Columnist

Wilmington's first real car salesman, E. W. Steinhart

Published by admin on Mon, 07/31/2017 - 1:00pm

    By 1904 the sight of a horseless carriage, better known as an automobile, became common on the streets of Wilmington. It was in August of that year that a cavalcade of 5,000 automobiles passed near the Island City on their way from Chicago to Pontiac. That was all it took for the automobile bug to bite, and it was E. W. Steinhart who helped scratched the itch

Roughing it was the only way to travel

Published by admin on Tue, 07/25/2017 - 9:32am

    Ah, summer! The time for vacations and weekend travel to fun places. Look on the internet to find the perfect spot, book a hotel on your phone, get reviews from others who have stayed there, get directions as to the quickest route and exactly how much time it will take to get there. But it was not always so. The first white settlers to come to this area had to rough it. Today we look at “hotels” of the early 19th century.

A whole new world in the governor’s office

Published by admin on Mon, 07/24/2017 - 12:24pm

    In the end, Mike "Z" Zolnierowicz had only one choice. Gov. Bruce Rauner’s top political lieutenant, the man everyone calls “Z” who was most responsible for winning the 2014 Republican primary and the governor's former state chief of staff, simply had to resign late in the afternoon on Friday, July 14.

The earliest white settlement in Will County

Published by admin on Mon, 07/24/2017 - 11:33am

    Today we look a bit north, to the wide expanse of prairie, to the first white settlement in Will County. Set the wayback machine for 1831, our destination is the grove of trees where Channahon, Wilmington, Florence and Jackson Township meet, better known as Reed's Grove.
    The beginning of Jackson is documented in George Woodruff's book “The History of Will County, 1878.”

The Micheladas, Mexico’s answer to the Bloody Mary

Published by admin on Wed, 07/19/2017 - 9:00am

    Hungover north of the border? Sounds like a job for the Bloody Mary.
    What would you do if you were to find yourself nursing a hangover south of the border, and the Bloody Mary was not an option? Enter the Michelada, Mexico's beer-based, “hair of the dog” answer to the Bloody Mary.
    Micheladas have been around as long as there have been tomatoes and beer, mixing the two flavors is by no means unique to Mexico. Where the Michelada takes a refreshing turn is when chile sauces, spices and who knows what else is added to the drink.

Wilmington Township, fortunes built and lost

Published by admin on Wed, 07/19/2017 - 9:00am

    Last time we talked about Wilmington Township's city, but at the same time that Thomas Cox was laying out Winchester, later changed to Wilmington, another group of investors was at work in another part of the township.
    Today we look at the northwest corner of the aforementioned place to find fortunes built and lost, at least on paper.
    In 1834, as plans for the Illinois & Michigan Canal were being made and surveyors laying out the best route, land speculators flocked to northern Illinois.

Postal politics prove perplexing

Published by admin on Wed, 07/19/2017 - 9:00am

    One of the first things a town has to do to prove its existence is establish a post office. It gives your place a name. So, it goes without saying that the office of postmaster was definitely an important one.  
    Certainly, Postmaster was a powerful position economically. In the 19th century a postmaster could move the post office into his own store, giving his business built in customers on a daily basis.
    In all but the most rural places, the Postmaster was an appointed position by no less a person than the President of the United States.

Rauner staff changes may bring more deadlock

Published by admin on Wed, 07/19/2017 - 9:00am

 

After Gov. Bruce Rauner hired Illinois Policy Institute president Kristina Rasmussen's as his new chief of staff, I reached out to one of the House Republicans who voted to override the governor's budget and tax hike vetoes. How was he feeling?

Power to the people, electric power that is

Published by admin on Wed, 07/12/2017 - 9:00am

    The history of coal in Braidwood has been and will be fully written and talked to death.
    But what were people doing with all that coal? Steam engines were the first to use the coal to create power but in the first decade of the 20th century a different kind of power began to be produced - electricity.  

The Derby Daiquiri - easy to make, easy to drink

Published by admin on Wed, 07/12/2017 - 9:00am

    Do you ever wish that you could go back to the golden age of tiki? Perhaps walk in to a Trader Vic's or Don the Beachcomber circa 1950 and order an authentic Mai Tai?
    Until we figure out this time travel thing, fans of the grand mid-century Polynesian themed restaurant will have to make a pilgrimage to the last great hope for golden age of tiki, Fort Lauderdale's legendary Mai-Kai.