The Iowa State Penitentiary in Fort Madison stands as the oldest prison west of the Mississippi. Built in 1839—seven years before Iowa even became a state—it operated for 176 years, making it one of the longest-running prisons in the country.

Constructed with locally quarried limestone, the prison housed thousands of inmates over the decades. While it wasn’t known for infamous criminals, it was the setting for plenty of fascinating stories—escapes, reforms, and the ever-evolving approach to incarceration. The penitentiary became a major employer for Fort Madison and a defining part of the city’s identity.

In 2015, the prison officially closed, replaced by a modern facility nearby. While no tours are available, the massive stone structure remains an imposing landmark, easily visible from the outside. Its walls hold nearly two centuries of Iowa history, a testament to Fort Madison’s resilience and role in shaping the state’s past.

In the early 1800s, Illinois was still a patchwork of prairies and frontier settlements, but Illinois lawmakers were choosing names meant to inspire the generations who would follow. One name stood out: Warren. Early Americans honored Revolutionary War heroes when naming new counties, towns, and landmarks during westward expansion.

And so, Warren County, Illinois, was named in honor of Dr. Joseph Warren, a man whose story is woven into the earliest fabric of the American Revolution. Warren wasn’t a typical founding hero. He wasn’t a president or a general who lived to see independence. Instead, he was a physician turned patriot, a leader whose resolve helped spark the earliest momentum toward independence.

On June 17, 1775, at the Battle of Bunker Hill, Warren volunteered to fight as a common soldier, despite holding the high rank of major general. It was there, in the smoke and chaos of one of the Revolution’s earliest and fiercest clashes, that he was killed. His death sent shockwaves through the colonies and turned him into a symbol of sacrifice for the cause of liberty.

On the frontier, stories of the Revolution were everywhere: in schoolbooks, in Fourth of July speeches, in the patriotic culture that helped define the young nation. Even in newly settled Illinois, people knew Joseph Warren as one of the first great martyrs for American freedom. The men in the Illinois legislature who established Warren County were part of the first generation after the Revolution. So, when the name “Warren County,” was chosen, a new community was anchored to the ideals Joseph Warren died defending: courage, conviction, and the belief that ordinary people can shape the destiny of a nation.

The episode was written by Ann Tenold.

On March 11, 1963 Red Front Tavern regulars got involved in a discussion about the Mississippi River. The winter of '63 had been hard and in March the river was still high with huge pieces of ice. Someone remarked that conditions were very bad, and someone else then disagreed and said that if necessary you could still cross the Mississippi to Montrose in a small boat. In no time at all the lines were drawn into two factions, some said yes, and some said no. The wagering then started and the stakes became higher and higher. Finally a group of five brave, or crazy souls made the crossing in a small wooden boat with an ample supply of liquid courage. They planted a flag on the lowa shore, purchased more beer, and sailed back across the river. The crossing by Fred Barbley, Bud Kachle, Gerald Knipe, Jerry Knipe, and Bill Schmitz was immortalized in a painting by Don Beasley and can be seen today at the Weld House museum in Nauvoo.

This episode was written by Rebecca Williamson.

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Interior of Griffith Hardware

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Mid-Century Kerr hardware in background.

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1971 Smiles day Kerr Hardware in background

117 West Washington Street in Rushville, IL, has had a hardware store on its site since 1852.

Originally, it was called Griffith Hardware and the business operated out of a small frame shack. In 1883, the small frame shack was replaced with a two story brick building fronting the public square. Two years later a brick warehouse was added to the rear and extended to Congress St. to the west. This allowed the company to expand and sell farm equipment.

In 1920, the business was purchased by Joseph Kerr and A. H. Parrott. It was called Parrott and Kerr. In 1924, disaster struck when a fire broke out on the upper floor of Parrot and Kerr. Fire soon consumed the building. As firefighters arrived from Rushville and nearby towns, citizens helped remove goods from buildings ahead of the flames. Tragedy struck when the wall at Nelson’s Clothing collapsed and killed four young people. The 1924 fire was the deadliest fire to ever occur on the public square in Rushville.

In 1925 the present store was completed. In 1929, A. H. Parrott passed away and Joseph Kerr became sole owner. The store has been in the Kerr family ever since. In 2025, Tom, a fourth-generation Kerr, and his daughter Angy (Kerr) Hardy, a fifth-generation Kerr, are the present owners.

This episode was written by John Haywood, Rushville Industry High School Student.

Rose Jolly lived a life devoted to community care, education, and civic service in McDonough County. As a young woman in the late 1800s, she was known for her independence, joining bicycle races in Galesburg, hosting social events for her friends at the hotel owned by her family, and traveling to Europe. She even worked briefly in Chicago as an undertaker’s assistant.

A turning point in the life of Rose Jolly came after she witnessed cruelty toward a cow by its owner, an experience that strengthened her commitment to protecting vulnerable animals, children, and families.

Jolly served as secretary and later president of the McDonough County Humane Society, working with Josie Westfall at the local orphanage to help place children in safe homes. At the time, humane societies often handled legal documentation, supervised removals, and managed the care of children as part of community welfare practice.

Rose Jolly was recognized for promoting cross-agency cooperation in child welfare by the Illinois State Humane Society. In addition to her work advocating for the children in the community, she cared for family members while managing the Jolly Hotel, balancing business responsibilities with community service. Remembered as determined and compassionate, her work helped shape early twentieth-century social welfare efforts in Macomb.

Photo: Rose Jolly Front Left

This episode was written by Sue Scott, Executive Director of the Western Illinois Museum in Macomb, Illinois.

People of all times have found reasons for making pilgrimages to the Spoon River area for relaxation and entertainment. Those in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s found a unique attraction at the spa on the Andrew Burnett farm one and one-half miles north-east of Maquon along the west bank of the Spoon. By this time there was a widespread interest in mineral springs throughout the country. In 1884, Burnett, quite by accident, discovered a spring in a field on his 260-acre farm. After the discovery of the spring, the water was piped into the Burnett home, a spacious 15 room white house on a hill overlooking the river area.

It didn’t take long to realize that the spring water had unusual properties. There is a letter on record from a chemist at the University of Illinois to Dr. E.E. Truitt, December 1898 reporting an analysis of a sample of the water. By 1898, Andrew and Elizabeth Burnett with the help of their sons Fred and Sam were bottling and selling the mineral water for medicinal and health purposes. It was known as Mound Mineral Spring Water from Maquon. In 1901 the product was renamed Aquae Vita, the water of life. In 1906 the company went public as the Aqua Vita Mineral Springs, with a capital stock of $30,000.00. Shares at 10.00 each quickly sold out. The water was entered in a competition at the St. Louis Exposition in 1904, it was awarded a silver medal for second place and was recommended as one of the best waters in the world.

About that time Andrew began to lose his eyesight and depended more on his children for help. His daughter Margaret and her husband George Ritchie moved to his home and became part of the business. They decided to develop a sanitarium and resort and on June 19, 1911, Maquon was treated to a formal opening. The old house was remodeled into 23 rooms, refurnished and made ready for overnight guests. Several cottages were added and rates at the resort were $8.00 per week for room and board.

