Browse By Collection Title | Illinois History and Lincoln Collections

This collection contains photographs collected by Rabbi Leo Eliezer Turitz, rabbi of Temple B’nai Abraham in Decatur, Illinois from 1946 to 1964. These materials provide insight into the religious life of the Jewish community of Decatur. Temple B’nai Abraham was established by Decatur’s Jewish community in 1921. The congregation, initially Orthodox ...

This collection includes letters from Nellie M. Raikes which briefly describe wartime conditions in Great Britain. The letters, written from London on May 22, 1940, and from Lanarkshire, Scotland on Feb. 4, 1941, and also a Christmas greeting in 1940, include envelopes with stickers indicating that they had been opened ...

This collection contains business papers, including receipts, waybills, and debt and stock payments, of railroads in several states. The collection also includes a railway pass, a letter about cattle crossings, and a subpoena calling a railroad to court to answer claims that they killed a mule and built an illegal ...

James G. Randall (1881-1953), professor of History at the University of Illinois, created this collection of photostatic and microfilm copies of Lincoln and Lincoln-related letters and documents from the originals in other collections. Part 1 of the collection includes photostats of items in the "Herndon-Weik" collection that were made in the ...

This collection consists of the personal papers of James G. Randall, a professor of history at the University of Illinois. It includes correspondence, articles, reviews, and drawings. James G. Randall (1881-1953) was a historian and author who specialized in Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War era. He was a professor of ...

This collection contains papers and correspondence of Ruth Painter Randall, a Lincoln scholar, author, and wife of the Civil War and Lincoln historian Dr. James G. Randall. Ruth Painter Randall was born in Salem, Virginia, on November 1, 1892. She graduated from Roanoke College with a Bachelor's of Arts degree in ...

This collection of Randolph County and St. Clair County legal papers includes documents signed by Matthew Duncan, the first territorial printer, and William C. Greenup, the clerk of the Randolph County Court and, later, a superintendent of the National Road. Terry Tanner, of Skokie, Ill., donated the collection to the Illinois ...

This collection consists of a typescript copy of a letter sent to G.E. Nelson from Henry B. Rankin on February 6, 1919. Nelson was president of the Old Salem Lincoln League. Henry B. Rankin studied law under Abraham Lincoln and William Herndon from 1856-1861. He wrote articles and pamphlets about Lincoln, ...

This micofilm collection contains a manuscript record book for two communitarian organizations: the Rational Brethren of Oxford, Butler County, Ohio, 1816-17, and Coal Creek Community and Church of God, Fountain County, Ind., 1823-32. James M. Dorsey (1776-1857), an advisor of Robert Owen at New Harmony, Ind., co-founded the Rational Brethern ...

Heinrich A. Rattermann of Cincinnati, Ohio, was a German-American poet, historian, businessman, and editor. This collection concerns the impact of the German-American on the history of development in America, and includes published and unpublished literary manuscripts; deeds, bonds, and other legal material; bills and receipts; and records of the Narren ...

This collection contains letters written to John Raum of Golconda, Illinois. Raum was born in Hummelstown, Pennsylvania in 1796 and then moved to Illinois in 1823. He lived for three years in Shawneetown before moving to Golconda in 1826. He served as a brigade major in the Black Hawk War and ...

This collection contains a handwritten letter sent from Benjamin Wright Raymond of Elgin, Illinois, to Anson Sperry of Marengo, Illinois. Benjamin Wright Raymond (1801-1883) was born in Rome, New York. In 1836, Raymond moved to Chicago, Illinois, to work in real estate. Raymond was elected twice as the mayor of Chicago, ...

This collection contains correspondence, legal documents, photographs, financial records, commonplace books, scrapbooks, and other papers. The collection relates to four generations, living in Champaign County, Ill., from the 1850s to the 1940s. The first generation includes John T. Fugate (1830-1916), an Urbana doctor, and John J. Rea (1811-63), a Mahomet farmer. Details ...

Reginald A. Read, Jr., a professional engineer from LaGrange, Ill., collected these materials from his family farm in Flushing, New York. The collection includes family correspondence, photographs, lectures, mathematical problems, "An Application to the Regents of the University of the State of New York to incorporate Trinity College and Grammar ...

This collection consists of a handwritten, one-page signed note from Thomas Buchanan Read to an unknown recipient. In the note, Read expresses his well-wishes for the recipient, and his “sincere hopes” for their future. Thomas Buchanan Read was an American poet and painter who famously wrote the poem “Sheridan’s Ride” about ...

This microfilm copy of a report discusses the research and work involved in restoring Illinois' Third State House from 1930 to 1945. The report was compiled by Joseph F. Booten and George M. Nedved for the Division of Parks and Memorials of the Department of Public Works and Buildings. The report ...

This collection contains a deed of land for 400 acres of Missouri Territory, conveyed by Elias and Frances Rector and signed in 1815. Missouri Territory, originally called Louisiana Territory, was organized in 1812 and spanned a large area of the country, from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains and beyond, ...

