Some of the genealogists and researchers, all female I might add, were discussing the fact that men in the 1800s and 1900s didn’t grieve long over a dead wife because they needed a woman to do all the work around the house and raise their children, so they remarried rather quickly after the burial of the first wife. The wives of the time must have watched this happen to their friends and realized that it might happen in her marriage as well if she were to die young. One woma

Benjamin Sumner, a native of North Carolina (or possibly South Carolina, researchers differ), was one of the first permanent settlers in Christy township, Lawrence County, Illinois. He came to this area in 1817 and built a small round-log cabin. He was married three times. According to family legend when the Sumner family left the Carolinas, The first Mrs. Sumner placed a setting of eggs inside a slab of bacon and covered them over with a pillow to keep them warm. The eggs ha

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

A few weeks ago a reader rquested an article that had appeared on the old blog ( before Google deided that blog was spam and deleted it from the web, and yes we are still mad about that but moving on.....) Anway here is the post again. July 23, 1909 The Oil City Derrick (Oil City, Pennsylvania) The record of the Diver farm is wonderful and has never been equaled in production nor in longevity of the wells. The John Dive r farm of 35 acres located a mile south of Bridgeport

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

The Redman General Merchandise Store in Sumner was owned by Albert Lloyd Redman. Albert Lloyd Redman was born In Mount Carmel Illinois on June 8, 1861, to William and Jenny Redman . He was nine years old when the 1870 census was taken; he and his family lived in Evansville, Vanderburgh County, Indiana. Ten years later the family had moved to Mount Carmel, Wabash County, Illinois. Albert was working as a clerk in the dry goods store. He had managed to get an 8 th grade educat

Feeling Rough? Let’s Fix That Hangover! So, you woke up with a head that feels like LTHS marching band is parading through your brain, a mouth as dry as the Lukin soybean fields last fall, and a stomach doing the cha-cha against your will. Congratulations! You, my friend, are experiencing the time-honored tradition of a hangover. Step 1: The Ritual of Regret First things first: look in the mirror and give yourself a dramatic sigh. Bonus points for clutching your forehead and

There was no on-line copy of the January 1, 1881, Rural Republican so Lawrence County news printed in the Western Sun was used for this blog. News: The previous Tuesday Matt Harvey had four horses killed and one crippled by the O&M railroad between Lawrenceville and Vincennes. A baby boy of Sheriff Ed Ryan died Friday and was buried on Christmas Day. Unfortunately, the only other ‘news’ item published was by a special correspondent to the Western Sun who criticized La

Lawrence County News November 14, 1928 IN HONOR OF COMRADES Men of Indian Erect Monument to Memory of Those Who Died in Service A monument to the memory of the men who have been killed in the service of the Indian Refining Company was unveiled with impressive ceremonies Monday afternoon, Company L and members of the American Legion participating in the ceremonies. Fully one thousand people were present on the company grounds when a beautiful silk flag was placed at half mast

Lawrence County prehistory is archeologically complex, spanning a wide range of time extending from the earliest known prehistoric time prior to the Paleoindian (ca 12,000-10,500 BC) up to the time of Euro-American settlement in the early nineteenth century. Our area, the central Wabash Valley, was one of the last major unknown archaeological areas of Illinois until the Illinois State Museum made archaeological excavations in the 1960’s. The period that existed until, and aft