It is not clear just how long the fascination for the mineral water and pleasures of the spa continued, but by 1915 the business was not paying, and Andrew had sold part of the farm to keep the springs going. At this time he decided to discontinue the Aquae Vita Mineral Springs Sanitarium and Resort and moved to Abingdon, Illinois where he died in 1924 at the age of 85.

Even after the resort was closed, the aura of glamour remained. Young and old alike often have reexamined the old trails and speculated on the mysteries of the old white house on the hill and the power of Maquon’s miracle water.

This episode was written by Kenny Knox.

Early settlers sought entertainment. Taverns could fulfill some of the need. Later there would be real, live theatre at the Marion and Grimes Halls. Opening of the Grand Opera House in 1882 meant a few operas - but also concerts such as John Philip Souza - and theatrical productions ranging from comedies and minstrel shows to Shakespeare.

The Joseph Jefferson Troupe was the first to appear in Burlington - for several weeks in 1838. Little Joe was the youngest performer in the multi-generational Jefferson Company. And people loved him. Little Joe went on to achieve fame as an actor. In 1865, he and Laura Keane were the leads in “Our American Cousin.” Fate led him to leave the company. And President Lincoln was assassinated at a performance not long after.

Joe Jefferson became known primarily for his portrayal of Rip Van Winkle. During the next four decades, it became his acting life. And, yes, he did appear at the Grand Opera House - as did his sons, yet another generation of Jefferson actors.

(Note that this last paragraph isn’t necessary but if you have enough time for it, I think it’s  funny.) In 1898, already in his 70s – Joseph Jefferson replied as follows to a Cincinnati bore who asked him when an actor ought to retire: “Well, counting the time for getting out of costume and the slowness of hackmen, I think an actor should retire at about 11:45.”

This episode was written by Mary Krohlow.

Ghostly streetcars, invasions from space, time travel without time machines: Jack Finney imagined them all. As well as Galesburg - in the springtime.

Born Walter Braden Finney in 1911 in Milwaukee, Jack came to Knox College and lived in Galesburg with his aunt and uncle until he graduated in 1934. Finney left Galesburg but his fiction kept drawing him back.

Take the title story of his 1963 collection, "I Love Galesburg in the Springtime" - a tale of a small town haunted by a nostalgia so strong it summons real ghosts. It's one of a handful of modern fantasies Finney set in Galesburg or Midwestern towns that seem an awful lot like Galesburg. A place and a time can make great impressions on a person. Finney impressed others with Galesburg too. His description of the cherry trees once blooming on Galesburg streets brought readers from Japan to see them - sadly, years after the trees were cut down.

Finney is best remembered now for two of his most famous novels, "Time and Again," which Stephen King calls "the great time travel story" and the many times adapted for screen "Invasion of the Body Snatchers." He passed in 1995 at his home in California. But Finney's Galesburg is still alive and with us today.

This edition was written by Joel Ward and voiced by Joel Ward.

SOURCES
Jack Finney
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Finney

Jack Finney loved the 'Burg Harry Bulkeley
https://www.galesburg.com/story/opinion/columns/2015/05/23/jack-finney-loved-burg/34493341007/

Knox College Archives Research on Finney by Joel Ward

IMAGES
Jack Finney https://www.fictionunbound.com/blog/2016/4/14/dont-you-forget-about-jack-finney

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Book Covers From the personal collection of Joel Ward

The 1996-97 Rushville Rockets Boys Basketball team is remembered as a squad that defied the odds and achieved greatness. Coming off a dismal 2-28 season in 95-96, the Rockets were determined to turn things around.

Early on, the team struggled. But as the weeks passed, the Rockets began to show resilience, securing crucial wins and starting to gel under the leadership of Coach Jimmy Shepherd. One key contributor, forward Beau Fretueg, father of the author and present Superintendent of Schuyler-Industry Schools, recalled how the lessons learned from a rough prior season and the implementation of man-to-man defense helped the team grow stronger.

In the regional tournament, the Rockets hit their stride, defeating Beardstown and Brown County in commanding fashion. But the true drama unfolded in the Regional Championship, where they faced Augusta-Southeastern in a game that went into triple overtime. In an unforgettable moment, Bobby Ren hit the game-winning shot as time expired, giving the Rockets their first Regional title in 25 years.

This episode was written by Bennett Fretueg, student at Rushville Industry High School

Many people have heard it said that at one time Nauvoo was larger than Chicago. Was Nauvoo really larger than Chicago? Yes! In the 1840 census, Chicago's population was 4,470 people and Nauvoo had 2,700 people. In 1844, Nauvoo had grown to around 12,000 people, while Chicago was only 8,000. Nauvoo was the largest city in Illinois! Joseph Smith and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints were actively encouraging and helping people to immigrate from places like the United Kingdom to Nauvoo. So many people were arriving in Nauvoo that it was hard to keep up with building homes for them. People were living in tents and sod homes along with the wooden frame and brick buildings that we think of today. After the expulsion of the Saints in 1846 many of the buildings fell into disrepair and the population of Nauvoo dropped dramatically. The census in 1850 reported Nauvoo as having a population of 1,141 people.

This episode was written by Rebecca Williamson.

In 1883, Chief Keokuk’s remains were removed from Kansas and he was reinterred at Rand Park overlooking the bluff. An inscribed, brownstone monument to the Chief was placed at the site to honor the city's namesake. It was thought that a likeness of Chief Keokuk should be placed at the top but years passed without much progress.

Back then, cigar shops were a must among local businesses. Keokuk was dotted with tobacconists who hand-rolled cigars by the thousands.

One cigar store in particular stands out among Keokuk’s history, that of Edward J. Bevering at the corner of 12th and High Streets. His cigar store had an Indian statue at the entrance, that is at least until Halloween of 1912.

That night, local pranksters commandeered the statue and relocated it to the top of the brownstone monument at Rand Park. The action itself may have been shenanigans of local teenagers, but it prompted the wheels to begin turning to place Keokuk’s likeness at the park. Funds were raised through efforts of citizens and the Daughters of the American Revolution and sculptor Nellie Walker of Chicago went to work creating a masterpiece.

On October 22, 1913, the ten foot tall bronze figure we see atop the monument today was unveiled. It had taken thirty years and the work of pranksters, but the completed statue was finally in place above the city named for Chief Keokuk.

This episode was written by Angela Gates of the Keokuk History Center.

Howard Gustafson took to the piano at an early age. With his father having a side gig as a bootlegger, Howard had Burlington’s renowned pianist Martin Bruhl as his teacher - at a cost of one bottle of hooch for two lessons per week. By the time he was sixteen, he had his first major recital and moved on to a career in music.

The early years were unusual, as he played with a dance band touring with Siamese twins Violet and Daisy Hilton. And in 1934 he moved to Los Angeles to accompany female impersonator Rae Bourbon.

