Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Carbondale police seeks department's history

As work progresses on the new Carbondale police station Police chief Jody O'Guinn is looking for pieces of the department's history to display in the new building.

They already have some old uniforms and a badge from the only Carbondale officer killed in the line of duty, Leonard Alonzo Sizemore (1879-1933).

Carbondale escaped pretty easily most major tribulations of the Prohibition Era in the 1920s. A running gun battle by a group of teenage wannabe gangsters was the biggest event that I've found. Two of whom were later approached by Charlie Birger to kill West City Mayor Joe Adams, but turned him down.

O'Guinn told the Carbondale Times that the historical display would serve an important purpose.

"It shows the officers where we came from and where we're going... What it was like for police work in years past," O'Guinn said.

Persons with information, photographs or other artifacts that could be displayed can call Chief O'Guinn at 618-457-3200, ext. 421, or e-mail him at joguinn@ci.carbondale.il.us.

Monday, December 06, 2010

New Director Named for Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum

The head of the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission has taken another job along those same lines. Eileen Mackevich was selected Friday as the new executive director of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum and Library in Springfield. She starts the job the last week of this month.

She says fundraising and making the museum even more interactive are at the top of her list.

Congratulations Machevich on the new job.