Who Was Isaac Hill and How Did He know Jefferson?
by Janet Roney
We’ve been following another ancient trail into the interior of Illinois that Isaac Hill followed in 1809-1811 while exploring for Thomas Jefferson and spying on the British still hanging around between the lower Kaskaskia (or “Ocar”) and the Illinois River to the north. This time, I have Hill’s hand-drawn map that leads through Bond, Montgomery, Fayette, and Shelby County towards Moultrie.
Read More2005
Sullivan schools won the “Red Apple” award - celebrating the area’s best and most cost-efficient school districts - for the third time in a row.
The Sullivan Lady Redskins defeated Clinton 38-35 with help from a 11-7 run in the fourth quarter. Kasey Hamilton was the only Lady Redskin to score in double digits with 14.
Read More•January 8, 2025•
Champaign Park District’s annual winter race, Frozen 5K, has made its mark as a fun and creative way to stay active during the cold Illinois winter. As Champaign Park District continues to innovate programming to ensure it best meets residents’ needs, the organization has decided to mark the final chapter of the event in 2025 to make way for new fitness events.
Read More•January 8, 2025•
Baking sessions are a beloved family tradition in many households. But such sessions may not be as revered by family physicians, as baked goods are often prepared with ingredients, like sugar and butter, that aren’t necessarily sound additions to a person’s diet.
Though baked goods may never rival vegetables in nutritional value, there are ways for amateur bakers to make these beloved foods a little more healthy.
· Replace sugar with a fig puree. Figs are nutrition-rich fruits that serve as significant sources of calcium, potassium and iron. WebMD notes that figs also are excellent sources of fiber. Soaking eight ounces of figs in water can soften them before they’re pureed with between 1/4 to 1/3 cup of water. The resulting fig puree can serve as a sugar substitute.
Read MoreJefferson’s Clock
•January 8, 2025•
By Janet Roney
In 1808, the last year of Thomas Jefferson’s presidency, he authorized Isaac Hill to explore the interior of Illinois along the third principal meridian to survey the land, find natural resources and mill seats, and locate trails. He was also to spy on activities of the British who were still hanging around in frontier Illinois 25 years after our independence.
Hill left a map and a report about his 1809-1811 expedition into Illinois, but his will written in Warren County, Kentucky in 1846 sheds more light on the story and provides more authenticity to the expedition. His will distributed his land, slaves, and his “Jefferson Clock” to his heirs.
Read More1965
The Sullivan High School DAR and SAR winners were Yvonne Reed and Mike Stone. Winners at Lovington High School were Beverly Bolsen and David Trainor.
Richard Breedlove of Lovington was selected to direct one of the five plays to be presented by the Experimental Theatre of Illinois State University.
T-bone steal was on sale for 99¢ lb at Eisner Food Stores. Ken’s Food Stores featured six Banquet frozen pot pies for $1.00.
Read More•January 1, 2025•
Each New Year’s Eve, thousands of revelers gather at the intersection of Seventh Avenue, Broadway and 42nd Street in the heart of New York City’s “Time Square” to count down the final moments of the year. Millions more watch the festivities on television. This annual tradition is something people look forward to each December, with many making pilgrimages from far and wide to stand outside for hours just to be at the crossroads of the world.
Read More•January 1, 2025•
3rd - Kids Craft from 3:30-4:30 p.m. We will be making a winter scene with q-tips and paper.
6th - Needle night from 5-7 p.m. If you would like to learn to crochet, knit, needlepoint, or even how to sew we have people that can help teach you. If you already know how and just want to hang out come join us.
7th - Story time from 10-10:30 a.m. We will be reading “Buster’s First Snow” by Hisako Madokoro.
Read MoreIsaac Hill’s Mission for Jefferson…Part 2
•December 25, 2024•
by Janet Roney
In this series of articles, we’ve been following old trails into the past of Moultrie County and central Illinois. We’ve covered the Kaskaskia-Detroit Road used by the French in the 1700s, the path the Long Knives of George Rogers Clark used to cross Illinois during the Revolutionary War that secured Illinois, including Moultrie, for the United States, and I sickened some of you when you read about the Eagle Pond duck dinner a la’ feather observed by Indian captive William Biggs while traveling through Moultrie on the trail from Cahokia, Vandalia, and Shelbyville in 1788. All of these trails are discussed in history books.
Read More•December 25, 2024•
Hunters in Illinois took a preliminary total of 82,496 deer during the seven-day 2024 Illinois firearm deer season that concluded Dec. 8. Comparatively, hunters harvested 76,494 deer during the 2023 firearm season.
The preliminary harvest for the second segment of the 2024 firearm season Dec. 5-8 was 27,835 compared with 22,883 deer harvested during the second part of the 2023 season.
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