and the festivals and fairs are not far away. Let’s start this week off with a howdy-do…
The Lincoln funeral train, Chicago to Springfield
The train carrying Abraham Lincoln’s body drew throngs of mourners across Illinois as it completed the last leg of its journey from Chicago to Springfield. That was 150 years ago this week. Despite the late hours of the nighttime journey, thousands of weeping, embittered Illinoisans paid their last respects to the fallen president. Following his…
Speaker Madigan’s peculiar new habit
A couple of weeks ago, I started noticing that House Speaker Michael Madigan wasn’t voting on most legislation during his chamber’s floor debates. Madigan was feeling under the weather that week, and was ill enough that a leadership meeting with the governor couldn’t be scheduled until a few days later, so I let it go.…
Morals in medicine
Mindy Swank of Chicago grew up in a conservative household – both religiously and politically – so when her pregnancy went wrong, it was a difficult decision to have an abortion. She and her husband, Adam, were excited to have their second child, she told an Illinois Senate legislative panel at the Capitol in March,…
Walk where Lincoln walked
Enos Park Neighborhood Historic Home Tour Immerse yourself in Lincoln’s culture as you take a self-guided tour through mid-to-late 1800s homes in the Enos Park neighborhood. You’ll view half a dozen homes that Lincoln had various connections to during his time in Springfield such as the Governor Cullom Mansion, the General McClernand home, the Dr.…
SERVING FAMILIES SINCE 1863
In 1865, Mary Jane Tully came to Springfield from Arkansas seeking a new beginning from the destructive Civil War. When she arrived here, the Springfield Home for the Friendless helped Tully settle into her new life. Tully’s great-great grandson, William Furry, still lives in Springfield and serves as executive director of the Illinois State Historical…
Cutting to the bone
Gov. Bruce Rauner PHOTO BY Nancy Stone/TNS The universe is not infinite. At least, not when it comes to the budget. That’s how Gov. Bruce Rauner’s budget chief explained to a panel of House lawmakers last week that there are not many places to cut the current state budget. On April 21, the newly formed…
Aftermath of an assassination
Even before he ascended to the White House, Abraham Lincoln was often referred to as “old.” It wasn’t an insult but a compliment. Michael Burlingame “He radiated the qualities of wisdom and nurturing,” said Dr. Michael Burlingame, a noted Lincoln author and professor of history at the University of Illinois Springfield. “He had several positive…
Letters to the Editor 4/30/15
TEA PARTY ON IHPA Remember when President Obama made his announcement and VP choice at the historic Old State Capitol? It was IHPA that gave him special permission to do so, although the site is not to be used for political events. The Springfield Tea Party was then denied use of the same facility twice. A Freedom of…
Shaping school discipline
Public schools in Illinois would have to reform their discipline policies under legislation being considered in the Illinois General Assembly. The bill aims to limit how long students are removed from the classroom, and it comes as schools and lawmakers examine the effects of suspensions and expulsions on a student’s educational performance. However, many of…
The encouragement of competent teachers
Reading Phil Bradley’s fine remembrance of Elizabeth Graham the other day (see “Before the university we had Elizabeth Graham,” April 9, 2015) I was moved to reflect again on teachers and teaching. As Bradley recalls Miss Graham, she was the schoolmarm personified. Though long retired, she treated indifferent or unruly visitors to the Vachel Lindsay…
A sense of the mechanical plagues Avengers: Ultron
Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark/Iron Man and Chris Evans as Steve Rogers/Captain America in Avengers: Age of Ultron. For better or worse, Marvel Films has ushered in a new production method, planning out interlocking movies that form a universe all their own. With box office tallies in the billions, this is something other studios…
Judith and Julia
Judith Jones, an editor at Knopf PHOTO © CHRISTOPHER HIRSHEIMER She’s as legendary in publishing circles as her most celebrated culinary author. It’s not an exaggeration to say that without Judith Jones, an editor at Knopf, Julia Child may not have become the iconic person and personality who became a driving force in changing how…
A nationwide project