William Rector (1773-1826) was Surveyor General of Illinois, Missouri, and Arkansas Territory from 1814 to 1824. This microfilm collection contains Rector's field notes for his Oct. 1805 survey of the southern boundary of Illinois from the west bank of the Wabash, as well as notes for his Dec. 1805-Jan. 1806 ...

This collection contains the papers of the Red Herring Poets, a poetry workshop group that operated in Urbana, Illinois. Formed in the fall of 1974, the Red Herring Poets hosted weekly poetry workshops and monthly meetings at the Red Herring Coffeehouse, located at the Channing-Murray Foundation in Urbana. "The Herring" published ...

This collection consists primarily of the Civil War correspondence of Benjamin Franklin Reed to his Douglas County neighbor Charles Welliver. Reed was a Union Army Captain in the 21[sup]st[/sup] Illinois Infantry who died in September 1863. Also included in this collection are miscellaneous photocopies, a photograph of Reed, and newspaper ...

This collection contains letters written by Joseph F. Reed, a publisher and farmer from Ohio and Illinois. Reed published the [i]Jackson Sentinel[/i] in Mansfield, Ohio from 1829 to 1833, and the [i]Tiffin Gazette[/i] in Tiffin, Ohio from 1836 to 1837. In 1839, Reed moved to Prairieton in Lawrence County, Illinois, and ...

This collection contains Edgar and Vermilion Counties, Ill., materials acquired by Nancy Hogan Reed, of Sidell, Ill., while compiling her [i]Lives & Times[/i] (1988). Included are two Civil War letters from Joseph W. Spry of Catlin, Ill., who served in Co. K, 125th Ill. Vol. Inf. Spry's letters of Aug. 6, ...

Montraville Reeves, of Douglas County, Ill., enlisted as a private in Co. E, 79th Ill. Vol. Inf., and rose to the rank of 1st Lieutenant in Co. G of that same regiment. In these letters of 1863 to his brother, Reeves describes army life, a skirmish near Murfreesboro, the condition ...

Predominantly consisting of records from the Religious Society of Friends Illinois Yearly Meeting and the Quarterly and Monthly Meetings affiliated with it, this collection includes minutes, clerk's and treasurer's records, publications, reports, committee records, correspondence, and various other materials. The Illinois Yearly Meeting was established in 1875 by the Blue River ...

This collection contains a print titled “True Blue” by Edward George Renesch in 1919. The image shows a Black family admiring the portrait of a man in uniform hanging over the mantle. Edward George Renesch (1879-1957), who signed his posters as E. G. Renesch, was an American illustrator who lived in ...

This collection contains a petition to the President of the Great Western Railway of Illinois signed by 18 residents of Willson, Illinois. The residents of Willson, writing from Illiopolis, Illinois, ask the President of the Great Western Railway to "make a switch" on the rail line one mile west of ...

This collection contains a handwritten letter from I. D. Reynard of Fairfield, Illinois, to the Reverend George J. Donmyer of Buena Vista, Illinois, dated December 18, 1852. There is no information available about the author, I. D. Reynard. Rev. George J. Donmyer was born in 1814 in Centre County, Pennsylvania. In ...

This collection contains correspondence of John Reynolds, governor of Illinois (1830-34), when he was in Congress. On Feb. 11, 1835, and Jan. 9, 1836, he wrote regarding a pension to Maj. P. W. Winchester, of Carlinville, Ill. His letter of Dec. 9, 1842, also to Winchester, and a letter the ...

This collection consists of a manuscript essay possibly written by Jon Rice in Pacolet, South Carolina, in 1861. The essay was written by a Southerner attempting to rally Southern spirits in response to the advancement of the Northern States. The Confederacy was established on February 8, 1861; this essay was written ...

Alda Cunningham Rice, after graduating from the University of Illinois in 1927, moved to Philo, Ill., where she was active in local history and ornithology. This collection contains several items related to the history of Philo, including Locust Grove Cemetery Association records, newspaper clippings, and the compilations "A Bit of Local ...

This collection contains transcripts of two diaries kept by Edwin Rice of Lisbon, Kendall County, Ill. The first transcript (10 pages) includes entries early in 1859 and in mid-1862, and refers to sermons by Jonathan Blanchard, William W. Patten, and others. The second transcript (43 pages) recounts Rice's trip, Feb. 13-Sept. ...

The Riehl-Thompson Family Papers contain materials collected from two related Illinois families: the Riehls of Godfrey, on the Mississippi River near Alton, and the Thompsons of Rushville, in Schuyler County. The collection is divided into three parts. Part One consists of personal papers from the Riehl family, including a family history, biographical ...

This collection contains microfilm copies of the correspondence and papers of George Ripley, founder of the Brook Farm Community in West Roxbury, Massachusetts. George Ripley (1802-1880) was a former Unitarian minister who founded the Brook Farm Community in West Roxbury, Massachusetts. In operation from 1841 to 1847, the Brook Farm was ...

