Girl Scouts of Southern Illinois, Troop 8077 visited the Williamson County Historical Society museum/library for a tour on Sunday, November 2, 2024. The tour was conducted by our society curator/coordinator Sharon Vansaghi.
680 new references have been added to our Master Local History Index. The references were pulled from Sneed’s “Ghost Towns of Southern Illinois” and contain only references to Williamson County ghost towns and locations. Within the index are references to people, places, events, churches, schools, businesses, government, and indigenous natives.
The Williamson County Historical Society Museum and Library will be changing it hours of operation for the winter months after Thanksgiving to Saturdays only. Our normal hours of operation of Wed thru Saturday from 9:30 to 3 PM will shift to Saturdays only from 9:30 till 3 PM. until early next March. Our staff will however, still be available through phone messages and email for research or questions.
The museum/library will be open on November 30th, the Saturday after Thanksgiving.
Sharon Vansaghi, WCHS curator/coordinator set up a nice Veteran’s Day display stocked with military uniforms and objects from the museum on November 11th, 2024, at the Behavioral Arts building inside the grounds of the Marion Veteran’s Administration grounds. The society was asked to participate and if possible set up a display at the celebration. Coincidentally, the weekend prior was the 249th birthday for the U.S. Marine Corps and they held a press conference on local TV televising the event. Some of the museums’ uniforms on display were seen in the broadcast. The historical society was awarded a certificate of recognition for helping out with the event.
On November 7, 2024, WCHS President Sam Lattuca gave a program to the Delta Kappa Gamma- Alpha Kappa Chapter Sorority at Bennies Italian Foods in Marion. Lattuca spoke to the group about early Southern Illinois settlement, previous ownership of Southern Illinois and pioneer life in the early days of this part of the state. He explained some of the techniques and procedures that early pioneers used to survive in everyday life such as food, fire, housing and property ownership.