Preserving Williamson County History – A 501(C)3 Organization
Posts related to the WCHS
Debbie Lattuca, president of the Marion Garden Club presented WCHS president Sam Lattuca with a check on May 31, 2024. The garden club makes yearly donations including planting flowers in our planter at the museum as well as a cash donation. Shown in the photo are L-R, Debbie Lattuca, Lynn Love, Sam Lattuca and Sheila Dingrando.
The Daniel Chapman Chapter of the Daughter’s of the American Revolution (D.A.R.) held a meeting at the Williamson County Historical Society on Monday, April 13, 2024. The historical society hosted the meeting at the old Williamson County Jail at 105 S. Van Buren Street in Marion. The meeting was conducted by Regent, Doda Starkey and was followed by a tour of the museum. Docents for the tour at the museum were Sam Lattuca, president of the historical society and Sharon Vansaghi, curator/coordinator. The old county jail building was built in 1913 and operated as the counties 4th county jail until the spring of 1972 when it was deeded over to the historical society to serve as a museum. The building is one of five locations on the National Registry of Historic Places in Marion. The museum and genealogy research library is currently open to the public from Wednesday through Saturday, 9:30 till 3 P.M.
About 80 Washington School 5th grade students visited the Williamson County Historical Society museum and library on April 25th and 26th and May 1st and 2nd, 2024. Washington school students from that school make yearly spring tours of the museum thanks to their teachers. The students were able to be given a guided tour of the museum and receive explanations about how people lived in earlier times and how early items of the times were used.
The museum is full of artifacts from Native American tools belonging to paleo-indians to items used by the pioneers and the students got to learn about all of that and more. The historical society museum is open to the public for tours from Wednesday through Saturday from 9:30 till 3 P.M. More information can be obtained by visiting our website at www.wcihs.org.
The Williamson County Historical Society at 105 S. Van Buren Street in Marion held its quarterly membership meeting on Sunday, April 21, 2024. President, Sam Lattuca updated the members on its membership levels, visitation to the museum/library and state of the building. He updated everyone on past programs that had been given by the museum and visitors who had recently toured the museum. He also brought them up to date on upcoming tours and events that are scheduled. Recent accessions and photos donated to the museum were reviewed.
The program for the meeting was “Revolutionary Soldiers of Williamson County” and was given by Leann Johnson. The program focused on John Ellis, a local revolutionary war veteran and man of color who made his home in New Dennison, Illinois southeast of Marion.
The museum is open Wednesday through Saturday from 9:30 to 3:00 P.M. and is open to the public.
Thirteen members of the group Forever Learning visited the historical society museum/library on Wednesday, April 3rd, 2024. The group is mostly a group of retired folks who seek to keep expanding their knowledge of the world. The group was divided into two tour groups and were guided by Sharon Vansaghi and Sam Lattuca.
CEMETERY PRESERVATION WORKSHOP
June 29, 2024 – 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Sponsored by the
Williamson County Historical Society
Instructors:
Dawn Cobb, Illinois Department of Natural Resources and
John & Geni Heider, Restoration in Progress (R.I.P)
A group called “Learning in Retirement” from Carbondale, Illinois toured the Williamson County Musuem on Thursday, March 28, 2024. The group is as it sounds, a group of retired individuals looking to explore new areas of learning. The group was guided through the museum by guide and current society president, Sam Lattuca.
Society president, Sam Lattuca, gave a talk to residents of the Fifth Season assisted living facility in Marion on Wednesday, March 20th 2024. Lattuca gave a program about the presence and history of Native Americans in Southern Illinois through time by showing a short video and presenting the evolution of natives over the years.
The Williamson County Historical Society will be returning to its schedule of four days a week beginning on Wednesday, March 6th. The museum and library located at 105 S. Van Buren St. in Marion will be available during the hours of 9:30 A.M. to 3:00 P.M. Wednesday through Saturday for tours of the museum or genealogical research.
The museum is located at 105 S. Van Buren Street in the old county jail on the west side of the Marion Civic Center and was in service as a jail from 1913 till 1972. The building doubled as a sheriff’s home and jail and now consists of four floors and 26 rooms full of historical objects. Since 1976, the building has served as the Williamson County Museum and was placed on the National Registry of Historic Places in 2007, one of only five in the county.
(more…)Sam Lattuca, president of the Williamson County Historical Society gave a program to the residents of Fifth Season Assisted Living in Marion on Tuesday, February 13, 2024. Lattuca addressed the residents and explained the formation of Marion, Williamson County and the historical society. He explained the society’s museum and library and what was available at the museum as far as displays and research materials.