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The 1909 Cherry Mine Disaster and Illinois Rescue and Relief Fund Work

Posted on by Salvatore De Sando

On November 13, 1909, at the St. Paul Coal Company mine in Cherry, Illinois, a devastating fire trapped 300 miners, of which 259 workers, including U.S. citizens, immigrants, and children would perish. Meanwhile on campus, Illinois staff would respond to the disaster while international students raised money to help support the families of miners lost in the catastrophe.

Read on to learn more about Illinois rescue and relief fund work responses to the Cherry Mine Disaster.

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Early Soccer at Illinois, 1909-1911

Posted on by Salvatore De Sando

One hundred and ten years ago, today, might have been the first soccer match at the University of Illinois, which was later followed by a variety of future teams who would organize on campus, bringing together citizens, immigrants, international students, residents, and the local community too.

Read on to learn more about the early soccer at the University of Illinois!

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Early Invitations and Theodore Roosevelt’s 1912 Visit to Champaign and Urbana

Posted on by Salvatore De Sando

During much of his political career, Theodore Roosevelt was an in demand speaker and after multiple invitations he came to central Illinois too. In fact, Illinois students played an early role in the efforts to bring the leading American statesman to town. Read on to learn more!

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“It Is My Duty”: A Student Medic During the Mattoon-Charleston Tornado Outbreak in 1917

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This guest post was written by Nathan Tye. Nathan is a doctoral candidate in the Department of History at the University of Illinois and the Assistant Book Review Editor of Middle West Review.

Within minutes a tornado decimated Mattoon, Illinois in the late afternoon of May 26, 1917. Few residents had time to find cover before the tornado spun across Mattoon and continued on toward Indiana. This resulted in a high number of casualties. As residents pulled themselves from the debris, called for loved ones, and surveyed the destruction, University of Illinois student and Mattoon native Harold Hampson joined ambulance crews to pull the injured and dead from the ruins.

Continue reading ““It Is My Duty”: A Student Medic During the Mattoon-Charleston Tornado Outbreak in 1917” →