July 25th, 2017
Fifth annual Corn Belt Coin Show July 14-15, 1962
The two-day Corn Belt Coin Show in July 1962 was held at the Illinois Hotel (now Illinois House) in downtown Bloomington. Some 1,500 persons were expected to attend the show. Folks here are looking at a $100,000 silver dollar display. If you recognize anyone in this photo, please let us know....
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 23rd, 2017
An Old Master returns home ‘Doc’ Bradshaw, July 19, 1962
Kenneth “Doc” Bradshaw, one of the more accomplished pianists to come out of the Twin Cities, returned home in July 1962 after a seventeen-year absence. He performed before a capacity crowd at Miller Park. Doc is seen here warming up in the bandstand with Dorothy Ann Burkhart, a former student of...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 22nd, 2017
Glen Dotson and ‘Sparky’ Towanda, January 1941
Glen Dotson is seen here in late January 1941 with his new pet pigeon “Sparky.” Glen’s previous pigeon had been killed by an automobile. After reading about Glen’s loss, Lewis Hodge of Bloomington gave the Towanda boy a new pigeon, Sparky, who was said to be well-trained and fond of music....
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 21st, 2017
Frankie Finck, Gridley’s ‘strong baby’ August 1949
Margy Finck of Gridley demonstrates how her six-month-old son Frankie was able to balance in her hands. Frankie’s doctor was said to admire his strong back!...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 20th, 2017
New American citizen May 24, 1941
Twenty-six people became American citizens in a naturalization ceremony held May 24, 1941, in the McLean County Courthouse. Overseeing the proceedings was Circuit Judge W.C. Radliff. Seen here is an unidentified woman completing her naturalization paperwork. Some of the women who became U.S. citi...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 19th, 2017
Parking meters perplex motorists Downtown Bloomington, May 1941
Parking meters were first installed in downtown Bloomington in February 1940. By the following spring these contraptions were still confusing local residents, as illustrated in this May 1941 Pantagraph photograph. The befuddled gentleman is local resident L.C. Hill....
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 18th, 2017
Woops! Roller-skating messenger State Farm Insurance, summer 1940
More than a week ago we posted a photograph from this set. Here’s another one. At the time, State Farm was testing the feasibility of having staff at its downtown Bloomington building deliver mail on roller skates. Seen here is Fayne Hoobler taking a rare tumble. Sitting at the desk is Margaret W...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 17th, 2017
Lexington Art Show July 1962
Jack Statz and Jann Thompson Anderson served as judges for an art show held in conjunction with Lexington’s annual homecoming festivities. The landscape they’re chatting about was judged one of the best in the adult professional class. It was painted by Libby James Compton of Clinton, IL, a nativ...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 16th, 2017
City Hoosegow September 1938
Old Bloomington City Hall, located at the corner of East and Monroe streets downtown, included eight narrow holding cells. These were located in the basement....
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 14th, 2017
Clarke Triplets Turn Eight Downs, August 1949
Mary, Margaret, and Marilyn Clarke of Downs (don’t ask us to identify who’s who!) turned eight years old on August 21, 1949. Their mother, Maude M. Phillips Clarke, made all their matching outfits—and those for their dolls too!...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 13th, 2017
Readying for college Fall of 1949
Bill and Edmunds Rolley enjoy an apparently carefree day in the Twin Cities before heading off to Northwestern University in Evanston, where Bill would be a sophomore and Edmunds a freshman. That’s Connie Carter in between the Rolley boys. Connie was off to Mount Mary University in Milwaukee, Wis...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 12th, 2017
North Gate Subdivision Northeast Normal, July 1964
During the summer of 1964, ranch and split-level homes were popping up in the North Gate subdivision in northeast Normal, adjacent to the Illinois Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Children’s School (ISSCS). North Gate was north of Lincoln, bounded by Beech on the east, and Walnut on the west. This view is ...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 11th, 2017
Red Cross knitters July 1940
In the summer of 1940, Marietta Howard, McLean County Red Cross executive secretary, issued an “S.O.S.” for local knitters. The local chapter hoped to soon knit 200 sweaters and other items for its war relief program.
We’re not sure who’s who here, or where this scene takes place. If you can help...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 10th, 2017
Whites-only beach Miller Park, Bloomington, July 1940
From the 1910s into the 1950s, there were racially segregated beaches at Miller Park. The much larger and much nicer beach shown here was set aside for white residents. The black beach was located in the lagoon-like part of the lake beyond the arched stone bridge seen in the distance. African Ame...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 9th, 2017
Roller-Skating messengers State Farm Insurance, summer 1940
Fayne Hoobler (left, on skates) delivers mail to Dorothy Thompson on the sixth floor the State Farm Insurance Companies high-rise office building in downtown Bloomington. Hoobler, under the direction of Divisional Manager Charles E. Beadles, tested the feasibility of equipping mail delivery staff...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 8th, 2017
Mackinaw River catch, July 1940 Boolman residence, Bloomington
Chester Boolman, 820 W. Washington St., shows his 21-month-old son Melvin a 15-pound catfish he caught below the Kappa Bridge on the Mackinaw River. This photograph was probably taken July 1 or 2, 1940....
