Today marks the birthday of famed sculptor Lorado Taft, born in 1860 in Elmwood, Illinois. A graduate of the Illinois Industrial University—forerunner of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign—Taft studied in […]
Category: Illinois / regional
Backstreet Bop: Rhythm of the rails
On this day in 1947, the City of New Orleans made its first run between the Chicago and the Crescent City on the Illinois Central line. The City traveled the early 921-mile […]
200 Years of Illinois: John B. Anderson Versus the World
On April 25, 1980, longtime Rockford congressman and powerful House leader John B. Anderson launched his independent campaign for the presidency. Today, April 26, marks the anniversary of his first full […]
200 Years of Illinois: Disaster in Naperville
One of the state’s lesser-known catastrophes, the Naperville Train Crash on April 25, 1946 marked a turning point in the town’s history. In those days half-rural, with some of its […]
Meet the UI Press: Fundraising tips
Enjoy another in our series of posts on how university presses and other small publishing concerns can enjoy greater financial security by creating new revenue streams. The introductory post is here. A second […]
Dick Simpson on Against the Current
Dick Simpson, co-author of Corrupt Illinois: Patronage, Cronyism, and Criminality, recently sat down with Dan Proft on the latest edition of Against the Current to talk about the history of […]
200 Years of Illinois: Sorry, Charlie
On April 19, 1928, Illinois held its last public hanging as bootlegger Charlie Birger went up the rope in Benton on a spring morning. (We’ve published a book that tells his story.) […]
It’s spring! Embrace the psychology of mycology
Feel the breeze as you wander among the cottonwoods. To your left, the burble of the great river. To your right, forests busy with rabbit and beaver, where bald eagles […]
Publishing Perspectives at Illinois: A Panel
Join us on April 20 in room 106 Library for an insightful discussion on various opportunities and avenues for publishing at University of Illinois. A panel of experts from the […]
200 Years of Illinois: Archaea, the third kind of life on earth
Today we turn over the 200 Years of Illinois feature to Steven Lenz and Nicholas Hopkins, authors of an essay (reprinted below) in the new UIP book The University of Illinois: Engine […]
200 Years of Illinois: Three state twister
This weekend marks the anniversary of the Tri-State Tornado, the deadliest tornado disaster in U.S. history. On March 18, 1925, an F5 twister formed near Ellington, Missouri in the early […]
200 Years of Illinois: The long and writhing road
Clear LaRue Road. Today marks the day officials close the storied roadway to assist of one of Illinois’s majestic natural wonders: the spring snake migration in Shawnee National Forest. The limestone bluffs […]