Five years ago, a fire at a fertilizer plant in West, Texas, resulted in an explosion that created a 93-foot crater; destroyed more than 150 buildings, including an apartment building and school; killed 15 people; and injured 160 others. In…
A 36-year-old history professor at Del Mar College in Corpus Christi, Texas, Dawson Barrett is a 2000 graduate of Illinois Valley Central High School in Chillicothe. He has a new book about recent history and an appreciation for his interest…
Sixty-seven years ago this month, the NAACP’s Crisis Magazine published a harsh denunciation of world-renowned African-American entertainer and activist Paul Robeson, and a new book rekindles memories of Robeson’s travails – including the 1947 Peoria incident that some say was…
The label “Americana” means music that blends folk, gospel, country, R&B and gospel, but it’s no uniform, sound-a-like genre. Artists carve out distinctive sounds mixing acoustic and electric, creating an eclectic delight. Edward David Anderson’s record released in October is…
Two hundred six years ago this month, a nearly forgotten series of small skirmishes that became known as the “Peoria War” made up a big part of the elimination of Native Americans in Illinois. According to local historical societies and…
Some things can’t be — mustn’t be – hidden. Fortunately, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan and Illinois Supreme Court Justice Anne Burke are initiating actions to disclose facts about sexual abuse of children, facts apparently covered up by high officials…
I didn’t leave the Democratic party; it left me. Technically, I’ve been an Independent for years, occasionally voting for Republicans, Democrats and Greens. But Democrat candidates often got my vote. However, three things got my commitment to become a member…
As of Labor Day this month, professional quarterback Colin Kaepernick has been prevented from working at his job for 551 days, just before the National Football League’s regular season starts Sept. 6 when the Eagles host the Falcons in prime…
Glancing at area farm fields, one recalls the Rodgers and Hammerstein lyric “the corn is as high as an elephant’s eye,” and new research from the University of Illinois College of Agriculture, Consumer and Environmental Studies (ACES) strengthens the notion…
After escalating tensions in Bosnia, Herzegovina and Serbia and the assassination of Austria-Hungary heir and Archduke Franz Ferdinand by a Serbian nationalist, 104 years ago this month Germany pledged military support to Austria-Hungary, which three weeks later declared war on…
