As the weather starts to warm up and the school semester ends, we here at the IDHH are ready to celebrate summer and summer vacations! Whether you’re headed outside for some fun in the sun and sport, off to the beach for the sand and waves, or just remaining at home for a staycation, we hope you can take some time to rest and relax before the “Sirius-ly Scorching Dog Days of Summer” arrive.
Here are a few of our favorite items related to summer vacations:
Vacation Days, Lake Bluff, Ill. m86.1.1481. August 7, 1913. Bess Bower Dunn Museum of Lake County. Lake County History in Postcards. Courtesy of Bess Bower Dunn Museum of Lake County.High School kids on vacation, Bloomington-Normal, IL 1949. July 7, 1949. Created by Stanley Lantz. McLean County Museum of History. Pantagraph Negative Collection, 1946 – 1949. Courtesy of McLean County Museum of History.Vacation days, Chicago [front]. July 19, 1909. Imprint by V.O. Hammon (Chicago, Ill.). Eastern Illinois University. Booth Library Postcard Collection. Courtesy of Eastern Illinois University.High School kids on vacation, Bloomington-Normal, IL 1949. July 7, 1949. Created by Stanley Lantz. McLean County Museum of History. Pantagraph Negative Collection, 1946 – 1949. Courtesy of McLean County Museum of History.Me travel? …not this summer. Vacation at home. 1945. Created by Albert Dorne (1904-1965). Illinois State University. World War II-Era Posters and Propaganda. Courtesy of Illinois State University.Sublimating vacation; Pantagraph photostory; vacations during wartime, Bloomington, IL, 1944. July 19, 1944. Created by Gladys Mittelbrusher. McLean County Museum of History. Pantagraph Negative Collection, 1940-1944. Courtesy of McLean County Museum of History.
The IDHH contains some content that may be harmful or difficult to view. Our cultural heritage partners collect materials from history, as well as artifacts from many cultures and time periods, to preserve and make available the historical record. Please view the Digital Public Library of America’s (DPLA) Statement on Potentially Harmful Content for further information.
In recognition of Black History Month, the IDHH would like to revisit previous years’ posts, which feature people like Mayor Harold Washington and Timuel D. Black, Jr., events like the Million Man March, and communities such as Maxwell Street Market and the African American student population at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.
The IDHH contains some content that may be harmful or difficult to view. Our cultural heritage partners collect materials from history, as well as artifacts from many cultures and time periods, to preserve and make available the historical record. Please view the Digital Public Library of America’s (DPLA) Statement on Potentially Harmful Content for further information.
As the month of October draws to an end, we enter the festivities of Halloween, Samhain, Allhallowtide, and Día de los Muertos. For some it’s spooky season, a time to delight in the macabre and darker side of life and death (and free candy); for others, it’s a time of religious rites and celebrations, including feasting, prayer and fasting, and remembrance.
Here are a few of our favorite Halloween-related images from IDHH contributors:
John Comstock, Skeleton reader. March 06, 1922. West Chicago Public Library District. Cornelia Neltnor Anthony and Frank D. Anthony Book Plate Collection. Courtesy of the West Chicago Public Library District.Mount Greenwood Park (0251) Events – Holiday celebrations – Halloween, 1971. 1971. Chicago Public Library. Chicago Park District Records: Photographs. Courtesy of the Chicago Public Library.Halloween party stereo cards, 1899 [page 1]. 1899. Bensenville Community Public Library. Bensenville Historical Collection. Courtesy of the Bensenville Community Public Library.Independence Park (0083) Events – Holiday celebrations – Halloween, undated. Chicago Public Library. Chicago Park District Records: Photographs. Courtesy of the Chicago Public Library.
The IDHH contains some content that may be harmful or difficult to view. Our cultural heritage partners collect materials from history, as well as artifacts from many cultures and time periods, to preserve and make available the historical record. Please view the Digital Public Library of America’s (DPLA) Statement on Potentially Harmful Content for further information.
In recognition of Labor Day, the IDHH would like to highlight several collections from our contributors and curated searches of IDHH items that tell different stories about the history of labor movements, worker advocacy, and labor strikes in Illinois:
Recordings of the Illinois Labor History Society (Roosevelt University): explore oral history audio recordings that tell stories related to labor unions and movements, marginalized communities and worker advocacy, and labor strikes in Illinois.
Mary G. Harris Jones: explore images and text related to “Mother Jones,” an Irish-born school teacher, seamstress, labor organizer, activist, and self-described “hell-raiser”.