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 6th, 2017
Lexington Dog Show July 31, 1940
Seen here are 5 of the 30 some entries for the children’s dog show, held July 31, 1940, in Lexington. They’re at Lexington Park, with the view looking east. That’s 105 E. Main St. behind them. The house is still there. We’re not entirely sure, but this photo might show the five winners and their ...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 5th, 2017
Downtown Bloomington September 1938
This view of downtown Bloomington looks north. The foreground includes a good look at the old city hall, which was located at the northwest corner of East and Monroe streets. In the distance one can espy the Keiser-Van Leer building (later Clark and Barlow and now East Street Hardware and Tools);...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 4th, 2017
Red, White, and Kaboom! Independence Day 1941
Nine-year-old Tommy Roberts of Bloomington stocks up on fireworks for the July 4, 1941 festivities.The Museum wishes you and yours a happy—and safe!—Fourth of July...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 3rd, 2017
Independence Day 1964 Miller Park, Bloomington
For well over a century, Miller Park on Bloomington’s west side has served as home to many the city’s Fourth of July activities, including the evening fireworks show. Who remembers when Miller Park featured a Ferris wheel and other carnival-like rides? Who remembers spending Independence Day at M...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
July 2nd, 2017
Tot Tries Tiny Tractor August 1947
Three-year-old Janet Schultze gets comfortable on her father Floyd Schultze’s two-cylinder, nine horsepower tractor. This was no child’s toy, however, as this miniature machine was strong enough to pull a 12-inch plow or a 56-inch disc cultivator. Floyd Schultze ran a tractor repair shop in Cheno...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
June 30th, 2017
Beckley-Moots Wedding Saybrook, September 1938
William C. Beckley and Bernadine Cleo Moots of Cropsey ready for their September 3, 1938 wedding at Saybrook Methodist Church.The couple would go on to have three sons: Harlan, Bryon, and Lelan. William Beckley passed away in November 1994, and Bernadine followed in October 2003....
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
June 29th, 2017
BPD’s Rogues Gallery August 1947
Bloomington Police Chief Clyde Hibbens (left) and Officer James Daley examine some of the 1,600 mug shots in the department’s newly acquired “rogues gallery” investigative aid....
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
June 28th, 2017
Bull in Barbershop Hudson, June 19, 1947
We’ve all heard the expression “bull in a china shop,” but how about one in a barbershop? Herb Abrams (astride the mauve bull) promised Elmer Lindsey that one day he’d ride a bull straight into Lindsey’s barbershop in Hudson. And by golly, that’s just what old Herb did on June 19, 1947! The bull’...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
June 27th, 2017
John Thomas’ new corn crib June 1958
Construction of a corn crib nears completion at the John C. Thomas farm southeast of Bloomington. This crib, with a 5,000 bushel capacity, featured extra heavy framing, as Thomas looked to the future when it might be converted to the storage of shelled corn....
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
June 26th, 2017
Bzzzz! June 30, 1938
William Knuth, a laid off boilermaker and hobbyist beekeeper, was called to the Darling Poultry and Fish Market, 218 S. Center St., to corral some swarming bees. He located the queen, brushed her into the box, and the others followed.Store owner Hugh Darling told Knuth he wouldn’t charge for the ...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
June 25th, 2017
Wilder Field, IWU July 1938
Illinois Wesleyan University's Wilder Field was built with Works Progress Administration (WPA) labor and materials, the largest of the Depression-era New Deal federal work projects. The football complex is now known as Wilder Field at Tucci Stadium....
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
June 23rd, 2017
ISSCS Festival August 1950
The Illinois Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Children’s School annual festival of 1950 included pressure cooking demonstrations, as well as displays of preserved fruits and floral arrangements. We don’t know the names of any of these “homers” (as ISSCS kids were called), but we do know that the judges wer...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
June 22nd, 2017
Irvin Theater, Bloomington Circa 1958
The Irvin was the Twin City’s premier movie house for much of the 20th century. Located on the 200 block of East Jefferson Street, it opened in 1915, closed in 1982, and was torn down in 1987. Check out the Museum’s most recent “Page from Our Past” feature in the Sunday Pantagraph which tells the...
1 mins read by Bill Kemp
June 21st, 2017
Ms. Stanberry and Queenie July 21, 1938
Gretchen Stanberry, a senior in the school of music at MacMurray Women’s College in Jacksonville, was the guest speaker before the Bloomington Rotary Club in a July 1938 program at the Illinois Hotel. Ms. Stanberry is seen here with her German shepherd seeing eye dog Queenie....
1 mins read by Torii Moré