For several decades, I made my semi-annual trips from Illinois to Davenport, Iowa, not just to buy clothes but to see, not just a clothing salesmen, but to visit my friend, Greg. Even if months or years passed between the time when we met, Greg NEVER forgot my name.
Illinois
David H. Morton: When the Seats Were Empty
It took Dad less than five minutes to reach the physician’s waiting room which, as I recall, was so busy every seat was taken with people waiting to see the doctor even on a Sunday afternoon.
Trying to Find Don Gronewold
If you’re looking for Gronewold today, he’s not at home, talking on the phone, or politicking. He’s hunched over a cup of coffee in the café overlooking the BP gasoline station, watching traffic leaving town.
Miss Roma Shively: A Short Woman in a Tall World
Miss Shively loved Elmwood, the town where she was born, where she spent most of her life, and it and the surrounding area were the subjects of her research. Her master’s thesis was called Jubilee – a Pioneer College, the story of an early experiment in higher education on the prairie, supported by the Episcopalian Church.
Celebrating the Fourth in Small Town America
At the turn of the 20th century, Americans took our country’s birthday a great deal more seriously than they do today, particularly in small towns in the Middle West. Take Elmwood, Illinois, for example, a small country town of 2,000 people, located near the middle of the state, roughly twenty miles down dirt roads to the nearest town of any size. Festivities on the 4th began early in the morning, when the sun was just coming up, and lasted until dark when space above the horizon was brightened by sky rockets just above the tree line
Stories From Small Town Illinois 