Veteran

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.

Articles

Pages from our Past articles written by Bill Kemp

2 items

ISNU welcomed veterans after WWII

After World War II, Illinois State Normal University put out the welcome mat for returning sold...

Article

Memorial tablet honors ‘Great War’ dead

One hundred years ago today, November 11, 1918, the guns in Europe fell silent after more than ...

Article

Biographies

48 items

Adams, Dr. William Henry Harrison

Dr. William Henry Harrison Adams was born on March 30, 1840 in Effingham County, Illinois. He w...

Biography

Benjamin, Reuben Moore

Reuben Moore Benjamin was born on June 29, 1833 in Chatham Center, Columbia County, New York (2...

Biography

Blue, Richard

Richard Blue (1842-1921) was born in Ohio and came to Bloomington at age 9 with Judge Rayburn a...

Biography

Brown, Henry L.

Henry Brown was never afraid to learn new skills to overcome the challenges life threw at him. ...

Biography

Burnham, John Howard

John Howard Burnham was born on October 31, 1834 in Essex, Massachusetts. His parents, John Bur...

Biography

Bynum, Edward

True and literal meaning is leant to the phrase “brothers in arms” by and his younger brother L...

Biography

Bynum, Lincoln

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

Biography

Calimese, Napoleon

Napoleon J. Calimese (pronounced Calimeez) was born February 18, 1890 in Irvine, Kentucky. He w...

Biography

Carman, George

“‘To write, or not to write: whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to sit and scratch your pate in va...

Biography

Cheney, Owen Lee

Owen Lee Cheney (1846-1911) was a quixotic man in his quest for fame, fortune, and new experien...

Biography

Davis, Elmer

Elmer Ray Davis was born in Bement, Piatt County, Illinois, on October 6, 1888. He was the elde...

Biography

DeMotte, Harvey C.

Harvey Clelland DeMotte was a devoted and beloved teacher who worked to bring out the best in e...

Biography

Doubleday, Ulysses Freeman

Ulysses Freeman Doubleday was born on December 15, 1792 in New Lebanon, Columbia County, New Yo...

Biography

Ela, George Porter

Frances Harriet Rowell was born on November 15, 1835 in Waterford, Vermont. She was one of fou...

Biography

Foster, Daniel T.

Captain Daniel T. Foster was born on July 22, 1841 in Waitsfield, Washington County, Vermont. H...

Biography

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

Geneva, Carolyn Schertz

Carolyn Schertz Geneva was born on October 13, 1892 in Hudson. Illinois. She was the daughter o...

Biography

Goodheart, James

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

Biography

Gridley, Asahel

A great deal of the information known about Asahel Gridley is based on reminiscences of his fri...

Biography

Guthrie, Adam

Adam Guthrie was born on March 10, 1825 in Circleville, Pickaway Co., Ohio. He was one of twelv...

Biography

Haggard, David

David Haggard was proud of his family tree. David was a descendant of Sir Andrew Ogard, a Knigh...

Biography

Higgins, Hamer

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

Biography

Hill, Dr. William

Dr. William Hill (1829-1906) was a talented surgeon and one of Bloomington’s most respected phy...

Biography

Hogg, Harvey

The Bloomington lawyer and Civil War cavalry commander, Harvey Hogg (originally from Tennessee)...

Biography

Horine, William H.

William (Bill) Horine was born to Adam and Sallie (Mason) Horine on March 3, 1840 in Jessamine ...

Biography

Ijams, Lewis Ellington

Lewis E. Ijams was born on November 21, 1841 near Zanesville, Ohio. His parents were Lewis and...

Biography

Kennedy, Merlin Robert

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

Biography

Lewis, Edward J.

Edward J. Lewis was born to Enoch and Lydia Jackson Lewis in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on Sept...

Biography

Lott, Harrison Clay

Harrison Clay Lott was born August 16, 1848 in Madison, Indiana. When Lott was fifteen years o...

Biography

Malone, Simon Booth

Simon Booth Malone was born into slavery on December 18, 1842 in Tippah County, Mississippi. S...

Biography

Mandler, Christoph

Christoph Mandler was born on April 23, 1858 in Daubringen, County of Gressen in the Grand Duch...

Biography

McCoslin, William

William McCoslin (1830-1878) was born in Vandalia, Illinois on July 27, 1830. While the names o...

Biography

McCullough, William

William McCullough was born on September 11, 1811 in Flemingsburg, Kentucky. He was the son of...

Biography

McNulta, John

John McNulta was born on November 9, 1837 in New York City, New York. His father was Irish and...

Biography

Orme, William Ward

William Ward Orme was born February 17, 1832 in Washington, D.C. William’s parents died when h...

Biography

Pike, Alpheus

Alpheus Pike was born to Harrison Wallace Pike and Susan A. Mayberry Pike in Casco, Maine on Au...

Biography

Price, John Joseph

John Joseph Price was born on October 16, 1835 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Little information is known...

Biography

Read, Roland

Roland Spencer Read was born in Bloomington, Illinois, on May 26, 1895. He was one of three son...

Biography

Riebsame, Christian

Captain Christian Riebsame (1839-1913) was a German-born citizen who came to the United States ...

Biography

Roeder, John Conrad

John C. Roeder was born in Nordeck, Germany in about 1836. He was the son of Conrad and Elizab...

