The Library will be closed December 24, 25, and will close at 5:00 p.m. December 31 for the Holidays.
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Local broadcaster
Doug Quick
will share his book, "Pictures on the Prairie: The First Ten Years of Mid-Illinois Television History." The book, which covers 1953-1963, is a culmination of over thirteen years of research, some of which was conducted in the Champaign County Historical Archives.
Quick will focus his evening talk on the beginnings of WCIA, WCHU, WDAN-TV, WICD, and their contributions to the new local television industry.
Books will be available for purchase, and Quick will sign copies after the program. For more information about Doug Quick, visit
https://www.dougquick.com/
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New Exhibit Coming December 1st
Illinois History in a Christmas Card
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Come see a collection of original woodblock printed Christmas cards focusing on historic Illinois buildings and structures.
The exhibit is located on the 2nd floor of the Library outside the Archives entrance.
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The Illinois Central Railroad Company (ICRR), known as the Main Line of the Mid-West, was one of the oldest Class I railroads in the United States. Upon its completion in 1856, ICRR was the longest railroad in the United States, with its 706 miles of track all contained in Illinois. It was also the most significant building project of its time, with 10,000 workers lying tracks at any one time with an estimated 100,000 workers who worked on the rails over the five-year construction period.
Recently
processed
by one of our practicum students, the ICRR records consist of completion reports from various railroad construction and improvement projects in Champaign County and East-Central Illinois. These reports contain expenditure and retirement forms, correspondence pertaining to the projects, estimates, blueprints, and plans. It also contains high water level data on various tracks and oil spill containment plans to reduce pollution.
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Our friends at the
Champaign County History Museum opened a a new exhibit in November,
"The Great Harris Mansion Heist." The exhibit includes objects from the 1929 caper and the start of the Great Depression. Look for artifacts from our collection there too!
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The Library
has
t-shirts, totes, travel mugs, and local history books for sale. It is a one-stop holiday shopping for the library lover in your life or maybe yourself.
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Like big books filled with colorful maps? Let Donica, one of our Archives Librarians, guide you through
The Counties of Britain: A Tudor Atlas
by John Speed. Plus, meet a currency converter that breaks down your sum into horses, cows, wool, wheat, and wages.
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Chanute Air Force Base
was nationally known for its training of pilots, mechanics, aerial photographers, firefighters, and missile technicians, but locally, the personnel were active members of the Rantoul and wider Champaign County community. One incident I uncovered recently highlights this relationship beautifully.
The winter of 1939 produced one of the most severe snow storms experienced by the area in several years. High winds and seven-plus inches of snow brought Rantoul and northern Champaign County to a standstill. Automobiles were stalled on roads, schools were canceled, and rural mail carriers were unable to complete their routes. Snow drifts of more than two feet were reported in downtown Rantoul.
And yet even with all of these concerns, thoughts were also with the wild birds of the region. Members of the officers’ club and civilian employees of the Air Corps Technical School at Chanute Field surveyed the heavy snowfall and announced a plan to scatter food for wild birds at strategic rural spots. A call went out from the base, and the Champaign County Farmers’ and Sportsmen's Club acted quickly and supplied one ton of feed, another two tons were gathered from donations of individuals connected with the base and from local businesses.
The procedure was described as thus in the 9 February 1939,
Rantoul Press and Chanute Field News
:
"Several trips were made, and the sacked grain was sent from the skies – like manna – for the feathered friends. Here was the procedure – The feed was packed in medium-sized paper bags, Two officers were in each plane. As the pilot spied hedgerows or other covered spots where quail, pheasants, and other birds feed in the winter, he reduced the ship’s altitude, throttled its speed and the airmen in the rear cockpit dropped the sacks like small bombs to earth. The sack split open hitting the ground, spreading the contents. A territory mapped out – covering a radius of 20 miles all directions from Champaign-Urbana was carefully bombed with bird food."
In a few short years, the airmen at Chanute would be far too consumed with
other matters
to entertain feeding wild birds during a harsh winter, but what a charming story of community and compassion in the meantime.
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Think You Know Champaign-Urbana?
Try our trivia quiz
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Q.
What did Fred and Betty Turner gift their friends at Christmas every year?
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Events at the Archives & Beyond
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- Show and Tell, Champaign County Genealogical Society, Tuesday, December 10, 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm | The Jean Evans Archives Room (Second Floor), The Urbana Free Library
- Research Night with Champaign County Genealogical Society, Wednesday, December 11, 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm | The Jean Evans Archives Room (Second Floor), The Urbana Free Library
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We Want To Hear From You!
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Put our Archivists to the test. Ask us your questions about local history and genealogy.
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Want to learn about more events at The Urbana Free Library?
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Champaign County Historical Archives | 217-367-4025 |
E-mail
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Website
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