William Ritchie (1854-1935), born in Frederick, Md., was a Chicago lawyer for over 50 years. In 1885 he formed a law firm with two other prominent Chicago attorneys: S. Corning Judd (1827-95) and Edward B. Esher (1857-1914). Edward S. Judd (1859-1946) joined their firm in 1887, and the ...

This collection contains the architectural papers of Harry F. Robinson, an architect who worked in Chicago during the early and mid-twentieth century. Harry Franklin Robinson was born November 2, 1883 in Alliance, Ohio. During Robinson's early youth, his family moved to Mattoon, Illinois. After his graduation from Mattoon High School in ...

This collection contains typescripts of letters from Sidney Z. Robinson of Madison County, Illinois, to his parents and brothers. Robinson was a Union Army soldier in the 117th Illinois Volunteer Infantry from 1862 to 1865. Sidney Z. Robinson of Madison County, Illinois, mustered into Company D of the 117th Illinois Volunteer ...

This collection contains typescripts of letters from Sidney Z. Robinson of Madison County, Illinois, to his parents and brothers. Robinson was a Union Army soldier in the 117th Illinois Volunteer Infantry from 1862 to 1865. Sidney Z. Robinson of Madison County, Illinois, mustered into Company D of the 117th Illinois Volunteer ...

This collection consists of a single bound volume of records, primarily comprised of meeting minutes but also including membership lists and the governance documents, for the Rockford Equal Suffrage Association. Begun in February 1888, the Rockford Equal Suffrage Association was formed "in order to work more systematically and unitedly for Equal ...

This collection consists of a letter from Dixwell Lathrop to John Arnold Rockwell describing mining operations in LaSalle, Illinois. John Arnold Rockwell was a lawyer, politician, and businessman with an interest in land development during the westward expansion of the United States. In 1836 he founded the Rockwell Land Company with ...

This collection contains genealogical material collected by Michael R. Rogers of Jeanerette, La., for his compilation, [i]From the Illinois County [sic] to the Bayou Teche Country with the Provosts and Quebedeaus[/i] (2002), a copy of which is cataloged: Q.929.2 P929r. There are five folders in the collection: 1. Michael R. Rogers, comp., ...

This collection contains the correspondence and personal and professional papers of Joseph Blackburn Rogers, a Baptist minister who served in several Illinois cities in the early 20th century. Joseph Blackburn Rogers (1867-1934) was born and raised in Kentucky, where he at first began a career as a teacher and then decided ...

On Mar. 23, 1925, Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., wrote Charles M. Woodbury of Charles M. Woodbury, offering advice on an unidentified problem involving the Izaac Walton League.

This collection contains two letters from Theodore Roosevelt and a note from Lawrence M. Larson, a professor at the University of Illinois. Theodore Roosevelt was the 26[sup]th[/sup] President of the United States (1901-1909). Roosevelt continued to be politically active following his time as President and was in vocal opposition of President ...

This 112-page record book of the Roseville Temperance Union, in Warren County, Ill., includes a statement of the organization's purpose, its constitution, a list of its members, minutes of its meetings, and financial accounts. The Library acquired the book in 1941.

The union lockout at the A. E. Staley corn-processing plant in Decatur, Illinois in 1993-1995 attracted support for the workers and their families from across the country. Staley workers solidarity committees were formed in many cities, and unions and individuals organized to provide financial assistance to the families in need ...

This collection consists of the personal and research papers belonging to independent Lincoln researcher, Alonzo Rothschild. Alonzo Rothschild (1862-1915) was a New York City jeweler and journalist who founded [i]The Jewelry's Weekly[/i], a successful publication for the jewelry trade. Rothschild retired at the age of twenty-eight and devoted the rest of ...

This collection contains 19[sup]th[/sup] and 20[sup]th[/sup] century historical material including publications, printed ephemera, correspondence, and research notes collected by James Russell. Much of the material concerns the Charleston (Illinois) riot of March 28, 1864. James Russell was an avid collector of 19th-century letters and documents and had a special interest in ...

Cyrus Rutherford, the son of Hiram Rutherford, was a doctor in Newman, Ill., where he was also mayor. In addition, Rutherford helped establish Newman Township High School, served as president of the Board of Education for over thirty years, and was active in the Royal Templars of Temperance. This collection ...

Dr. Hiram Rutherford (1815-1900), born in Dauphin County, Pa., practiced medicine in Independence (now Oakland), Ill., beginning in Dec. 1840. In 1847 Rutherford was involved in the famous Matson slave case, notable because the plaintiff, Kentucky slave owner Gen. Robert Matson, retained Abraham Lincoln. Matson sued the defendants, Rutherford and ...

This collection contains a letter written in 1849 by Simeon Ryder, who worked for the company that wanted to build the Alton and Sangamon railroad line. Ryder's letter is addressed to the investment company Cooper and Hewitt in hopes they will make an offer to contract and build the whole road. ...