Biography

Smith, Alice Orme

Alice Orme Smith served as a nurse with the American, British, and French forces during World W...

Biography

Smith, Dr. Lee

Dr. Lee Smith was born on May 8, 1832 near Havens Grove, Illinois. He was the first child born ...

Biography

Stearles, Willis

Much of what we know today about Willis Stearles comes from oral history, members of the commun...

Biography

Stipp, Dr. George Winfield

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

Biography

Vrooman, Julia Scott

Carl was born in Macon County, Missouri on October 25, 1872. He was the son of Judge Hiram Perk...

Biography

Williams, Private Gus

Augustus “Gus” Williams was born in Jacksonville, Illinois on September 22, 1892. He was the so...

Biography

Witherspoon, Julius

Julius Witherspoon (1859-1906) relocated to Bloomington from Arkansas when he was 24. He worked...

Biography

Blog

3 items

McHistory: Civil War Letter Home After Battle

Listen to the audio on WGLT's website hereMcHistory goes back in time to explore big momen...

Blog Post

McHistory: Experiences in the Spanish American War

Listen to the audio on WGLT's website hereMcHistory goes back in time to explore big momen...

Blog Post

Saybrook’s last Civil War widow Emma Cook, May 1938

In May 1938, the Village of Saybrook prepared to celebrate its first Decoration Day (now known ...

Blog Post

Finding Aids

Archival collection finding aids (full contents of collections available on site)

22 items

Beel, Floyd E.—World War II Army Air Force Service

Floyd Everett Beel was born to Leown Iri and Emma Jane Calvert Beel in Decatur, IL, on February...

Finding Aid

Butler, Edward

Edward C Butler was born on January 1, 1867, the son of Preston and Elizabeth Cavanaugh Butler,...

Finding Aid

Cemeteries in McLean County Collection

The collection includes a listing of cemeteries in McLean County, as well as specific informati...

Finding Aid

Civil War

When war was declared in April 1861, Richard Yates, Governor of the State of Illinois and Comma...

Finding Aid

Civil War Era Correspondence

This collection contains hundreds of letters written during the Civil War by many people includ...

Finding Aid

Exhibit: A Turbulent Time: Perspectives of the Vietnam War

Guest curator Ross Kennedy and staff member Susan Hartzold prepared these materials for the 200...

Finding Aid

John Howard Burnham Collection

Captain J.H. Burnham came to McLean County in 1858 as a student at the State Normal University....

Finding Aid

Kennedy, Merlin

The collection includes the personal papers of Mr. Kennedy, and his wife Beulah (1923-2002). T...

Finding Aid

Rice, Charles Edward

Charles Edward Rice (October 5, 1949-October 17, 2008) was an Army veteran of the Vietnam War, ...

Finding Aid

Sons of the Union Veterans of the Civil War

The Sons of the Union Veterans of the Civil War (SUVCW) Collection consists of personal and for...

Finding Aid

Spanish-American War Veterans

Includes rosters, newspaper articles, burial records, programs and proceedings from annual vete...

Finding Aid

The Auxiliary to the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War (ASUVCW)

The ASUVCW Collection consists of encampment proceedings (1933-40), constitutions and by-laws, ...

Finding Aid

Veterans of World War 1 Barracks

The Veterans of World War 1 organization was created in 1949, first in Ohio, and then, in 1954,...

Finding Aid

Vietnam Moving Wall

Several organizations present a "Moving Wall" -- a scaled down replica of the Vietnam...

Finding Aid

Vietnam War

This collection contains letters, newspaper articles, and various manuscripts relating to and c...

Finding Aid

Woodward, Horace E.

Woodward, known by his friends as “Hod,” was born on August 21, 1878 to Walter M. and Ellen N. ...

Finding Aid

World War I Collection

The World War I Collection is divided into five sections, organized from general to specific as...

Finding Aid

World War I: State Council of Defense

During the summer of 1918, the State Council of Defense of Illinois organized local committees ...

Finding Aid

World War II Collection

World War II erupted in September 1939 with the German invasion of Poland and ended with Japan’...

Finding Aid

World War II Home Front Oral Histories

The Interviewers were senior students of W. Michael Weis, Ph.D., Professor of History at Illino...

Finding Aid

World War II Interview Papers Collection

World War II erupted in September 1939 with the German invasion of Poland and ended with Japan’...

Finding Aid

World War II Magazine Collection

The World War II Magazine Collection contains publications that were kept or found by residents...

Finding Aid

Research

1 item

Post Amerikan

Held by the MCMH and digitized by Eastern Illinois University. The Post Amerikan began publicat...

Article

Videos

Livestreamed and recorded presentations by staff, experts, and community members.

6 items

Captain Christian Riebsame performed by John Bowen

Video

Carrying The Colors: The Life and Legacy of Medal of Honor Recipient Andrew Jackson Smith

Video

Edward and Lincoln Bynum performed by Timothy Jefferson and Emmanuel K. Jackson

Video

From McLean to Mobile: A History of the “The McLean County Regiment”

Video

Richard Blue performed by Gregory D. Hicks -- 2023 Evergreen Cemetery Walk

Video

Willard Johnson's WWII Message Home Sponsored by Pepsi

Video