By 1937 he had changed his name to Bart Howard and moved to New York. Here he met Mabel Mercer, the first to sing one of the songs he wrote. In the 1950s he was emcee and intermission pianist at Manhattan’s stylish nightclub, the Blue Angel.

Songwriting finally paid off when he wrote “In Other Words.” Peggy Lee suggested he change the name to “Fly Me to the Moon” and the rest is history. In July of 1965, he was the guest on the Today television show. Together with Mabel Mercer and Stuart Damon, he talked, played, and sang his songs for the full two hours.

Bart Howard died in 2004 but his song will live on. And, yes, NASA adopted it and ensured that it be played on the moon.

This episode was written by Mary Krohlow.

With the outbreak of the Mexican Revolution in 1910, peaceful rural peasants from central Mexico fled their homeland in search of safety and opportunity. Many made their way to Iowa, finding work with the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway. As Santa Fe extended its tracks across the Mississippi River, Fort Madison became a key hub, and in 1888, the first train bridge was completed.

These skilled railroad workers, known as Traqueros, arrived first as single men, but soon their families followed. The Mexican population grew to more than 3,000, forming Fort Madison’s first Barrio—La Cometa—located in the rail yards. Families lived in railroad cars provided by Santa Fe or built makeshift homes, creating a tight-knit community despite the harsh conditions.

Today, Fort Madison is home to Iowa’s oldest Mexican community. The descendants of those early railroad workers still live, work, and thrive here, preserving a rich cultural legacy that remains a vital part of the city’s identity. Fort Madison’s history is built on the strength and perseverance of those who laid its tracks—one rail at a time.

This episode was written by Chi Easton.

One of the old stories about Monmouth is from back when it was just a quiet patch of prairie. A few dusty streets, a few brave souls trying to make a life. Folks say you could stand in the middle of town and hear nothing but the wind.

Then one day, that sound changed.

The first iron rails came slicing across the grasslands, the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy line. Suddenly, what took days by wagon could be done in hours. And once that first train came hissing and steaming into town, well… things were never the same.

Not long after, the Peoria & Oquawka line rolled through, and then the mighty Northern Cross laid its track right down the heart of Monmouth. Three railroads, three lines of iron, all meeting here.

That’s when the place came alive. Storefronts filled. The depot buzzed from dawn till dark. Farmers brought in their grain, merchants sold their goods, and families boarded those trains chasing dreams in every direction. You could feel it, people said, that hum of possibility, riding the rails right through town.

Monmouth wasn’t just a dot on a map anymore. It was a crossroads, it became a meeting place of people, progress, and promise.

From prairie grass to railroad tracks, that’s how Monmouth grew. And even now, every time a train whistle blows, you still feel that old heartbeat of that new town.

Galesburg native and author Carl Sandburg bought his first guitar in 1910, while living in Wisconsin, before launching his career in
Chicago as a poet and journalist. When he began giving lectures and readings across the country, he often concluded by playing guitar and singing folk songs that he had collected during his travels -- making him one of the nation's first performance artists. In 1926, he published nearly three-hundred songs in a book, The American Songbag, considered a foundational document for the folk music revival of the 1960s.

Although Sandburg's musical experience rarely extended beyond folk music, he was friends with legends in the guitar world. These included famed classical guitarist, Andres Segovia... and the editor of Guitar Review magazine, Gregory d’Alessio, who published Sandburg's poems and articles about guitar.

Sandburg sometimes purchased guitars and left them behind with friends he had stayed with, so they would be ready for him when he returned. Occasionally, he would give his guitar to a friend who admired it.

This episode was written by Peter Bailley with help from Barbara Schock

In a private family cemetery in Canton Missouri, a marble obelisk sits quietly in the woods, marking the grave site of one of Canton’s heroes with a still-legible inscription:

“This monument was erected by the officers and men of the 21st Infantry Regiment Missouri Volunteers to the memory of Maj. Barnabus B King who fell at the Battle of Shiloh while cheering his men on to victory.”

Barney King was born in Rockaway NJ, the son of a Presbyterian minister. He migrated to Northeast Missouri in the 1830s, where he worked as a sheriff for a time, operated a river ferry, and courted Canton native Matilda Carnegy, who he married in 1844.

By the time war came, unionist Barney and Matilda had a two-year old daughter named Lutie and Barney an appointment as an officer in the First Northeast Missouri volunteers. When that unit was federalized, he found himself part of the 21st MO infantry, comprised mostly of men from Scotland, Knox, Lewis, Schuyler, Clark, and Adair counties, rising to the rank of major.

He was with the 21st at the Battle of Shiloh, on April 1862 in Hardin County Tennessee. “Bloody Shiloh” saw 23,000 casualties making it the costliest battle in the war to that point.

On the first day, a fierce confederate counterattack pushed the union forces to retreat toward Pittsburgh landing: would the federal lines hold until Grant’s forces could be reinforced by Gen. Buell’s army of the Ohio or would they be completely repelled and lose the hold they had on the river?

Union troops were pushed to the brink but ultimately did their job. At the center of the worst fighting, in places like the infamous Hornet’s Nest, was the 21st Missouri. The 21st suffered fairly heavy losses, losing one officer and thirty enlisted men killed, with four officers and one hundred and fifty enlisted men wounded. But they did their job well and faithfully. One of the difference makers on April 6th was Barnabas King.

According to Col. Humphrey Woodyard, King’s commanding officer: “I have the honor to report that on the morning of the 6th of April, before sunrise, Gen. Prentiss ordered Col. Moore, with five companies of our regiment, to sustain the pickets of the 12th Michigan Infantry.”

Routed, they had to retreat to Pittsburgh Landing but would hold the beach head: “Maj. Barnabas B. King received a mortal wound and died in about thirty minutes,” Woodyard recalled. “He rendered me great assistance in the action, cheering on and encouraging my men. His death is a heavy loss to us. He was ever active, energetic and at his post of duty, vigilant in attending to the wants of the men.”

In the months after his death at Shiloh, family and admirers had his body returned to Canton for burial, not always possible or common then, and he was given a grand burial and a fine ornate obelisk marker. In 1883, when the city of Canton organized its own Grand Army of the Republic, they further honored King by naming it the “Barney King post."

This episode was written by Scott Giltner

A December 1850 medical journal announced exciting news: a building was being completed in the 200 block of Palean Street to house the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Iowa University.

In 1857, another medical college opened at Fifth and Concert but became the Lee County Courthouse just two years later. In 1858, a new facility on North Sixth near today’s Grand Theater joined the city’s growing roster of medical institutions.

The Civil War expanded Keokuk’s medical services, with 1,350 beds across sites like the Estes, Leighton, Simpson, and Deming Houses, Rice Hall, Central School House, and medical college buildings. Students and doctors treated thousands of wounded and ill patients.

In 1890, another building opened at Seventh and Blondeau, offering general and specialized medical courses with an amphitheater for 300. The first class graduated 63 men and women in 1891.

