A Road Scholar program by John E. Hallwas

A fascinating look at the Illinois small town from the post-Civil War period through World War I, when most of the state’s more than 1,000 small communities flourished. Employing dozens of slides, John Hallwas discusses prairie, woodland, and river environments, townscapes and transportation, business activities, and social life during the fifty-year period when small Illinois towns were thriving economic centers, as well as deeply meaningful places for local residents.

John Hallwas has a PhD from the University of Florida and recently retired from Western Illinois University. He has received a number of teaching and service awards and has written more than a dozen books and scores of articles on Illinois history and literature, including The Bootlegger: A Story of Small-Town America.

For more information contact Betty Schatz, 815.939.4564.