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Downtown Bloomington

Resources are listed in alphabetical order. More information can always be found by using our website search bar, or contacting a member of our staff.

A Community in Conflict

Digital Exhibit

4 items

1855
Between 1850 and 1855, Bloomington’s population more than doubled from 1,600 to 5,000. Many of these new residents were Irish and German immigrants, who were traditionally hearty drinkers. Judgements regarding the morality of drinking were subjective, and highly dependent upon an individual’s cultural background. When disagreements occurred, the outcome could be violent.

Digital Exhibit

1862
By the time the Civil War began, views on slavery in McLean County had become predominantly anti-slavery. But there were still those who supported slavery.

Digital Exhibit

1870
Who had the power to vote? Many women in McLean County believed that they, like men, should be ...

Digital Exhibit

1931
Many people lost their jobs during the Great Depression, making survival difficult. Local leaders established a relief office from which donations of cash, food, fuel, and other supplies were distributed to the unemployed and needy. But some demanded more.

Digital Exhibit

Abraham Lincoln in McLean County

4 items

Friends and Allies
During his years on the Eighth Circuit, Abraham Lincoln came to trust and depend on several lea...

Digital Exhibit

Lincoln's Lost Speech
On May 29, 1856, delegates from across Illinois gathered at Bloomington's Major's Hal...

Digital Exhibit

The Lincoln Autobiography
Despite his loss to Douglas in 1858, Lincoln’s supporters did not give up on him. In fact they ...

Digital Exhibit

The Varied Caseload of A. Lincoln, Attorney
Lincoln took legal work where he could find it. His cases ranged from murder trials to mundane ...

Digital Exhibit

Articles

A small selection of Pages from our Past articles written by Bill Kemp

21 items

The top image was taken from the Livingston office building at the corner of Main and Washington streets, so the view is looking north. The second image shows the Comet perched on the roof of C.W. Klemm’s, a locally owned department store once located on the north side of the courthouse square.

Airship pays visit to downtown Bloomington in 1910
For Bloomington, the age of aviation arrived on September 14, 1910. On that date, a one-man air...

Article

Brown’s delivered white-collar education
Business colleges played an important but often-overlooked role in American education. For the ...

Article

an elevated view of a street corner and building. Women in dresses walk down the sidewalk, a horse and buggy are parked on the street. Utility poles are in the foreground. Two larger brick buildings are behind the two-story frame building, each with large advertisements painted on them. The two story frame building has light colored siding, many windows, and awnings over the first story storefront.

Cigar shop was where old men came to talk (and nap)
In the late 1800s, there was no better place in Bloomington to grumble about the “gov’ment,” de...

Article

Community Christmas ‘sing’ once annual event
The COVID-19 pandemic has led to the cancellation of countless holiday gatherings, school pagea...

Article

dozens of people are in this image, all standing looking towards the camera. Dirt is in the foreground, as well as a large steamroller. In the background is a two-story brick building, homes, trees, and utility poles. Many men are holding buckets and shovels.

First brick street in U.S. myth endures in Bloomington
At the southwest corner of the Courthouse Square, near the intersection of Center and Washingto...

Article

Halloween 1945 followed world war’s end
World War II still loomed large over American life during the Halloween season of 1945. The sur...

Article

The two giant Santas looming over the entryway to local retailer Livingston’s can be seen in this circa late 1950s photograph.

In 1955, downtown Bloomington 'dressed in holiday style'
Back in 1955, Bloomington was less than half its current size, toys were still made in America,...

Article

Joe Johnson, self-appointed Courthouse ‘traffic director’
In the 1960s and into the early 1970s, visitors to the McLean County Courthouse would see two f...

Article

Mandolin enjoyed ‘golden age’ in late 19th century
“The members of the Lotus Club last evening entertained their lady friends at their rooms on No...

Article

Museum’s newly acquired Lincoln letter window into legal career
The McLean County Museum of History, as part of its Presidents Day activities on Monday, will h...

Article

Phoenix Hall site of Lincoln’s last speech in Bloomington
On April 10, 1860, five-and-a-half weeks before accepting the Republican nomination for preside...

Article

a drawing of a three-story frame building. The second story has a balcony that overhangs the sidewalk. People are walking, and a horse and carriage are in the road.

Pre-Civil War Butler House survived into 1920s
On the western edge of downtown, the no-frills, mom-and-pop Butler House was an old friend to t...

Article

6 men are in this photograph, two standing at a contraption with hoses attached. The floor is wet.

Project to mark firefighter graves lesson in history
As part of a Memorial Day observance last month, active and retired Twin City firefighters plac...

Article

Although of poor quality, this is the only known photograph of the Pullman Strike of 1894 as it unfolded at the Union Depot on Bloomington’s west side. Note all the idle Pullman coaches and sleepers. Marooned passengers found various ways to while away the hours. Riders on a Pullman sleeper attached to a C&A limited spent much of July 3 — “all the afternoon and all the evening till midnight” — singing popular songs of the day, such as “Sweet Marie,” “John Brown’s Body” and “In Old Madrid.”

