Collection Highlights

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The “Page from Our Past” column in Sunday March 6, 2016 Pantagraph told how area residents raised more than $165,000 in the spring of 1910 to expand the Chicago & Alton Railroad Shops on Bloomington’s west side.Buttons like this one, mentioned in the column, were sold to help raise funds. The...

Although there are several theories regarding the origin of Halloween, or All Hallows Eve, its roots can be traced back to the ancient Celts of Ireland and Northern England. The Celtic New Year begins on November 1st and the festival of Samhain (pronounced “sow-win”) is celebrated on October 31st...

Much of my time as Registrar at the McLean County Museum of History is spent looking through the lens of a camera, photographing the 20,000+ objects in our collection. Capturing the perfect image doesn’t always come easily and I’m always impressed by anyone with a good eye for photography. One su...

The Museum owns two unique and personal pieces of history that provide a glimpse of how individuals can use their time and talents to alleviate stress during times of extreme conflict. You may have heard the term trench art before. But, what exactly is it? Although the name would imply that it is...

The Museum recently received a Normal Sanitary Dairy baseball uniform worn during the late 1930s and early 1940s. The dairy not only sponsored its own team, but owned its own baseball diamond located directly behind its building. Wilbur “Deacon" Barton, one of McLean County's most talen...