Sumner 1899 Sumner came into existence with the building of the Ohio and Mississippi railroad, the construction of which was first started in March 1853 at Sandoval, Illinois. The railroad was open for operation in 1855 from St Louis, Missouri to Vincennes, Indiana. The road then was later completed to Cincinnati, Ohio. Its name was changed to the Baltimore and Ohio Southwestern railroad (B & O SW) in 1890 and again changed in 1916 to the Baltimore and Ohio (B&O) railroad omi

According to various internet sources, (and there you have it. . .) Mother Shipton was one of the most famous English seers. She was believed to have successfully predicted the dissolution of the Church in the reign of Henry VIII, the fall of Cardinal Wolsey, as well as the premature death of Henry Edward VI’s son. While most of us are familiar with the prophecies of Nostradamus and Edgar Cayce, those of Mother Shipton are not as well known. Ursula Southeil better known as Mo

The on- line copy of the Rural Republican, Lawrence County’s  newspaper, derived from old, microfilmed copies, is too degraded to read easily for Friday, December 10 , 1880.   The news in this blog for this time period was reported by the Vincennes Weekly Western Sun.  Bridgeport Brevities: John A Bard was officiating in the post office. HK Lanterman was crippled up with rheumatism. Several of the young folks met at the residence of Charles Vanausdel and partook of a most b

We know how busy this time of year is going to be for everyone with shopping, decorating, wrapping etc. so we present “gift buying through the decades” –five days of gifts that Lawrence County residents were purchasing locally in 1899, 1910, 1920, 1930, and 1940.  Today showcases December 1899.

Don't forget the Ladies of Lawrence: Clothing Through the Decades program Thursday Dec 4 10:00 at the History Center! News in Lawrencre County as reported in the Lawrence and Knox County newspapers for the week ending on December 3 1880. After the death of Mary Buntin , the new editor, her brother- in- law Sam B Day , began reporting the news. He had spent fifteen years in the publishing office setting type but stated that he would do a fair job with the news.    The worthy c

How to Cook a Turkey from the November 26th, 1880 edition of the Rural Republican. They had reprinted it from the Country Gentleman. Remember one had to bake the turkey in a wood stove and keep feeding the fire to maintain an even temperature throughout the roasting process. No electric stoves for these housewives nor food thermometers.

November 19th, 1880 Old man winter had pitched his tent right here and looked like he was going to stay. The sudden cold spell with six inches of snow made one hustle along lively to the fire.  All the weather prophets predicted a cold winter. Miss Mary Buntin was still very ill.  William Laws of Sumner would be the Deputy Sheriff after December. Isaac Shields of Birds Station moved to Olney and was reading law with Judge A Shaw . The Dedication of the Pleasant Ridge Chri

The History Center will NOT be open this Sunday November 16. November 12 1880 Now that the elections were over, the local news was more abundant in Lawrence County.  Mary Buntin, the editor of the Rural Republican , stated that the ladies were all about electing one of their sex as a school director.  She promised to see that there was fair play, and a fair ballot. She also advised that her long illness had made large demands upon her pocketbook and asked that anyone owing m

Don't forget to register for Thursday morning's opening program (November 6 10:00 at the History Center) featuring 'Stories from the Wardrobe: The Dresses and the Ladies who Wore Them', by Curator, Nancy King. Admission $10 Goodie bags will be provided.   Seating is limited to 25 people.  Reservations required and can be made by calling 908-208-2372.   Early Teachers’ Association Teachers of the County formed an association as early as 1856 according to the American Banner,

Don't forget to register for Thursday morning's opening program (November 6 10:00 at the History Center) featuring 'Stories from the Wardrobe: The Dresses and the Ladies who Wore Them', by Curator, Nancy King. Admission $10 Goodie bags will be provided.   Seating is limited to 25 people.  Reservations required and can be made by calling 908-208-2372. An article was published in the annual report of Chief of Engineers of the U.S. Army to the Secretary of War for the yea r 1893