Labor and Industry: explore images, texts, and audio recordings from multiple IDHH collections and institutions related to labor, industry, and organization and advocacy for workers.
You can also view the IDHH’s previous posts with topics related to Labor Day:
Local Union No. 183 in parade. 1903. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Library. Picture Chicago. Courtesy of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Library.History of Local 208, American Federation of Musicians [page 1]. Louise Henry, creator. October 23, 1939. Chicago Public Library. Illinois Writers Project: Negro in Illinois Collection. Courtesy of the Chicago Public Library.
The IDHH contains some content that may be harmful or difficult to view. Our cultural heritage partners collect materials from history, as well as artifacts from many cultures and time periods, to preserve and make available the historical record. Please view the Digital Public Library of America’s (DPLA) Statement on Potentially Harmful Content for further information.
In recognition of Women’s History Month, the IDHH would like to highlight several collections from our contributors and curated searches of IDHH items that tell different stories about the history of women in Illinois:
Jane Addams: explore photographs and documents related to Jane Addams, social reformer, and settlement and women’s suffrage activist, who co-founded Chicago-settlement Hull House in 1889 and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1931.
Gwendolyn Brooks: explore photographs related to Gwendolyn Brooks, Poet Laureate of Illinois and the first African American poet to win the Pulitzer Prize.
The Creative Woman (Governors State University): a collection containing issues of GSU’s quarterly feminist journal The Creative Woman, which featured articles, essays, and creative writings on the lives and experiences of women.
The Woman’s Study Club of Joliet (Lewis University): a collection containing documents and records of the Women’s Study Club of Joliet, a club with the goal of educating women members which grew from the Columbian Clubs and The Woman’s Building organized by Bertha Palmer for the 1893 Chicago World’s Columbian Exposition.
You can also visit the IDHH’s Digital Exhibits to learn about the life and career of two turn-of-the-twentieth-century Illinois women: Rachel Crothers, a playwright from Bloomington, Illinois, and Fanny Butcher, Literary Editor at the Chicago Tribune.
You can also view the IDHH’s previous posts with topics related to Women’s History Month:
The IDHH contains some content that may be harmful or difficult to view. Our cultural heritage partners collect materials from history, as well as artifacts from many cultures and time periods, to preserve and make available the historical record. Please view the Digital Public Library of America’s (DPLA) Statement on Potentially Harmful Content for further information.
In recognition of Black History Month, the IDHH would like to highlight several collections from our contributors and curated searches of IDHH items that tell different stories about the history of Black people in Illinois:
Gwendolyn Brooks: explore photographs related to Gwendolyn Brooks, Poet Laureate of Illinois and the first African American poet to win the Pulitzer Prize.
EBR African American Cultural Life (Southern Illinois University Edwardsville): a collection containing photographs, posters, and pamphlets centered around Eugene B. Redmond, Poet Laureate of East St. Louis whose work is connected to the Black Arts Movement and Professor Emeritus at SIUE.
EBR Million Man March (Southern Illinois University Edwardsville): a collection containing photographs about the Million Man March, a demonstration by Black men marching to Washington on October 16, 1995, and its second Anniversary celebration.
Timuel D. Black, Jr., Digital Collection (Chicago Public Library): a collection containing handwritten and typed letters and speeches by Timuel D. Black, Jr., civil rights activist, educator, and historian of Black life and politics in Chicago.
The fairly simple sport of soccer, known internationally as football, is the world’s most popular ball game in numbers of participants and spectators. With the 2022 Men’s FIFA World Cup currently in play, the IDHH would like to highlight the sport of soccer and its rise in popularity in the United States. Soccer was brought to North America by European immigrants in the 1860s, with informal matches being contested by Canadian and American teams by the mid-1880s. Already a pastime with a devoted audience and professional associations in Britain, soccer was not immediately popular in Canada or the United States, as ice hockey and gridiron football (American football) were becoming more prominent respectively.
However, American cities with large immigrant populations, such as Philadelphia, Chicago, and New York City, saw the sport played widely, and led to the official formation of the United States Soccer Federation in 1913. Over the first half of the 20th century, soccer’s popularity in the United States would steadily rise without ever truly finding a regular fan base. The sport’s fortunes would shift in the 1960s and ‘70s, though, as American teams began signing international players, such as the Brazilian athlete Pelé, and the passage of Title IX in 1972 further encouraged the participation of female players. Viewed as less violent and more socially inclusive than American football, soccer benefited from an influx of younger soccer players in the 1980s and ‘90s. The United States would host the 1999 FIFA Women’s World Cup, setting an all-time attendance record as the U.S. women’s team led by Mia Hamm clinched the Cup. In the last two decades, soccer has solidified itself as a significant sport in the United States, with the creation of various national soccer associations and leagues, and a devoted following of American teams on the international stage.
