August 18, 1918   German prisoners passed through Lawrenceville about midnight August 18, 1918, but no one in the county knew of their coming and hence no demonstration was made. The men were among the first brought America. They landed at some Atlantic port and were to be interned at the federal prison at Ft Leavenworth, Kansas. The men were under guard of 48 soldiers and arrived at St Louis at 5:30 Friday morning where they remained until 7 o’clock when they were transferr

Plan to attend the program “The Little Town with a Big Heart” on February 21, 2026, at 1:30pm at   at Sumner’s new City Hall, 224 S. Christy Ave. Free admittance and refreshment courtesy of the city of Sumner.  Presentation by George Zwilling. The Lawrence County Illinois Historical Society proudly announces the TV premiere of its  documentary, "An Eagle on his Button." This film highlights the remarkable stories of African Americans from Lawrence County who served in the Ci

First call of 113 Lawrence County men appeared for physical inspection for the selective service draft for WWI.   Headquarters of the local board had been moved from the courthouse to the basement of the Lawrenceville Township High School building, and the first quota of men for the new army were being examined. Doctor BF Hockman of the local board was being assisted by Doctors CP Gore, RL Gordon and JE Cornett. The physical examination was held in the gymnasium. On enterin

Turk Wagner joins the Neptune Club. The number of “short snorters” and double “shellbacks” among WAC’s serving in the Pacific is growing...

Horace Jones     Horace Jones, son of T.T. Jones, was a member of Co C., 129th Infantry during WWI. He left his home in Lawrenceville,...

In reviewing soldiers’ Civil War records, the researchers soon discovered that many from this county enlisted in other places. That came...