200 North Main St | Bloomington, Illinois | 309-827-0428
We are open! Please check our "Plan Your Visit" page for COVID policies and updated hours.
200 North Main St | Bloomington, Illinois | 309-827-0428
Below you will find links to pdfs of a variety of information that will be useful in preparing to bring your students to your scheduled tour of the Evergreen Cemetery Walk. These PDFs include:
This section includes information on how to view the Virtual Evergreen Cemetery Walk on a variety of electronic devices, and enable closed captions.
This section includes words that may be unfamiliar to students who participate in the Evergreen Cemetery Walk. Words included in this document can be found in the character biographies (found in the teacher packet) and those that will be heard during the performances at the Cemetery Walk. Words are divided by character, including a separate list of cemetery/monument related terms. Words are defined according to Merriam-Webster dictionary unless otherwise noted.
This document includes a brief history on the evolution of cemeteries and a history of Evergreen Memorial Cemetery. Also included is information on monument materials, cemetery art and symbolism, monument types, and cemetery structures, of which many can be found in Evergreen Memorial Cemetery. This information will be very useful in helping to prepare students for participation in the Evergreen Cemetery Walk.
The Evergreen Cemetery Walk is a great educational program for students to participate in. It is our intention that students will develop an understanding and appreciation for cemeteries as a source for history, that students will begin to understand our local history and its importance, and that students will understand the natural connection between history and the arts. In addition, the Cemetery Walk will help teachers meet a variety of History and English related ISBE Learning Goals and Common Core Standards.
Aside from general discussion, these are activities which teachers who have attended Walks in years past have done with their students that may prove beneficial for you and your students as well.
This section contain articles from the Museum's weekly Pantagraph column "Pieces from Our Past." The articles featured here have a connection to each of this year's featured characters and offer additional insight into events, activities, or themes related to each of our characters.
George Carman was a printer, writer, actor, and public speaker, who served as a Union soldier in the U.S. Civil War, writing letters back to the Pantagraph in the voice of “Boswell,” a figure he had created earlier in newspaper editorials. “Boswell” was known for his humor, wordplay, knowledge of Shakespeare, and strong opinions. Honorably discharged from the McLean County Regiment for a lung ailment, Carman died of tuberculosis at the age of 29.
Featured with Julia Duff
Alverta Duff and Julia Duff belonged to one of the earliest African American families to establish themselves in Normal, buying land from town founder Jesse Fell. Alverta did domestic work for the Stevenson family. Julia moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma to teach. Alverta and sister Janie went to Tulsa to nurse Julia during the 1918 flu pandemic. The Duff sisters later bore witness to a horror of American history, the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921.
Featured with Alverta Duff
Julia Duff and Alverta Duff belonged to one of the earliest African American families to establish themselves in Normal, buying land from town founder Jesse Fell. Alverta did domestic work for the Stevenson family. Julia moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma to teach. Alverta and sister Janie went to Tulsa to nurse Julia during the 1918 flu pandemic. The Duff sisters later bore witness to a horror of American history, the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921.
Dr. William Hill was a surgeon in the Union Army during the U.S. Civil War. When he came to Bloomington shortly after the war, some disliked him as a Democrat and suspected “bodysnatcher.” But he became well-liked and respected as a witty, outspoken, and tender man who played the violin to his child patients. He lost his only son to complications from a dog bite, and his youngest daughter Daisy married architect Arthur Pillsbury.
Featured with Sigmund Livingston
Sigmund and Hilda Livingston are guest voices in this year’s Cemetery Walk. For over 20 years, Sigmund was the law partner of William Bach, who is buried in Evergreen Memorial Cemetery. Sigmund founded the Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith to fight anti-Semitism and promote justice. A respected Bloomington lawyer and orator, Sigmund later joined a firm in Chicago. Raised in Elgin, Hilda moved to Bloomington with Sigmund, and raised one son, Richard.
Featured with Hilda Livingston
Sigmund and Hilda Livingston are guest voices in this year’s Cemetery Walk. For over 20 years, Sigmund was the law partner of William Bach, who is buried in Evergreen Memorial Cemetery. Sigmund founded the Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith to fight anti-Semitism and promote justice. A respected Bloomington lawyer and orator, Sigmund later joined a firm in Chicago. Raised in Elgin, Hilda moved to Bloomington with Sigmund, and raised one son, Richard.
Mary Ann Marmon grew up in a log cabin and was among the earliest settlers in the area. A member of the McLean County Historical Society, she wrote about prairie fires, Delaware and Kickapoo settlements, needlecrafts, and social life. She married and outlived William Marmon, a successful druggist. They hosted a “pioneer dinner party” in 1881 that recaptured the past. She was also the sister of Owen Lee Cheney, featured in last year’s Cemetery Walk.
William Rodenhauser worked for the Chicago & Alton Railroad as a carpenter, losing the fingers on his right hand in a work accident. Born in Germany, he came to the United States in 1882, his family joining him later. They spoke German in their home. As part of the Homestead Act, he purchased land in Colorado, hoping to farm there, but had returned to Bloomington to live with his daughter when he died.
To read biographies of past cemetery walk characters, visit the biographies page of our online resources.
Questions? Please contact the Museum's Education department 309-827-0428 or via email education@mchistory.org.