Taps for last Bloomington Civil War veteran in 1940

By Bill Kemp. Published on September 14, 2014.
Today the median age of Korean War veterans is 88 years old, and as the ranks of these old soldiers get increasingly thinner there will...
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Dance marathons, walkathons once talk of the town

By Bill Kemp. Published on March 13, 2016.
Although born out of the Roaring Twenties, dance marathons and walkathons peaked in popularity during the 1930s and the Great Depressio...

Turner Hall lost monument to German pride

By Bill Kemp. Published on February 11, 2018.
More than a century ago, Turner Hall was the cultural hub of Bloomington’s large and influential German community. Locate...

Cigar shop was where old men came to talk (and nap)

By Bill Kemp. Published on December 1, 2019.
In the late 1800s, there was no better place in Bloomington to grumble about the “gov’ment,” debate the issues of the day, recount a we...

Donation illuminates Earhart’s 1936 visit to Twin Cities

By Bill Kemp. Published on July 19, 2020.
Although the COVID-19 pandemic has forced the McLean County Museum of History to temporarily close its doors to the public, the Library...