Pullman Strike left Twin Cities at standstill
On July 3, 1894, area residents flocked to the Chicago & Alton Railroad on Bloomington’s we...

Article

This woodcut, appearing in an April 1869 advertisement, represents the only known interior image of Frederick Niergarth’s Academy of Music.

Short-lived performance hall once city’s finest
For a few years after the end of the Civil War, the Academy of Music was Bloomington’s most ele...

Article

This carte de visite portrait dates to 1864.

Sojourner Truth spoke in Bloomington
One hundred and forty years ago this week, on Sept. 18, 1879, the incomparable Sojourner Truth ...

Article

a large crowd is seen in front of Ensenberger Furniture store and the W.B.READ & CO buildings.

Spirits high for Depression-era Christmas
During the 1936 Christmas season, Americans faced an Ebenezer Scrooge writ large — the hard tim...

Article

Turbulent times at 19th century Bloomington hotel
The Ashley House, Bloomington’s largest hotel from the Civil War until its fiery end in 1900, h...

Article

Turner Hall lost monument to German pride
More than a century ago, Turner Hall was the cultural hub of Bloomington’s large and influentia...

Article

WW I home front featured French-Belgian relief
The War to End All Wars, as the First World War was once called, brought out the best and the w...

Article

This Susan B. Anthony portrait dates to 1870, the same year she participated in the women's suffrage debate in downtown Bloomington.

Women’s suffrage debate captivates Twin Cities in 1870
On August 26, 1920, U.S. Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby signed into law the 19th Amendment...

Article

Biographies

30 items

James Allin

Allin, James
James Allin was born on January 13, 1788 in North Carolina. He was the son of Isaac and Sarah F...

Biography

Judith Bradner

Bradner, Judith Ann
Judith Major Allin Bradner was born on May 9, 1814 in Bourbon County, Kentucky to William T. an...

Biography

Abram Brokaw

Brokaw, Abraham
Abraham Brokaw (he preferred to go by Abram), was born November 6, 1815 in Somerset County, New...

Biography

Lincoln Bynum in 1969

Bynum, Lincoln
True and literal meaning is leant to the phrase “brothers in arms” by Lincoln Bynum and his old...

Biography

Ferre Goodman

Ferre, Goodman
Goodman Ferre (pronounced Ferry) was born on January 27, 1806 and died on September 24, 1897.  ...

Biography

Henry Frank Headstone

Frank, Henry “Teddy”
Henry “Teddy” Frank was born in Pennsylvania sometime in 1840 or 1841 and remained there until ...

Biography

Funk, Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin Funk was born on October 17, 1837 to Isaac and Cassandra Funk. Benjamin was t...

Biography

James Goodheart

Goodheart, James
James Goodheart is recognized in our local history as the son of two “honored pioneers” as well...

Biography

Mary Gridley

Gridley, Mary
Mary Enos Gridley was born in Onondaga Hollow, Onondaga County, New York on March 18, 1818. Whe...

Biography

Absalom Hawkins

Hawkins, Absalom
Absalom Hawkins, known as Ab by nearly all, was born on December 25, 1855. According to his obi...

Biography

Higgins, Hamer
Considering his chosen line of work, one might not be too surprised to learn that Hamer J. Higg...

Biography

Hobbs, Dr. William C.
Dr. William Hobbs was born in Maryland on December 24, 1800. Very little is known about his lif...

Biography

Emily Howard

Howard, Emily
At the turn of the twentieth century, when the public reception of visual arts in Bloomington, ...

Biography

Huggins, Sophia
Sophia Huggins (1831-1903) or “Aunt Sophia” as she was known by her clientele, was a claimed cl...

Biography

Jung, Jacob
Jacob Phillip Jung was born on February 9, 1850 in Nauvoo, Hancock County, Illinois to parents ...

Biography

Kennedy, Merlin Robert
The local story of the American Civil Rights Movement, especially in McLean County, cannot be t...

Biography

CW Klemm

Klemm, C.W.
Carl Wilhelm (C.W.) Klemm was born on May 1, 1845 in Haynrode, Saxony, Germany. His grandfather...

Biography

Hilda Livingston

Livingston, Hilda
Sigmund Livingston was born on December 27, 1872 in Giessen, Germany. He was one of eight child...

Biography

Moratz, Paul
Paul O. Moratz had a passion for building and design that started at a young age. For 34 years ...

Biography

Rose Whipp

Northrup, Rose Whipp
Rose Whipp Northrup was born on September 27, 1850 in Beardstown, Illinois.  She was the daught...

Biography

Portrait of Arthur Pillsbury

Pillsbury, Arthur L.
Arthur L. Pillsbury was born in Bloomington, Illinois on November 29th, 1869. He grew up in Blo...

Biography

Ida Porter

Porter, Ida
Ida Porter was born on September 19, 1863 in Normal, Illinois.  She was the daughter of Solomon...

Biography

Sanders, Isaac
Isaac Joshua Beasley Sanders was born in Little Rock, Arkansas on January 17, 1878. He was the ...