The only known photograph of the hearse that bore Abraham Lincoln’s body. It was built in the 1850s for $6,000. A replica of the horse-drawn hearse that carried Abraham Lincoln’s body to Oak Ridge Cemetery in 1865 is built from more than wood and metal and ostrich plume feathers reaching more than a dozen feet…
Mr. Lincoln goes to the movies
D.W. Griffith’s 1930 Abraham Lincoln Historian Richard Wightman Fox, contributor to the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum’s blog and author of the recently published book Lincoln’s Body (W.W. Norton, 2015), made a presentation called “Living and Dying for the Nation” April 16 at the Union Theater in the Lincoln museum as part of the…
Better get on board
PHOTO BY PATRICK YEAGLE The final concert of the Illinois Symphony Orchestra’s 2014-2015 season is happening on Saturday, May 2, as part of the Lincoln Funeral Coalition. “The whole city is going to be gripped by this and we are so, so thrilled to be playing our part in it all,” says ISO music director…
Project hits stumbling block
Developers of a proposed apartment complex in downtown Springfield came to Tuesday’s city council meeting armed with a drawing of the project and ready to answer questions, but no one asked. The council without discussion tabled an ordinance that would have provided $700,000 in tax increment finance money to build the 70-unit project at the…
The first official U.S. water circus
Cirque Italia This weekend, come enjoy Cirque Italia, a unique Italian circus experience featuring talented performers from all over the world. The show will be performed six times across three days this Friday through Sunday in the southeast parking lot of White Oaks Mall, under the swirling red white and blue tent. Now in its…
Eat, Pray You’ll Shut Up, Love
I’ve always been a feelings stuffer, but I’ve been reading about vulnerability creating intimacy, blah, blah, blah, so I’m trying to be an open book. Though my boyfriend appreciates this, he keeps telling me there’s a line between expressiveness and my making everything an emotional issue to be hashed out. He last said this when…
Lincoln Funeral Reenactment events calendar
This is your unofficial guide to the concerts, presentations, lectures, dinners and other events surrounding the 2015 Lincoln Funeral Reenactment. Please note that parking downtown will be restricted, and no parking will be allowed in Oak Ridge Cemetary or along the funeral route. Lincoln’s Assassination and the Public’s Response April 30, 7pm Thurs. Scholarly symposium…
lincolnpoem # 14
lincolnpoem # 14 it gives me pleasure to go past the statue of lincoln in front of the state capitol more often than not children are climbing around jumping off the blocks tag and catch me at the feet of that great complex simple man two small boys yesterday with a dad who didn’t forbid…
Life and death in Lincoln’s day
John H. Littlefield’s painting, “Death Bed of Lincoln,” depicting the 16th president’s passing. Historians, experts and enthusiasts gathered on April 15, the 150th anniversary of Lincoln’s death, to discuss his assassination, his health care and mourning a president. Wayne C. Temple, deputy director of the Illinois State Archives, spoke at length about the three men…
School daze
Curses, foiled againPolice responding to a drug complaint in Richmond, Va., spotted two men who began running away. One of the fleeing men, later identified as Darnell Elliotte, 20, fired several shots at the officers. He missed them but shot himself in the leg, allowing his pursuers to apprehend him. (Richmond Times-Dispatch) A subcontractor told…
Master storyteller Garrison Keillor
An Evening with Garrison Keillor Garrison Keillor’s voice is heard on more than 900 NPR affiliates each week, and now is your opportunity to hear his voice live. Join Sangamon Auditorium on Wednesday, May 6, at 7:30 p.m., for An Evening with Garrison Keillor. Keillor, who has hosted “A Prairie Home Companion” for the past…
SWEETEST SOUNDS
There’s nothing quite like a soaring vocal harmony that awakens tired ears and excites the soul. That’s the feeling you’ll get when the Sound Celebration Chorus sings. They’re a Springfield-based volunteer women’s chorus specializing in four-part barbershop harmony, and they just won a handful of honors at a major choral competition. Earlier this month, Sound…
Creative interpretations of Lincoln
Lincoln through the Arts A multi-media arts showcase to honor a multi-faceted man. Benedictine University and Quiddity, a multi-media arts venue comprised of an international arts magazine publication, public radio program, and visiting artists and writers, have teamed up to present Lincoln through the Arts this Friday, May 1, 7 p.m., at the Hoogland Center…
