Scope and Contents:
This collection consists of Joseph C. Blair's copy of an unbound booklet titled "Beauty Spots of Illinois," compiled by J. K. Busey in 1924.
J.K. Busey may have been Josephine Kathryn Busey (1897-1976), the daughter of prominent Urbana banker James Buchanan Busey (1856-1935). She graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1917 with a degree in Liberal Arts and Sciences. Busey later worked for the University of Illinois as a teacher and editorial assistant, as noted in a 1923 Champaign-Urbana Directory. She married Marion Ashton Smith in 1929.
Joseph C. Blair (1871-1960) was a professor of horticulture from 1900 to 1938 and Dean of the College of Agriculture from 1938 to 1939 at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He served as commissioner and president of the board of directors of the Urbana Park District and helped develop the study of landscape architecture at the University of Illinois. Blair has been called the "Father of the Illinois State Park System" for his influential role in establishing Fort Massac State Park, the first state park in Illinois.
The collection is comprised of an unbound, unpublished copy of a booklet belonging to Joseph C. Blair, titled "Beauty Spots of Illinois." The booklet was compiled by J. K. Busey in 1924. It describes landmarks and places of interest within the state of Illinois, both natural and man-made, including their origins, topography, and surrounding wildlife and vegetation.
This item was acquired by the Library sometime prior to 2016. Additional materials related to Joseph C. Blair can be found in the University of Illinois Archives.
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