Honoring the rich history of rural western Illinois, and examining the problems we currently face
"Don't always look into famous people, look into people that helped a person become so well known." Amber Cannon ON THIS EPISODE As part of our Oral History in Forgottonia series, Cuba High School freshman Amber Cannon hosts this episode about Dr. Francis Regnier; the forgotten hero of New Salem. Most folks know a lot …
ON THIS EPISODE We continue our examination of the book “Dime Novel Desperados: The Notorious Maxwell Brothers” by Dr. John Hallwas. This episode provides an overview of Chapter 4 – “Law & Order and Prison Life.” If you recall our last chapter, Ed Maxwell has been arrested after committing his 1st crime robbing a clothing …
Continue reading "Dime Novel Desperados – Chapter 4: Law & Order and Prison Life"
ON THIS EPISODE We conclude our series about the social & cultural history of witchcraft based on the book “Witchcraft in Illinois” by folklorist Michael Kleen (check out Michael’s bio below). Please note, the primary purpose of this series is to apply historical skills to this topic and share some interesting info that we find …
Continue reading "Witchcraft in Forgottonia – Episode 6: The Strange Tale of James Spiva"
ON THIS EPISODE We continue our series about the social & cultural history of witchcraft based on the book “Witchcraft in Illinois” by folklorist Michael Kleen (check out Michael’s bio below). Please note, this series definitely does not intend to endorse a belief in magic or the occult. Our primary purpose is to simply apply …
Continue reading "Witchcraft in Forgottonia – Episode 5: The Scotch-Irish in Illinois, 1818-1885"
ON THIS EPISODE We are excited to share our interview with author and folklorist Michael Kleen. Shout out to Cuba High School students Jayson Stead, Cadie Churchill, and Lilly Markley who did a fantastic job conducting this interview! Students asked Michael about misconceptions people often have about this topic, the difference between folklore and history, …
Continue reading "Witchcraft in Forgottonia – Episode 4: Interview with author Michael Kleen"
ON THIS EPISODE We continue our series about the social & cultural history of witchcraft based on the book “Witchcraft in Illinois” by folklorist Michael Kleen (check out Michael’s bio below). Please note, this series definitely does not intend to endorse a belief in magic or the occult. Our primary purpose is to simply apply …
ON THIS EPISODE We continue our series about the social & cultural history of witchcraft based on the book "Witchcraft in Illinois" by folklorist Michael Kleen (check out Michael's bio below). Please note, this series definitely does not intend to endorse a belief in magic or the occult. Our primary purpose is to simply apply …
ON THIS EPISODE On this edition of the Forgottonia Project, we’re sharing our 1st episode in a series on the social & cultural history of witchcraft in Illinois. Please note, this series definitely does not intend to endorse a belief in magic or the occult. Our primary purpose is to simply apply some historical skills …
Continue reading "Witchcraft in Forgottonia – Episode 1: How do we know what we know?"
ON THIS EPISODE This Dime Novel Desperados MINI-POD profiles a Hollywood Western & primary sources that Dr. Hallwas used to write the book. We recommend first listening to the episode this MINI-POD accompanies: Chapter 3: The Maxwells in McDonough County HOLLYWOOD WESTERN “Rio Bravo” (1959) starring John Wayne, Dean Martin, & Ricky Nelson QUESTIONS TO …
Continue reading "DND MINI-POD – Chapter 3: Hollywood Westerns & Primary Sources"
ON THIS EPISODE We continue our examination of the book “Dime Novel Desperados: The Notorious Maxwell Brothers” by Dr. John Hallwas. This episode provides an overview of Chapter 3 – “The Maxwells in McDonough County.” Our last chapter profiled a difficult childhood for the boys in nearby Fulton County. While we remain in Western IL, …
Continue reading "Dime Novel Desperados – Chapter 3: The Maxwells in McDonough County"
The Forgottonia Project 