Keokuk Medical College and the College of Physicians and Surgeons operated as rivals until merging in 1899. They joined with Keokuk Dental College in 1897 and a pharmacy college in 1900. In 1908, they became part of Drake University and merged again in 1913 with the State University of Iowa, ending Keokuk’s era as a leader in medical education.

This episode was written and voiced by Angela Gates of the Keokuk History Center.

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Rushville's Phoenix Opera House early 1900s

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On January 7, 1882, a fire took out half of the wooden frame business houses on the south side of the square in Rushville, IL. Property owners decided to build a solid row of brick buildings.

Two of the property owners, Thomas Wilson and Wells Bros., decided to use the upper floors of their new buildings as an opera house. When completed the opera house could seat 500 people, had a stage with a trap door, curtain, and dressing rooms in the rear. The house was ventilated, heated, and four sets of chandeliers provided ample lighting. Twenty-two foot lights lit up the stage.

The Opera House was used until 1910 when the popularity of moving picture shows replaced live theater. The opera house was not used as intended until the early 1980s, when a group called the Phoenix Opera House Community Center, Inc. began to renovate the building. In 1985, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places. Since its reopening the Phoenix has served the community in the capacity for which it was originally proposed. Today the Phoenix serves as a center for community events, meetings, celebrations, concerts, lectures, plays, bingo, and trivia nights.

This episode was written by Brian Schmidt.

The area that is now called Nauvoo was originally settled by the Native Americans and called Quashquema, which means a peaceful place. The frontiersmen who explored this area called it the head of the rapids. In 1824 a US Army Captain and fur trader named James White came to an abandoned trading post building and bought the ground of Nauvoo from the Sac and Fox tribe that resided here. Legend says that the purchase was made for 200 sacks of corn under the trading oak. In 1829 the town had grown enough that a Post Office was established and the growing village was given the name Venus. In 1834 George Cutler, the postmaster of Venus, died and the town decided to rename itself Commerce to show what they envisioned the town becoming.

In the spring of 1839 Joseph Smith was in Quincy Illinois looking for a place for his band of pioneers to settle and he found large tracts of land for sale in an area that was looking for economic revitalization. In 1840 he renamed the town Nauvoo, which is a Hebrew word that means beautiful.

This episode was written by Rebecca Williamson.

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The 1839 border dispute between Iowa Territory and Missouri is known as "The Honey War" but wasn't actually about honey. It involved conflicting survey lines that left the boundary there at best ambiguous, at worst contentious. Survey lines varyied by almost ten miles at their greatest extent.

Land grabs and border disputes spark wars. It came perilously close between the state of Missouri and the Iowa territory in 1839. When the border was drawn, a description error led to uncertainty about the eastern corner. The area was home to tress and honey bees. The honey was highly prized.

What would become known as "The Honey War" began when a Missourian crossed the line and cut down three trees. To make matters worse, a Missouri sheriff tried to collect taxes from Iowans. Iowa responded by throwing him in jail. Missouri Governor Boggs ordered his militia to the boarder. Iowa Governor Lucas called for a militia from each county to convene in Burlington - with whiskey as incentive.

Tensions mounted and each side was prepared to fight. Courage was of the Liquid variety. Ultimately, the governors agreed to hold fire. The final decision wouldn't come from the Supreme Court and the U.S. Congress for more than a decade.

The militia men were not pleased. They would only be paid for days in which they were fighting. So they drained the whiskey. And as a vivid statement, they created and hung effigies of the governors to use for target practice.

This episode was written by Mary Krohlow.

The story of Walter H. Eller is a reminder that global history often takes shape in local places—classrooms, band rooms, and even an attic known as “the shack.”

Born in 1888, in Missouri, Eller devoted his career to education, music, and science. Before serving in World War I, he taught at River Falls State Normal School in Wisconsin. He later earned diplomas from Illinois State Normal University and the University of Chicago, where he directed the varsity band.

In 1920, Eller joined what is now Western Illinois University, where he would teach physical sciences for 38 years and direct the band for 22. In 1935, he wrote both the words and music for We’re Marching On, Western’s fight song—still played at athletic events today.

But Eller’s influence extended beyond music.

In 1923, he began transmitting over his ham radio station, W9YOL. He later founded the Physics Club, which became the Radio Club in 1936. Operating out of the attic of Sherman Hall—known as “the shack”—Eller shared his WWI military experience and taught students hands-on radio skills at a time when this emerging technology was becoming nationally important.

As the world moved toward another war, in 1941, Eller’s used his expertise to develop a civil pilot training program. By 1942, it was absorbed into a Navy Reserve training effort, where Eller taught communications—preparing students for the realities of wartime service.

Walter H. Eller died in Macomb on May 7, 1986. His legacy lives on in music, in science, and in the quiet but powerful role radio played in shaping both global history and local lives.

This episode was written by Sue Scott.

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Back in the day, long before yellow buses rattled down rural roads, much of the schooling in Warren County happened in humble one-room buildings scattered across the countryside.

In 1854, a small village was laid out amid rolling farmland in Warren County. In 1866, just a dozen years after the town of Kirkwood (then called Young America) was founded, the village’s “official” school was built. It was called the “Old South School”.

But beyond the village, 1878-era records show that rural Warren County was dotted with dozens of these “country schools” One room, wood framed — serving farming families spread across the countryside. By some counts, there were well over a hundred ungraded schoolhouses in the county. Inside one of those country schools, a single teacher would ring a bell to start class, gather students around a pot-bellied stove for warmth in winter, call out spelling lessons or arithmetic problems, lead recitations of history or scripture.

The Old South School hosted spelling bees, evening programs, and town gatherings. The one room serving as Kirkwood’s classroom, meeting hall, and social center all at once.

As Kirkwood grew with the railroad arriving, new families settled in and the tiny building couldn’t keep up. By the late 19th century, larger and more modern school facilities appeared, eventually replacing the original one-room schoolhouse. But that first little building on the south side of town lit the spark. It taught the first generations of Kirkwood’s students and set the foundation for the strong community the village is known for today.

In 1908 alone, Illinois still had over 10,000 rural one-room schools. These buildings remain a powerful symbol of simpler times: of multi-age classrooms, impromptu recess in open fields, community gatherings, holidays marked with potluck dinners, and a shared dedication to learning.

You can't go far in Galesburg without walking or driving on a Purington Paver brick. But the town was built on thick prairie dirt... and through much of the 1800s, every rain turned dusty streets to impassable mud.

Fortunately, below that prairie soil lay thick beds of clay. In 1849, the first brickmaker, German immigrant Henry Grosscup, bought land just east of Galesburg from Knox College. He then sold bricks to the college for its new buildings. The first of many brick streets in Galesburg was laid in 1884.

In 1890, Grosscup's property became the home of Purington Brick Company. Its namesake product, the hefty Paver, measured 4 by 4 by 8 inches and
weighed close to ten pounds. At its peak, Purington fired more than 150,000 bricks a day, in
ovens that covered 300 acres.

