Dinner and archaeology

"Archaeology of the Illinois and Michigan Canal" is the focus of a lecture and slide presentation at 6:45 p.m. on May 16, 2002, at the Gaylord Building Historic Site in Lockport. Fever River Research director Floyd Mansberger, who has excavated such sites as the Lincoln Home, the Armour Warehouse in Seneca, and the Dr. R. Eell home in Quincy, will discuss his ten-years of experience leading archaeological digs along the I & M.

The program will be preceded by dinner at the Public Landing Restaurant. The menu for the evening includes roasted prime rib of beef au jus, au grautin potatoes, steamed asparagus, or baked honey-glazed ham with pecans, sweet potatoes, and green beans. Dessert will be apple turnover with caramel sauce with vanilla ice cream. Cost for the dinner and lecture is $22 for members of the Illinois State Historical Society Members and the Natural Trust for Historic Preservation, $25 for nonmembers. For more information on the Dinner & Lecture series, call the National Trust for Historic Preservation Gaylord Building at 815-588-1100.

Society Lecture Series begins

Beginning this June, the Illinois State Historical Society will co-host a series of free Sunday afternoon lectures at the Old State Capitol in Springfield. The programs, which feature outstanding Illinois researchers and scholars, will explore some of the more unusual aspects of Prairie State history. The first lecture, "Wonders Underground: Everyday Archaeology in the Urban Environment," by Floyd Mansberger, will be held on Sunday, June 2. Mr. Mansberger is director of Fever River Research of Springfield, which has excavated archaeological sites along the I & M Canal, at Lincoln's Home, the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, Governor Duncan's Mansion, and many others.

On June 23, the second program, "Brothers Notorious: The Shelton Gang of Southern Illinois," by Taylor Pensoneau, will explore bootlegging and lawlessness in "Little Egypt" between the World Wars. Mr. Pensoneau, former Illinois political correspondent for the St. Louis Post Dispatch, is the author of biographies of two Illinois governors (Dan Walker and Richard Ogilvie).

Future programs will examine the Civilian Conservation Corps in Southern Illinois, the Underground Railroad, Cahokia Mounds, and the Civil War. All lectures in the series begin at 2 p.m. unless otherwise noted, and are free and open to the public. The series is cosponsored by the ISHS and the Old State Capitol Foundation. For more information call 217-525-2781.

4   ILLINOIS HERITAGE

Chautauqua for credit

The ISHS will offer Continuing Professional Development Units (CPDUs) for teachers who attend "Heartland Chautauqua: The Jazz Age," which will be held June 11 through 15 in Jacksonville. (For a complete schedule visit the ISHS website at www.historyillinois.org.) Teachers can receive CPDUs for any or all the lectures and programs they attend. Sessions will explore such topics as the New Deal, the Roaring Twenties, the Great Depression, the Civilian Conservation Corps, Route 66, and the American Social Gospel. Guest reenactors will portray Henry Ford, Coco Chanel, Harry Emerson Fosdick, Harry Truman, and Edna Ferber. Registration is free and so are all Heartland Chuatauqua programs. "The Jazz Age" is sponsored by the Morgan County Historical Society and the Illinois and Missouri Humanities Councils. For more information, call 217-243-2423.

Century celebration

Is your business more 100 years old? The ISHS Centennial Awards Committee seeks nominations for this year's Centennial Awards Program. Businesses and not-for-profits incorporated in Illinois before January 1, 1903 are eligible. Since the program's inception in 1985, more than 1,000 businesses have been recognized. Application forms are available at the ISHS website (www.historyillinois.org) or by mail from the Society. A $25 non-refundable application fee is required. Successful applicants will be recognized at the annual Centennial Awards Banquet, which will be held Friday, October 11, 2002, at the Palmer House Hotel in Chicago. For more information about the program, call 217-525-2781. The deadline for 2002 applicants is July 15.

History now

The ISHS on-line history calendar will publicize your exhibit, summer festival, or lecture series for free. Just send notification of your event at least three weeks in advance to: ishseditor@eosinc.com. Please include basic information (who, what, when, and where) and a daytime telephone number. To place a paid ad inIllinois Heritage, call 217-525-2781. The deadline for the July/August issue is June 15.

Thanks to our donors

The Illinois State Historical Society thrives on the goodwill and generosity of its members and friends. Our thanks to the following donors who made contributions to the Society in recent weeks:

Mr. George M. Irwin, Quincy
Mr. Henry Gordon, Patchogue, New York
Joan and Arthur Peterson, Des Moines, Iowa
—A gift in memory of Joyce H. Springer
Rand and Patricia Burnette, Jacksonville

Share your Visions

ISHS/AIMHS seeks interesting, historic photos from its members for consideration in the 2003 Illinois Visions Calendar. If you have a contribution, send it before June 15, 2002, to: Visions Calendar, Illinois State Historical Society, 210 1/2 South Sixth Street, Springfield, Illinois 62701.

Open house at Nauvoo

From May 6 to June 22, 2002 the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, the Mormons, invites the world to visit its newly reconstructed Nauvoo, Illinois Temple. The magnificently reconstructed temple, based on the original Mormon sanctuary built in the 1840s, features symbolic sun, moon, and star stones, a zinc-domed bell tower, and a dramatic, triple-arched entry portico. Tickets for a one-hour tour of the Temple can be reserved at no cost but must be ordered in advance. Tour hours are Monday, 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.; and Tuesday through Saturday, 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. For reservations call toll free: 800-537-8097, or visit the church's website at www.lds.org/nauvoo.

ILLINOIS HERITAGE     5