Honoring the rich history of rural western Illinois, and examining the problems we currently face
"We'd hope people would get a healthier lifestyle if it was right in town within walking distance. If we made it cheaper than all the snack foods, more people would come around to it." In This Episode In this episode of The Forgottonia Project, host Joe Brewer sits down with Grace Yaste and Natalie English, …
"People should not just be getting by on frozen items at a dollar store—they still need to be supplied with the fresh stuff... I want kids to grow up healthy and not have this mindset of 'oh, frozen corn dogs are always best for you." In This Episode In this episode of The Forgottonia Project, …
"I just wanted to bring recognition to the community and show people a rural county is not as boring as people think it is" In This Episode In this episode of The Forgottonia Project, host Joe Brewer sits down with Ellie Patterson, a student at Cuba High School and winning entry creator in our first-ever …
"As technology becomes more of a norm, people don't really sit down and have conversations like, 'What was your childhood like? What was growing up during this event like?'" In This Episode In this episode of The Forgottonia Project, host Joe Brewer sits down with Amber Cannon, a 2026 graduate at Cuba High School and …
Continue reading "Youth Civic Pitch Showcase: How Amber Cannon is Preserving Local Oral History"
"It’s tough to quantify what’s been lost as more small-town newspapers disappear... but we’re trying to bring back stories that matter most to the people who live here.” — Josiah Chatterton, The Forgottonia Times In This Episode In this episode of The Forgottonia Project, we sit down with Josiah Chatterton, founder of The Forgottonia Times; …
“When we asked the community, they didn’t care if their kids went to Harvard. They cared about the kind of people they were.” -Cory Steiner In This Episode As rural schools prepare to welcome students back this fall, many educators and communities are reflecting on what’s working—and what needs to change. In this episode, we …
Continue reading "Designing a Better Rural School with Dr. Cory Steiner"
“We feel we need all the counties to really lend credence to what we’re trying to say (which is to make and approve a petition to withdraw & form a 51st state)... I feel that Phase Three is about ready to begin, and I can step down as governor of Forgottonia. I think the time …
Continue reading "Illinois: A State Apart – Episode #5 – The Republic of Forgottonia (1973)"
"For rural children, work was at the top of the triangle, followed by school, and only then came play... Play wasn’t a luxury—it was a survival skill. Children turned goats, chickens, and old carts into their playground." -Pamela Riney-Kehrberg On This Episode Historian Dr. Pamela Riney-Kehrberg joins us to discuss her book Childhood on the …
"Oftentimes rural places are cast from a deficit perspective, they're portrayed as places where people leave. That can be pretty harmful for students that are growing up in these places. Local history has a real power to draw students in, to help them feel civically engaged and empowered." -Rory Dunn On This Episode Joey Brewer …
“Greatness comes from within. It doesn’t matter if you’re from a town of 100 or 100,000—if you believe in yourself and work your butt off, you can do anything.” Joe Decker On This Episode We talk with Joe Decker, Guinness World Record Holder and “World’s Fittest Man” who is a native of rural Forgottonia (Smithfield, IL). …
The Forgottonia Project 