Here are a few of our favorite soccer items:
Illinois State Normal University Women’s Sports Day, Normal, IL, 1935. October 12, 1935. Photographed by Frank Bill. McLean County Museum of History. Pantagraph Negatives Collection, 1930 – 1939. Courtesy of the McLean County Museum of History.Soccer football 1906-1907. 1906. Photographed by Allen Ayrault Green. Knox College. Allen Ayrault Green Photograph Collection. Courtesy of Knox College.Women’s soccer. 1992. Knox College. The Way to Knox. Courtesy of Knox College.Women’s Athletic Association – Soccer. 1937. Millikin University. Big Blue Photograph Collection. Courtesy of Millikin University.Soccer – Men’s – Players – Kroening. [n.d.] Millikin University. Big Blue Photograph Collection. Courtesy of Millikin University.Congressman Frank Annunzio and the Polish soccer team. 1976. Photographed by Copelin Commercial Photographers. University of Illinois Chicago. Congressman Frank Annunzio Photo Collection. Courtesy of the University of Illinois Chicago.
Cooler weather. Baking spices. Warm cider. These things might conjure up a variety of associations and feelings, but for those of us living in the northern United States, they herald the beginning of the autumn or fall season. With the start of November, the IDHH would like to highlight that time of year when the daylight hours wane and sweater weather is in vogue. In the Northern Hemisphere, autumn is usually recognized as the time between the autumnal equinox toward the end of September and the winter solstice toward the end of December. This time of the year has held various significance across cultures and periods, but early associations in the Northern Hemisphere centered around the passing of the year and the importance of the harvest season in areas across medieval Europe.
While this connection to harvesting continues to be paramount for those working in agriculture, the environmental changes during the fall season have also become a key aspect of tourism for certain areas of the world. In the United States, portions of northern New England, Appalachia, and the upper Midwest offer prime views of leaves changing from their usual green color to vivid hues of orange, red, and yellow in the autumn months. Millions of visitors pour into these areas of the country to witness this stunning natural display – an act referred to as ‘leaf peeping’ in some circles. A phrase used colloquially in the United States since only the 1960s, leaf peeping is an autumn activity enjoyed internationally in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec in Canada, as well as in various parts of Japan.
Here are a few of our favorite items featuring vibrant fall foliage:
Fall color. Circa 1990s. Knox College. Green Oaks Biological Field Station. Courtesy of Knox College.Brothers Walter and Edward Mann raking fall leaves, Bloomington, IL 1947. October 9, 1947. Photographed by Wilma Tolley. McLean County Museum of History. Pantagraph Negative Collection, 1946 – 1949. Courtesy of the McLean County Museum of History.Pere Marquette Park and Lodge, on the Great River Road (IL 100) facing the Illinois River. [n.d.] Photographed by Art Grossmann. Eastern Illinois University. Booth Library Postcard Collection. Courtesy of Eastern Illinois University.Autumn view of maples, Oji, Tokyo. Circa 1880s. Created by Kinbē Kusakabe. Dominican University. Japanese Lantern Slides. Courtesy of Dominican University.Autumn street. October 1978. Photographed by Henry X. Arenberg. Highland Park Historical Society. Highland Park History. Courtesy of the Highland Park Historical Society.
October marks that time of the year when we dress up as ghouls and goblins, decorate our homes with spiderwebs and skeletons, and indulge in all manner of frightening things. As a nod to these spine-chilling 31 days, the IDHH is featuring the fascinating use and art of tombstones and other grave markers. As diverse as the great variety of funerary traditions around the world, grave markers serve not only the utilitarian purpose of demarcating the physical space where an individual might lie, but also reflect the social values and traditions of a specific period or people. Cemeteries and other burial places held great significance from the earliest days, as providing a place for the dead was thought to be an important family obligation. This significance would eventually extend to larger communal graveyards and burial places as inclusion in these spaces became exclusive to community members, often excluding foreigners, criminals, and other unwanted groups.