By the mid 20th century, however, road builders switched to asphalt. The company closed in the 1970s,but not before billions of Purington Pavers had shipped worldwide, from

Chicago to Paris... Panama City to Bombay, India... and Galesburg had laid over sixty miles of brick on every major street in town.

This episode was written by Peter Bailley with help from Barbara Schock.

“The Great Raid of Dec. 3rd, 1980,” was the event that led to the arrest of 30 men who were charged with poaching in Browning, Illinois. Only one of these hunters went to prison, but many suffered fines and lost access to hunting licenses.

The event shocked and aroused the area. MOST felt it was an intrusion on a way of life that had been present since the first people arrived in the region. So, Browning organized the Quackscam Festival.

The first annual Quackscam festival was held on Saturday, October 3rd, 1981. Quackscam was an all day event that featured a parade, food vendors, a carnival, a duck calling contest, bale bucking, bingo, and a crowning of “Little Miss Browning” contest. These events changed throughout the years. The last Quackscam Festival was held on October 3rd, 1992; and after eleven years the festival was disbanded.

Nevertheless, the event is still widely discussed and part of the local lore. Even today, one might see an old Quackscam trophy in someone’s home or even a copy of the Quackscam game. Hunting and fishing is still a way of life for the people of Browning, IL, and of course it is all done legally.

This episode was written by Emma Weber of Rushville Industry High School

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Nizie's grave at the time of death

Warren County Museum

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The Grave of Norma Jean

A myth about where elephants go to die. A metaphor for a place where people or things are forgotten or lost.

Draw a line through Illinois from Monmouth to Oquawka and just maybe you've found that mythical place. Or part of it.

Elephants wander in and out of American history. Jefferson hoped to find them west of the Missouri. There were none. The King of Siam offered Lincoln elephants. Lincoln said no.

Nizie was a male dwarf Indian elephant. Magic brought him to Monmouth. The magic of The Great Nicola, a renowned traveling magician who made Monmouth his home when he was not on the stages of the world. A gift from an Indian prince, Nizie was part of Nicola's traveling magical menagerie. Nizie grew ill in 1934, came to Monmouth for care but died in the fall and was buried forgotten in a pasture.

Norma Jean was a large African elephant and main attraction of the Clark and Walter Circus. She was beloved for her gentle nature. In July of 1972, tragedy and lightning struck Norma Jean. The circus left hurriedly. Due to her size, Norma Jean was buried by the town where she fell. A search for Nizie's grave a few years ago may have found it.

Norma Jean's grave is marked and celebrated by the town still.

This edition was written by Joel Ward

SOURCES
Jefferson's Old Bones
https://www.americanscientist.org/article/jeffersons-old-bones

Lincoln to Thai king: Thanks but no thanks for the elephants
https://www.sj-r.com/story/news/2018/04/01/lincoln-to-thai-king-thanks/12849296007/

Nizie the Elephant
https://www.wchistorymuseum.com/nizie-the-elephant.html

Norma Jean, we hardly knew ye
https://www.peoriamagazine.com/article/norma-jean-we-hardly-knew-ye/

Norma Jean, Elephant Killed By Lightning
https://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/3619

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Robert Noyce with Motherboard 1959

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Wallace Carother in the lab

Cross-breeding of animals and plants was a significant hobby for early Burlingtonians – especially the wealthy. Think apples from James Grimes and Charles Mason. Or how about horses from the younger Charles Perkins?

But inventions became even more laudable. The most notable names in this category are Robert Noyce and Wallace Carothers. Both were born in Burlington but, by school age, their families had moved on to other Iowa cities. Burlington claims them anyway.

For Robert Noyce, think integrated circuits and silicon microchips. Following those developments, he co-founded Intel. His nickname says it all: “The Mayor of Silicon Valley.”

Wallace Carothers, on the other hand, was a chemist. At DuPont, his work was with polymers and, by 1939, women were able to switch from silk stockings to nylon stockings – thanks to Wallace Carothers.

This episode was written by Mark Krohlow

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Canton Missouri has been a great friend to the pickle. Companies like Heinz had marketed them since the 1870s and demand boomed as the country grew. “Pickles Pickles Pickles! We want to contract for more pickles!” screamed a large ad for the Canton Pickle Co. in 1900. Area suppliers literally couldn’t get them out the door fast enough. Some Canton entrepreneurs determined to change that.

Among the more than 7 million patents filed during the 20th century was number 1190067, “the National Pickle Sorter” developed by Standard Machine Co, in 1916. Brothers J.C., J.A., and H.H. Zenge along with their partner T.C. Yeager, conjured a pickle-grading machine enabling rapid and accurate sorting, noting in the application “The invention aims to provide novel means for initially sorting the pickles, and to provide a cooperating means adapted to separate the sorted masses of pickles from each other as they drop downwardly.”

Demand was almost immediate. Standard Machine shipped twenty across the Midwest in the first year. Within a decade they produced fifty, aided by the National Pickle Factory Association of America’s official recommendation.

The nation’s appetite for canned food soared due to improvements like heat sealing and demand caused by World War One. Feeding soldiers and civilians was crucial to both morale and victory and was now needed on an immense scale. Such improvements in industrial canning helped make perishable food available like never before.

Standard Machine Company changed America’s canning industry, making it easier for farmers and suppliers to provide cucumbers, brought canned pickles to more people at home and abroad, and helped feed our soldiers. 

In time, other companies and other inventions replaced Standard Machine and its National Sorter. The factory closed in the 1980s, its building on Lewis Street was destroyed by fire in 2013, and today few seem to know about Canton’s important pickle sorter. But for a time in the 20th century it taught the world a lot about the Art of the Dill. 

This episode was written by Scott Giltner.

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When you mention Nauvoo today most people will think of Hotel Nauvoo the world famous buffet that is a Nauvoo tradition. The original building was built as a residence in 1841, but in 1885 William Riembold purchased the home and converted the property to the Oriental Hotel adding nine rooms for guests. William and his wife ran the hotel until

1940 and then the building was vacant for a number of years. In 1948 John A. Kraus bought the dilapidated structure and after returning the building to its former glory he opened Hotel Nauvoo with buffet and restaurant on the first floor and rooms upstairs. In 1961 the building next door was connected to add more dining area, and 1968 had another dining room built on. Today the buffet is still serving food like it did in 1948 and is still owned by the Kruas family.

The Kraus Family made the decision to close the hotel and restaurant after this episode was written and recorded.

This episode was written by Rebecca Williamson.

It is a fact that Abraham Lincoln is in the National Wrestling Hall of Fame because of his victory against the bully of New Salem … Jack Armstrong. It is also said that Lincoln only lost one wrestling match in the twelve years of his youth when he partook in the sport. And did you know the only match he lost was in Schuyler County, IL, and in fact, he may have lost twice?

In 1832 at the beginning of the Black Hawk War, 23 year old Capt. Lincoln led his men into camp just north of Rushville. After a dispute over a bivouac site, it was decided that Lincoln and Dow Thompson would “wrassle” for the right to camp. Lincoln said, “I then realized from his grip that for the first time that he was a powerful man and that I would have no easy job. The struggle was a severe one, but after many passes and efforts he threw me.”

