Th e Rural Republican, published in Lawrenceville, Illinois on Friday, February 11th, 1881     The editor said that while the new bell on the Christian Church rang in soft tones, the weather was still bad.  “The Groundhog did it--saw his shadow and now we have cold weather for six more weeks.” Having had three months of regular old- style winter, the streets were muddy, and there were about a dozen cases of measles in town that had already resulted in one death.   Will M Garr

Hyatt Madding voted for Herbert Hoover in the Presidential Election of 1932 and lost his bet about the election outcome with Leslie Hildreth, who voted for Franklin D. Roosevelt.  The winner of the bet had to push the loser in a wheelbarrow down Main Street in Bridgeport. This picture was taken at the corner of Main Street and Chestnut Street in downtown Bridgeport.  Pictured, left to right: Unknown, State Patrolman Charles Baker, Leslie Hildreth, Hyatt Madding, Unknown, a

Friday, January 14th, 1881 The weather was thawing, and the fine sleighing of the past month was almost over. Wanted : A good lively undertaker to bury deadbeats. The editor appeared to being having a problem with ‘leeches’ reading the newspaper as long as they wanted and then leaving it at the post office to be returned with “refused” marked on it.  Wanted: to trade or sell one- horse light open buggy. Will trade for a good milk cow. Harness goes with the buggy. Notice: The

January 7 1881 ‘Ye tax gatherer is abroad in the land with his big book; Don't sic the dog on him.’  The tax collector counted 1,430 dogs in the county and hopefully was not bitten by any of them. The 17 th  snowstorm of the year occurred the day before the paper was published. Notwithstanding the extreme cold weather, a little Seed came to the surface in Lawrenceville last week. (The researchers haven’t learned who the parents were yet.) Reverend John Hennessy delivered qui

The Research Library and History Center will be closed the week of December 21-27. December 24 1880 Mr. Day, the editor, advised people to save their loose dimes for the big oyster supper for the benefit of a City Hall to be given in the old Presbyterian Church December 30, 1880.  Lawrenceville schools would have a one-week vacation during the holidays. The post office would be closed from 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM on Christmas Day. ( implying that they would be open earlier?) There

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

November 26th, 1880  The death of the editor prompted the following obituary: Died on Sunday morning November 21, 1880, at her residence, Miss Mary Buntin , editor of the newspaper, the Rural Republican, after a long-continued illness. “Thus early in her 29th year passed away one whom it was a pleasure to designate as the noblest young woman of our acquaintance. At an early day she was called to assume most of the cares and anxieties of an afflicted family in which the prom

The September 3 rd  and 10th, 1880 editions of the local newspapers noted that the beauty of the thoroughfares were hidden and the...

October 26 1900  Bridgeport Robbery Friday morning news was telephoned to Lawrenceville that the bank safe of Seed Brothers at...

The readers of the Rural Republican were shocked to read the headline on Friday August 13 1880 when they opened their newspapers. “One...