The tombstones and grave markers within these communal spaces have communicated a number of ideas to visitors over time. As a work of art, the craftsmanship and skill in the construction of the tombstones can be an aesthetic pleasure in its own right. Such artistry leads people to create gravestone rubbings with charcoal and to capture graveyard scenes through painting and photography. The construction and grandiosity of these markers may also impart a sense of prestige or wealth, such as in the image below of Carrie Eliza Getty’s large tomb in Chicago. Of course, tombstones also act as a memorial to previous generations, prompting us to seek out the histories of those buried there, like of the Mabie family and their influential 1840s circus show in Wisconsin. Whether viewed as art, icon, or historical marker, tombstones offer a (spooky) glimpse into the values and customs of those who are no longer with us.
Here are a few of our favorite items featuring tombstones from across the Midwest:
Boy painting tombstone decorations, unspecified location, Central Illinois, 1951 Halloween picture layout. October 29, 1951. Photographed by Gene Smedley. McLean County Museum of History. Pantagraph Negative Collection 1950 – 1959. Courtesy of the McLean County Museum of History.Carrie Eliza Getty Tomb and Joseph Medill tombstone, Graceland Cemetery. 1976. Photographed by Charles William Brubaker. University of Illinois Chicago. C. William Brubaker Collection. Courtesy of the University of Illinois Chicago.Tombstone of Uriah T. Douglass and Julia A. Douglass in Oakwood Cemetery. [n.d] Western Illinois University. Digital Image Collection. Courtesy of Western Illinois University.Tombstone. [n.d.] Photographed by Sverre O. Braathen. Illinois State University. Sverre O. Braathen Circus Photo Collection. Courtesy of Illinois State University.Two veterans looking at tombstone of David A. Strother, first African American to cast a vote in the United States, El Paso, IL, 1954. May 28, 1954. Photographed by Ann Broder. McLean County Museum of History. Pantagraph Negative Collection 1950 – 1959. Courtesy of the McLean County Museum of History.Scott tombstone Scott’s Cemetery 2002. 2002. Photographed by John Hallwas. Western Illinois University. Digital Image Collection. Courtesy of Western Illinois University.
From grand to upright to electronic, the piano has undergone a number of reinventions over the past three hundred years as musical tastes and needs have changed. With the start of National Piano Month on September 1, the IDHH would like to explore the history and influence of this versatile instrument on the wide world of music. Most sources point to the Italian instrument maker Bartolomeo Cristofori di Francesco as the inventor of the early piano. While the exact timeline of Cristofori’s work is murky, he undeniably had mastered the elements of modern piano action and created a piano (the fortepiano) by the early 1700s. While older keyboard instruments such as the clavichord and the harpsichord allowed for either dynamic control over individual notes or access to a loud, resonant sound, Cristofori’s fortepiano was revolutionary because it enabled players’ greater command of the instrument’s expressive tone and volume.
Over the next three centuries, variations in piano shape and design would multiply as renowned composers such as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Frédéric Chopin wrote pieces specifically for the instrument, bringing greater attention and demand for the piano. By the 1860s, the upright piano had become a more practical and accessible musical option for use in private homes, as groups could now listen to simplified piano arrangements of popular music and enjoy an evening of tuneful entertainment together. Further innovations to piano design and construction were developed in the 20th century with the advent of electric and digital instruments, applying the technological advances of the era to the art of music making. Illinois has had its own role in the history of the piano, from William Wallace Kimball’s successful Kimball Piano Company in Chicago, to the numerous talented pianists such as Lillian (Lil) Hardin Armstrong who made Illinois their artistic home and contributed to the vibrant musical culture of the state.
Below are a few of our favorite items featuring the versatility of the piano:
Elgin Community College Piano Class. [n.d.] Elgin Community College. Elgin Community College History. Courtesy of Elgin Community College.Cadet Life 8. 1943. Monmouth College. Naval Flight School. Courtesy of Monmouth College.May Deeming leaning on a piano. circa 1890s. Lewis University. Bruce Cheadle Papers. Courtesy of Lewis University.Piano from one room school house. circa 1900. Henderson County Historical Society Museum. Henderson County Historical Society Museum. Courtesy of the Henderson County Historical Society Museum.Charles Dibdin performing at the Sans Souci. [n.d.] University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Library. Portraits of Actors, 1720-1920. Courtesy of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Library. Green Street, Folder 59, Sheet 6. [n.d.] Photographed by Burke and Dean. University of Illinois Chicago. Chicago – Photographic Images of Change. Courtesy of the University of Illinois Chicago.Quincy’s Great Piano House. 1884. Quincy Public Library. Quincy Area Historic Photo Collection. Courtesy of the Quincy Public Library.