Furthermore, according to William L. Wilson, a volunteer from Rushville, he and Lincoln also engaged in a wrestling match.

In 1882, Wilson wrote to the Adjutant General of Illinois and recalled the days of the Black Hawk War, “I have during that time had much fun with the afterward to be President of the United States ... I remember one time wrestling with him.Two best in three, and ditched him.”

If we are to believe Wilson then Lincoln was defeated twice and both losses were in Schuyler County.

This episode was written by Brian Schmidt

In the mid 1920’s Maquon had “radio fever.” WSBV, a radio broadcasting station, was operated by Clyde Hendrix in 1925 and
1926 from his cream testing station located on East Third Street in Maquon. If not the first, WSBV was one of the earliest radio stations in Knox County. The call letters stood for World’s Smallest Broadcasting Village. As promoter and operator, Clyde announced, “This is Station WSBV, world’s smallest broadcasting village, located on the banks of old Spoon River, where the bandstand stands in the middle of the town, the hard road runs all the way ‘round; everyone lives in the 100 block and your dog’s no better than mine.” Telephone requests came in for Ruth “Sugar” Forquer and her ukulele, and for the Selby sisters, Helen and Grace, who sang. Others wanted to hear Raymond Housh play his fiddle or listen to Harold Allen and Charlie Tomlinson, who were good on the mouth organ or jew’s harp. Anyone with a talent was welcomed, including Clyde’s hound dogs, always on hand to do their bit.

This episode was written by Kenny Knox.

Just after 9:30 PM on Thanksgiving Eve 1965, an explosion and flash fire tore through the National Guard Armory, where families had gathered for a night of square dancing. The blast collapsed the roof, trapping many inside. Seven died that night, over fifty were injured—some hospitalized for months. The final death toll reached twenty one.

Nearby residents rushed to help. Local medical workers treated the injured, contractors brought equipment, and the community rallied to donate blood, time, and labor in response to the tragedy.

Beyond local aid, people across the country—and even abroad—offered support. Patients were flown out for specialized care, news coverage spread far and wide, and donations came from places as far as Germany and Australia. Square dance clubs across the country reached out to help the victims and their families.

Investigators later determined the explosion was caused by a broken pipe leaking natural gas which was then ignited by a water heater.

As time passed, survivors began returning home, forever changed by the events of November 24, 1965—a day remembered for both its tragedy and the remarkable unity it inspired.

This episode was written by Angela Gates of the Keokuk History Center.

In Canton Missouri’s Forest Grove Cemetery, just off of highway 61, can be found the grave of Civil War veteran Christopher Columbus Clark, a man with some pretty surprising historical connections.

Born in 1846, Columbus Clark was raised in Canton. His mother Elizabeth Davis was cousin to Jefferson Davis. At 18, Unionist Clark enlisted in the 69th Enrolled Missouri Militia, formed in response to Confederate raids by guerilla commander Joseph Porter, serving as a private through portions of 1864 and 1865.

After the war he married Susan Overall, born the daughter of a minor slaveholder in Kentucky, and they had five children. Later, Columbus moved to Kansas to live with his daughter Gabriella, her husband Harry Armour and his granddaughter Ruth. Ruth married Ralph Dunham and had a grandson, Stanley Dunham. Columbus would pass away in 1937 at age 91 and was returned to Canton for burial.

Stanley Dunham married his sweetheart Maddie Payne in 1940. Maddie gave birth to a daughter named Stanley Ann, (known as Ann), in Wichita. In the late 1950s the Dunhams moved to Hawaii where Stanley got a job at a furniture store. In 1960, Ann Dunham met her future husband, a University of Hawaii student named Barack Obama, with whom she had a son born August 4, 1961 that you may have heard of.

So in Canton Missouri’s Forest Grove cemetery lay Civil War veteran Columbus Clark, cousin to the President of the Confederacy and 3rd great grandfather to the 44th President of the United States. Those relationships are a reminder that history connections are everywhere you look, even in small town Northeast Missouri next to the old Pizza Hut.

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Wyatt Earp

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Wyatt Earp home in Monmouth

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Wyatt Earp sculpture in Monmouth.

In the quiet heart of Monmouth, Illinois, stands a modest white house with green shutters. It’s the Pike-Sheldon House. At first glance, it looks like any other 19th-century home, but in 1848, it became the birthplace of one of America’s most legendary lawmen: Wyatt Earp.

Before the dusty streets of Dodge City and the gunfight at the O.K. Corral made him a frontier icon, Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp was just a boy growing up among the rolling prairies of western Illinois. His family’s home right in Monmouth still stands as one of the few places where visitors can literally walk in the footsteps of the man who would help define the Wild West. Wyatt Earp is a Monmouth son of the Heartland who became a national figure for his role in taming western frontier towns.

The Pike-Sheldon House isn’t just a birthplace, it is a time capsule. Its simple wooden frame has seen the growth of a nation, the movement of pioneers, and the rise of a legend whose name would echo from Illinois to Arizona and beyond.

Today, Monmouth honors that connection. It is a small Midwestern town that helped shape a larger-than-life American story. The Wyatt Earp Birthplace draws visitors, historians, and Old West enthusiasts from across the country.

Often heroes of the Wild West came from small, hardworking Midwestern communities. Because before he was a lawman and a legend, Wyatt Earp was one of Monmouth’s own.

The episode was written by Ann Tenold

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McCreery drug store cabin. Circa 1976, discovers in local home.

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1906, two years after the building was completed. At the time it was known as Vedder's Drugstore.

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A recent photo of the building, now know as Moreland and Devitt

In 1834 Dr. J.B. Clarke opened a drug store on the north corner of the west side of the public square in Rushville, IL. This location has been a “drug store” ever since.

In 1838, Clarke sold out to James G. McCreery, who continued the site's tradition until his retirement in 1883. It was then sold to Isaac N. Vedder. The Vedders ran the store until 1955 when it was sold to Clark Moreland. In 1960, Clark’s brother-in-law, William Devitt, purchased half the interest. Ever since the store has been known as Moreland and Devitt.

The original building was a log cabin and thereafter a one-story frame building was constructed. The cabin was moved to Monroe Street and eventually a frame home was built around it. In 1976, the home was torn down and still inside was the old “drug store” log cabin. The frame building survived until 1904, when Emma Vedder had the building torn down and a massive two-story brick building built. It still stands on the west side of the public square where Congress and Washington Street intersect.

Current owner, Garry Moreland, has researched the topic, and cannot find an older continuous site in the nation. Therefore, Rushville can claim the title as having the oldest continuous “drug store” in the nation.

This episode was written by Brian Schmidt.

Today, the term _grocery_ has a quaint, small-town ring. It's often paired with the word _neighborhood_. But in the 1800s, grocery also meant liquor store. Controversial.