Biography

Schroeder, Baroness Maria von Buchau
Much of what we know about Herman Schroeder comes from his own accounts.  Some of this informat...

Biography

Herman Schroeder

Schroeder, Dr. Herman
Much of what we know about Herman Schroeder comes from his own accounts.  Some of this informat...

Biography

George Winfield Stipp

Stipp, Dr. George Winfield
Dr. George W. Stipp was born on January 27, 1799 near Winchester, Frederick County, Virginia.  ...

Biography

Thompson, Jennie
Jane “Jennie” Lynd Thompson was born on October 28, 1860 in Bond Head, Canada—located in the pr...

Biography

Grace Wagner

Wagner, Grace B.
Grace B. Wagner was born on May 1, 1890 to Henry and Nellie Spafford Wagner. The family resided...

Biography

Jennie Wickizer

Wickizer, Jennie MacDonald
Jennie MacDonald Wickizer was born on December 31, 1852 at Knightswood, Scotland, located just ...

Biography

Sarah Withers

Withers, Sarah
Sarah Rice Withers was born to John M. Rice and Patsy (Polly) Johnson Rice in Jessamine County,...

Biography

Blog

8 items

Addison Pancake ‘Deaf Mute’ Photographer, ca. 1869
In 1860, hearing impaired photographer Addison Pancake (1844-1900) operated a studio at 108 W. ...

Blog Post

Jan Lancaster -- 2024 History Maker
She is “Momma” to many searching souls, looking for a safe haven. Jan Lancaster has operated th...

Blog Post

McHistory: Bloomington Copperhead Ostracized For Pro-Slavery Views
Listen to the audio on WGLT's website hereMcHistory goes back in time to explore big momen...

Blog Post

McHistory: Bloomington-Normal’s Sole Documented Lynching
Listen to the audio on WGLT's website hereMcHistory goes back in time to explore big momen...

Blog Post

McHistory: Life, literature and children

Blog Post

McHistory: When Downtown Bloomington reigned in retail

Blog Post

McHistory: When socialism really was socialism
Listen to the audio on WGLT's website hereMcHistory goes back in time to explore big momen...

Blog Post

Tilden-Hall’s Sad Demise February-March 1962
Yesterday we showed the Tilden-Hall Hotel in its 1930s glory. The six-story hotel, located at t...

Blog Post

Finding Aids

10 items

Baldini, John
The parents of John Baldini emigrated from Italy to the United States during the major influx o...

Finding Aid

Bloomington Fire Collection
Just after midnight on June 19, 1900, a great fire began sweeping through much of the city'...

Finding Aid

Clarke, Marguerite E.
Marguerite E. (Dobson) Clarke (1916-2007) was a lifelong resident of Bloomington. She received ...

Finding Aid

Hockey
Bloomington has been the home to two indoor recreational ice rinks—The former “Skatium,” now AR...

Finding Aid

McLean County Courthouse 4 Preservation Collection
The McLean County Courthouse was built between 1900 and 1903 after the Great Fire of June 1900....

Finding Aid

McLean County Sesquicentennial Committee
The McLean County Sesquicentennial Celebration commemorated the founding of McLean County 150 y...

Finding Aid

Prairie Pride Coalition
The Advocacy Council for Human Rights was formed in 1995 from a community meeting at The Bistro...

Finding Aid

Second Presbyterian Church Collection
The Second Presbyterian Church was founded in 1855 as The New School Presbyterian Church, and w...

Finding Aid

Susie’s Cafe
The Susie in Susie’s Cafe was Elizabeth “Susie” Swearingen. The cafe was first located at 108 E...

Finding Aid

Wilson, Harrold B. Collection
Harrold Braden Wilson was born June 13, 1904, in Weldon, Illinois, and died June 3, 1991, in Bl...

Finding Aid

Making a Home

Digital Exhibit

2 items

Livingston Family
In 1860 Hannah Eliel, age nine, boarded the sailing ship Clobus with her teenage sisters Betty ...

Digital Exhibit

William and Henry Wells
Brothers William and Henry Wells had both been born into slavery. They were free men when they ...

Digital Exhibit

Speakers Bureau

5 items

Downtown Bloomington Architectural Tour

Speakers Bureau

McLean County Holiday Stories

Speakers Bureau

Old McLean County Courthouse

Speakers Bureau

The 'Lost Speech' Found: Abraham Lincoln and the Founding of the Illinois Republican Party

Speakers Bureau

To Be a Writer, One Has To Be a Reader: the Life and Work of Clara Louise Kessler

Speakers Bureau

Working for a Living

Digital Exhibit

3 items

Crafting Custom Products for a Local Market
Skilled craftsmen set up shops and began to produce one of a kind items for the local market. T...

Digital Exhibit

Insuring the Automobile
The insurance industry grew rapidly in McLean County, providing many jobs for salesmen, clerks,...

Digital Exhibit

Providing Services
A growing population meant a greater demand for service jobs.Featuring:Ellen “Nellie" Skin...

Digital Exhibit