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Peoria's Catholic High Schools: 150 years of Memories and Tradition

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Peoria's Catholic community celebrates 150 years of high school education in 2013.

The pride and tradition established through years has been passed down for four or five generations now. Even if you went to Spalding Institute, the Academy of Our Lady, Bergan High School or Peoria Notre Dame, graduates feel the sense of unity of being fortunate enough to have had the academic opportunities of private education, the network of life-long...

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Catholic anniversary events

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EVENTS FOR 150TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION YEAR

·         ALL-SCHOOL MASS & RECEPTION, April 19, 2013

Time:...

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Peoria Riverfront Museum: Celebrating 50 years of “The Feminine Mystique”

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FriedanFM bookOn this day 50 years ago, Peorian Betty Friedan’s manifesto for the modern woman, “The Feminine Mystique”, was first published. The impact? Huge sales, wide acclaim, a change in the zeitgeist and, of course, worldwide fame for the author. Today, the Peoria Riverfront Museum is hosting a hometown celebration...

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Frankly, The Origins of Saving Daylight Goes Way Back

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In 1918, several months before the steamboat Columbia sank in the Illinois River, Daylight Saving Time was enacted in the U.S for the first time. Here is an excerpt from my book, “The Wreck of the Columbia: A Broken Boat, A Town’s Sorrow & the End of the Steamboat Era on the Illinois River,” Chapter 19 – DST.

It was late on March 31, 1918, a Saturday night soon to be a Sunday morning and the beginning of a new month,...

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A Short Story; A Long History: Lincoln's Farewell to Illinois

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lincoln-image“This is my literary bureau,” said president-elect Abraham Lincoln as he handed a “well-filled” satchel to Mrs. Grimsley, daughter of Dr. John Todd, who happened to be Lincoln’s wife Mary’s uncle.

It was early February 1861 and Lincoln had stopped by the doctor’s home (said to be one of the largest in Springfield) just days before traveling...

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A Short Story; A Long History: An Airmail Pilot's Wild Night Over Peoria

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The young airmail pilot was falling head first when he pulled tightly on the rip cord and hoped for the best. Suddenly the risers whipped around with a jerk and the free falling weight at the bottom of the harness snapped back into an upright position. The chute was open. But a more precarious threat lay just below. The pilot placed the rip cord in his pocket and took out a flashlight. He pointed it downward. “The first indication that I was...

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Yes They Said That... Qoutes from Famous Peorians: Ellen Crawford

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"Virtually every emergency department nurse I've met is passionate about her work and patient safety.
And, as we told our daughter several years ago, 'There's no one in the next room having sex.' That's the Hollywood part."

Ellen Crawford, well-known character actress from Normal, Ill., and a 1969 graduate of University High School. She portrayed Nurse Lydia Wright on the television series ER from 1994 to 2003. Bloomington Pantagraph,...

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Our Favorite Things: Our Favorite Peorians Throughout Time

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Yes They Said That... Qoutes from Famous Peorians: Hersey Hawkins

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"I always enjoy coming back to Peoria. This is a connection that I will always have. I keep in touch with a lot of the community, so it feels like home. These people have done so much for me, so coming into town to help with a charity event or run a basketball camp is the least I can do. The work I do with the OSF Children's Hospital is something that I love. It touches me in a way that always makes me want to do more."

Hersey Hawkins,...

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