In the Lincoln-Douglas Debates of 1858, Stephen Douglas referred to Abraham Lincoln as a -- quote -- flourishing grocery-keeper in
the town of Salem. Lincoln recognized an insult, and he replied that he had -- quote -- never kept a grocery anywhere in the world.

Although Galesburg was founded by anti-liquor fundamentalists, by the 1880s the city had 22 grocery stores. There were also 15 saloons, then known as sample rooms, that served liquor by the drink. Respectable women didn’t go into saloons, but from the grocer or druggist they could purchase concoctions such as Hostetter’s Bitters or Lydia Pinkham’s Vegetable Compound. These alcohol–based patent medicines were unregulated, widely advertised, and relatively inexpensive.

After prohibition ended in 1933, the word saloon faded from use, in favor of uptown terms such as tavern or cocktail lounge, and a grocery was something everybody wanted in their neighborhood.

This episode was written by Peter Bailey with help from Barbara Schock

In the spring of 1805 William Ewing set out to set up a trading post for the US Indian Affairs office. He cut down several oak trees on the peninsula that is now called Nauvoo and built a two story block house by May of 1805. Ewing managed the post for a short period of time, but it was closed due to mismanagement. A series of Indian Agents came through to open the trading post for short periods of time, but by 1810 the building sat abandoned and vacant. In 1824 Captain James White purchased the land and cabin and reopened the trading post. On May 10, 1839 Joseph Smith and his wife Emma would move into this log cabin after purchasing it from Captain White. This building still stands today and is called the Joseph Smith Homestead. Joseph expanded it several times for his growing family and growing church needs. Today the building is owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and is open for tours.

This episode was written by Rebecca Williamson

Wikipedia

Without a doubt, Burlington lived up to the reputation of river towns. The refined class was eclipsed by the ruffian class. Vast quantities of alcohol resulted in frequent brawls and even in shots being fired.

In 1905, Burlington was ripe for an appearance by Billy Sunday, the most notable evangelist of the time. In preparation, a temporary tabernacle was built. It seated four thousand, was 163 by 69 feet, and required forty wagon loads of sawdust to serve as the three-inch-thick floor. Because the five-week revival was to be in November and December, six stoves were placed inside for heating.

Billy Sunday had already made a name for himself as a professional baseball player. Playing initially for Chicago, he was reputed to be the fastest man in the National League – circling the bases in 14 seconds.

After his 1886 conversion, Billy went on the evangelism trail. Pulpit acrobatics served him well. Favored targets were the “red-nosed, buttermilk-eyed, beetle-browed, peanut-brained, saloon-keepers,” quoted the Burlington Gazette. One day, with a few free hours, he acted as timekeeper at a Burlington-Winfield football game. When a scuffle broke out, he quelled it by “flinging men right and left.”

The revival was a success with 2,500 people being converted. Records don’t show how many stuck with the conversion.

This Episode was written by Mary Krohlow.

No woman shaped Western Illinois University’s early years more than Caroline Grote. Born in 1863, she spent 56 years in education, breaking barriers as Illinois’ first female county superintendent.

In 1906, when Bayliss was president of Western Illinois State Teachers College, he hired Carolyn Grote to train school teachers. But she also advocated for improving conditions in rural schools. In one report, she noted that many schools had windows that “were seldom washed,” and outhouses that were deplorable. School libraries were often inadequate and not suited to the needs of the students.

Grote’s career took a new turn in 1908 when she became the Dean of Women and supervised the women students. One rule she upheld was that “every modern girl should have a chaperone.”

Even at 69, Caroline Grote never stopped learning, earning a doctorate from Columbia University. She retired in 1935, and to honor her impact, WIU renamed Monroe Hall to Grote Hall, ensuring her legacy lives on.

This episode was written by Sue Scott.

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Pechstein and Nagel

Submitted Photo

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Brewery Map

Submitted Photo

In 1973, the discovery of caverns beneath a yard on Plank Road in Keokuk brought to light the town’s rich history of beer and whiskey production.

Around 150 years ago, Keokuk had five breweries and seven distilleries. Keokuk’s first brewery was built in 1850 between 12th and 13th on Main Street. It was owned by William Schowalter. Joseph Kurtz would begin brewing at this location after taking over in 1855. He called it “City Brewery” and moved the operation to 19th and Plank Road by 1861. The Leisy Brewing Company was an impressive-looking operation along the riverfront in West K and Pechstein and Nagel’s Keokuk Brewery occupied the north side of the 1400 block of Main Street. They operated until January 1, 1916 when Prohibition was enacted in Iowa. Other breweries in Keokuk’s history included Kennedy and Vockrodt Ale, Eagle Brewery, Mississippi Brewery, Peter Haubert Brewery, Frederick Letterer, and F. W. Anschutz. Distilleries included Martin Keating, N. Leonard and Company, John S. McCoy, and Stannus and Evans.

Saloons promoted locally produced beer and whiskey, and beer gardens featured musical talents to attract patrons who would enjoy Keokuk’s brews.

Fires wiped out many breweries and by 1900, only two remained. When those remaining operations closed, so did a chapter in Keokuk’s manufacturing history.

This episode was written and voiced by Angela Gates of the Keokuk History Center.

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Edgar Allen Poe

Encyclopedia Britannica

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River Scene, Oquawka Illinois

Henderson County Library

"Poe ain't comin'."

That's what they might have said in 1849 in Oquawka, Illinois.

Edgar Allan Poe had already made "The Raven" croak and "The Tell-Tale Heart" beat by 1848 but the Mississippi River town of Oquawka, Illinois, wanted Poe not for his poems and tales but for his fame as an editor and the prestige Poe would bring to the new Oquawka Spectator.

Twenty year-old Edwin Patterson, son of The Spectator's founder, was a Poe fan. Patterson wrote Poe in December, 1848, inviting him to the edge of the Midwest and the beginning of the West. Poe could make The Spectator the literary heart of the nation, Patterson hoped. Oquawka had high hopes for itself too. Civic pride and boosterism were bulwarks of 19th century small town presses.

The life of a magazine editor in 19th Century America could be prestigious as well as precarious. The toast of a town or the nation one moment or falling deeper than the House of Usher the next. Patterson and Poe corresponded for months, with varying degrees of enthusiasm on the part of Poe.

Finally, circumstances intervened. Patterson waited for a letter that never came. Edgar Allan Poe died under strange circumstances in October, 1849. Poe was 40 years old.

Patterson soon caught the gold bug and left for California. The Spectator continued publication until 1908.

This edition was written by Joel Ward and voiced by Joel Ward.

