Technology

Articles

8 items

In 1953, two McLean County corn farmers broke the 100-bushels-per-acre barrier. Newell Henderson, left, of Stanford and Merle Kuehling of Arrowsmith, second from left, are seen here on March 9, 1954, at the McLean County 100 Bushel Corn Club’s annual banquet. Also shown are Phyllis Kuehling, Merle’s wife, and Farm Adviser Eugene Mosbacher, far right.

100 Bushel Club pushed corn yields in the 1950s

In this age of genetically modified crops, once unimaginable corn yields topping 200-plus bushe...

Article

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

Barns fast disappearing from Corn Belt countryside

One would be hard pressed to come up with a more iconic image of the Corn Belt than the old woo...

Article

Electric cars sparked local interest long before Rivian

The startling success of electric automaker Rivian has shined an international spotlight on Blo...

Article

This all-steel “utility” farm building erected near LeRoy in November 1949 speaks to the transformation of Corn Belt barns in the post-World War II years, as the iconic wood-frame “big red barn” of rural Americana gave way to the utilitarian (and far less aesthetically pleasing) machine shed.

End of horse era spurs revolution in barn design

Though it may seem hard to believe, horses remained an integral part of Corn Belt farms well in...

Article

two men stand next to a pail, with a salvation army sign

Holidays bring turbulent year of ’68 to a close

Fifty years ago this week, December 1968, fast-approaching Christmas and New Year’s afforded ma...

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

Water-pumping windmills forerunner to wind turbines

Today’s larger wind farms can include hundreds of 280-feet tall turbines and cover thousands of...

Article

Biographies

1 item

Mayes, John Jackson

John Jackson Mayes, Jr., (1851 -1918) known as J.J., was engaged in the photography business, a...

Biography

Blog

5 items

McHistory: Modern electronics rests with Bloomington-Normal's only Nobel Prize winner

Blog Post

New Two-Way Radios Bloomington Fire Department, 1953

The BFD tried out its new two-way radio system in late August 1953. Seen here are Fireman Rober...

Blog Post

Photo of the Week, 99: Calling All Cars! Normal Police Department, 1938

Seen here is Normal Police Chief James Clarence Land in mid-January 1938 with the department�...

Blog Post

Susan Emrath Computer Pioneer, 1968

In early November 1968, The Pantagraph profiled Susan Emrath, a recent Illinois State Universit...

Blog Post

Television comes to Danvers June 1949

Who remembers television coming to their home? In June 1949, The Pantagraph reported on the arr...

Blog Post

Events

1 item

Being Innovative in Bloomington-Normal w/ Jamie Mathy and Kevin McCarthy

Join the McLean County Museum of History for the second Lunch & Learn of 2023 with Jamie Ma...

Event

Farming in the Great Corn Belt

3 items

Government Aid and Programs

The U.S. government first provided loans and incentive programs to farmers for farm land and eq...

Digital Exhibit

Home Bureau

Clara Brian's work as McLean County’s Home Bureau advisor (1918 to 1945) dramatically impr...

Digital Exhibit

New Technology: Computers

In the 1970s, area farmers began to use computer technology to improve yields and profits....

Digital Exhibit

Finding Aids

3 items

International Tapetronics Corp

Formed in 1969 in Bloomington, Illinois the International Tapetronics Corporation (ITC) tasked ...

Finding Aid

Multiple Listing Service

Multiple listing service (MLS) is a set of services that real estate brokers use determine how ...

Finding Aid

Phonograph and Audio

This collection includes audio recordings of speeches, meetings, and music on cassettes, reels,...

Finding Aid

Speakers Bureau

2 items

Before Rivian: The Henney Kilowatt--Bloomington's Battery-powered 'Car of Tomorrow'

Speakers Bureau

German Brewers in Bloomington, IL 1859-1920

Speakers Bureau

Videos

4 items

Before Rivian: The Henney Kilowatt--Bloomington's Battery-powered 'Car of Tomorrow'

Video

Being Innovative in Bloomington-Normal

Video

Bloomington-Normal Innovation Alliance: Partnering for Our Digital Future

Video

Making Insurance Interesting - Stories from State Farm with Corporate Archivist Buck Farley

Video

Working for a Living

7 items

Demand for Communication Services Increased

Telephone operators were first employed in 1874, when Bloomington business lines were installed...

Digital Exhibit

Insuring the Automobile

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

Digital Exhibit

Powering Rural Communities

Bloomington residents began to electrify their homes in the late 1880s. But rural McLean County...

Digital Exhibit

Punch Cards and Computing

After World War II, employees at area insurance companies processed more and more policies. The...

Digital Exhibit

Robotics Replaces Some Workers, But Hand Work Remains Necessary

When Diamond Star Motors began production in 1988, the assembly line included state-of-the-art ...

Digital Exhibit

Sound Advancements

Engineers working at Bloomington’s WJBC AM radio developed new audio recording technologies tha...

Digital Exhibit

Urban Expansion Created Jobs

Many construction and infrastructure jobs resulted from the urban expansion that began east of ...

Digital Exhibit