SOURCES
Might Edgar Allan Poe have made Oquawka a literary hub?
Jeff Rankin
https://jeffrankin.medium.com/might-edgar-allan-poe-have-made-oquawka-a-literary-hub-6ea6e8c31091

What if Edgar Allan Poe had moved to Oquawka?
Rex Cherrington
https://www.thezephyr.com/poequawka.htm

IMAGES
Edgar Allen Poe
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_Allan_Poe

Edgar Allen Poe
Encyclopedia Britannica
https://cdn.britannica.com/52/76652-050-F4A6B093/Edgar-Allan-Poe.jpg

River Scene, Oquawka Illinois
Henderson County Library
https://www.hendersoncolibrary.com/oquawka/mississippi-river/

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Sheaffer Pen Factory

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WA Sheaffer

Fort Madison Tourism Bureau

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Worker in Sheaffer Pen Factory - 1935

Fort Madison Tourism Bureau

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Fort Madison Sheaffer Pen Museum

Fort Madison Tourism Bureau

In 1907, a Fort Madison jeweler named Walter A. Sheaffer revolutionized the way people wrote. Frustrated with the messy and inconvenient fountain pens of the time, Sheaffer invented a self-filling pen using a lever system—eliminating the need for separate ink bottles. With just $35 and an idea, he filed a patent and set out to change the writing world.

By 1912, Sheaffer Pen Company was officially founded right here in Fort Madison. What started in the back of his jewelry store quickly grew into a global brand. Sheaffer pens became known for their craftsmanship, innovation, and reliability—earning a reputation that made them a favorite among writers, business leaders, and even U.S. presidents.

For nearly a century, Fort Madison was home to the world headquarters of Sheaffer Pen Company. Though production has moved, the legacy of W.A. Sheaffer lives on. His innovation didn’t just put Fort Madison on the map—it made an indelible mark on history, one signature at a time.

Episode was written by: James Lemberger

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Clay Sediment

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Western Stoneware Building, Monmouth, Illinois

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3 gallon container Western Stoneware

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First Trademark Western Stoneware Co.

Welcome to Monmouth, Illinois, where a quiet patch of land once hid a discovery that would help shape an American industry. In the 1850s, as farmers tilled the soil, and more railroad tracks began laying west, a treasure beneath their feet was discovered. It’s not gold, not silver, but clay. And not just any clay. This was a rich, remarkably workable deposit perfect for pottery and stoneware.

Local entrepreneurs quickly realized what they were standing on. Word spread, kilns were built, and before long Monmouth became a hot spot for high-quality clay products. But the real breakthrough came in 1906, when several regional potteries joined forces. Their merger formed a name that would become legendary in American ceramics: Western Stoneware Company.

Western Stoneware wasn’t just making jugs and crocks. Potters were crafting the everyday vessels that fed America: butter churns, food storage jars, water coolers, and later, decorative pieces that collectors now hunt for like buried treasure.

And it all started with those extraordinary Monmouth clay beds. Raw material that ignited a company, fueled a region, and left its mark in every beautifully glazed piece of Western Stoneware.

Episode written by Ann Tenold

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Virginia Scripps

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Virginia Scripps Home

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Episcopalian Church Rushville, IL

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James Mogg Scrips Home

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Virginia Scripps article in Sand Diego newspaper

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Rushville Scripps Porch Tour page1

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The Rushville Scripps Porch Tour page 2

Eliza Virginia Scripps or Miss Jennie as she was known, was born on October 10th,1852, in Rushville, IL. While her older siblings were off starting and running newspapers all over the United States, Miss Jennie remained in Rushville, caring for her parents and their farm. She remained on the homestead until her parents passed and fire destroyed the original home in 1897. She then moved to California, but also bought a home in Rushville on West Lafayette which still stands today and is the home of the author's grandparents.

Her commitments to the town are still recognized today. In 1909, she had the Episcopal Church built in remembrance of her father; and Scripps Park was created from the Scripps Homestead, which she had turned over to the city of Rushville to be used for a park or recreation. Her sister, Ellen Browning Scripps, celebrated Miss Jennie by having The Virginia (a replica of the original home) constructed near the original site.

Miss Jennie’s kindness and dedication left a lasting mark on her hometown of Rushville. She gave back to the community creating landmarks and spaces still respected today. She died in London, on April 28,1921, and is buried in Rushville.

Episode written by Reed Fretueg, Rushville Industry High School Student

The town of Loraine was started in 1870 on the Carthage branch of the Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy Railroad. Like many small towns in Western Illinois at that time, it was started as the result of the railroad coming through the prairie. Anthony Pitzger Lionberger worked for the CB&Q railroad and helped put the railroad line through the area that became Loraine. The residents admired Anthony so much that they named the town after his daughter Loraine who was two at the time. In August of 1873, at the age of 40 after jumping off a train onto a railroad spike, Anthony sadly passed away from blood poisoning. Little Loraine lived a long full life eventually passing away in 1952 at the age of 83. Anthony Pitzger Lionberger is my 3 times great Uncle.

Episode written by: Rebecca Williamson

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Reliance Pearl Button Factory

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Hawkeye Pearl Button Factory

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St Croix Pearl Button Factory Workers on pile of shells

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Muscatine Button Company

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Clammer Statue

Walk around the riverfront in places like Canton Missouri these days and you can still find peculiar little shells, polished smooth, with several small holes cut in them. Younger people are puzzled but older folks know them as relics of a once powerful industry and of an age before modern plastics when freshwater mussels were central to the region’s economy.

In the early 1900s, this part of the Mississippi was the “pearl button capital of the world”. The largest producer, the Hawkeye Pearl button factory in Muscatine Iowa, specialized in mother-of-pearl buttons and other pearl novelties, producing at its peak a staggering 1.5 million mother-of-pearl buttons a year.

Clammers collected mussels and worked in camps along the river to open them and remove the meat and pearls. In cutting plants in Canton, Keokuk, and Oskaloosa the raw shells were processed. Some cut the shells into squares, while others polished, drilled the holes, or machined decorative designs. At its peak, the Hawkeye Pearl Button Factory had more than 800 employees.

Eventually, as Mississippi mussels were fished to scarcity, zippers and other closures became more popular, and mass-produced plastic buttons came to dominate, the pearl button trade died out. Canton’s Hawkeye Pearl button factory closed in 1960. The last Muscatine pearl button was produced in 1967. Today a 28 foot tall statue of a clammer stands in Muscatine as tribute to the workers who built what was once a $1 million a year industry at a time when more than a third of the world’s buttons came from our area.

Episode written by Scott Giltner

Other than the fur traders who reaped untold riches in their trade with the Fox and Indians, it was 1832 when the earliest settlers were allowed west of the Mississippi. The area which would become Burlington became a popular site. In 1833 streets were being laid out. John B. Gray bought one of the first lots and opened the first grocery store. He also acquired naming rights and settled on Burlington - in honor of his Vermont home town. Prior to the official naming, the area had been known as Shoquoquon - meaning Flint Hills.

Then in 1859, several Wisconsin and Burlington people became part of the Colorado gold rush. There were Alonzo Allen and Henry Dickens, George and Morse Coffin, and the Beckwith family. They settled along St. Vrain Creek. Some panned for gold – others chose farming. By 1962, a name was needed so that a post office could be established. It became Burlington – this time in honor of Burlington, Iowa. Despite high hopes for the settlement – flooding became an issue – just as at home. There remains an Old Burlington Cemetery, but most residents moved to nearby Longmont.

Episode written by Mary Krohlow