July 26 The U.S. Postal Service is established by the Second Continental Congress, with Benjamin Franklin as its first postmaster general. Franklin put in place the foundation for many aspects of today’s mail system. – 1775. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is created when U.S. attorney general Charles Bonaparte
Dressed in traditional Ojibwa regalia, author Kim Sigafus McIver shares her knowledge of many aspects of Native American cultures at the Santori Library of Aurora Tuesday. She discusses Native people who lived in Illinois in the 1800s and their traditions. She described Native American foodways, including the planting of the three
There will be a celebration Friday through Sunday of the life and good works of the late Reverend Robert Wesby of Aurora. It has been 30 years since his untimely death and a strong group, 14 committee members, of the Progressive Baptist Church in Aurora, will bring to life what
“Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.” —Battle Hymn of the Republic Julia Ward Howe was an American poet and author, best known for writing “The Battle Hymn of the Republic.” She was an advocate for abolitionism and a social activist particularly for women’s suffrage.
The Aurora Historical Society (AHS) will throw a party from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday to highlight the extension of its Summer exhibit, “Ethnicity and Diversity in Aurora, 1834-Present” through the middle of August. Admission is free but donations are appreciated. Music will be provided by The Internationals, an
July 19 During Napoleon Bonaparte’s Egyptian campaign, a French soldier discovers a black basalt slab inscribed with ancient writing near the town of Rosetta, about 35 miles north of Alexandria. The irregularly-shaped stone contained fragments of passages written in three different scripts: Greek, Egyptian hieroglyphics, and Egyptian demotic. The ancient
First of two parts Hemp has a variety of reactions from a variety of individuals, and, there is a lack of information and understanding. The Hemp Industrial Association wrote the following article of its history: “Hemp is among the oldest industries on the planet, going back more than 10,000 years
Last of two parts When the English settlers in the New World in the early 1600s, adapted the foreign soil to their needs, they set off cataclysmic changes. Their animals, insects, and plants literally changed the ground beneath the Native Americans’ feet. The colonists brought in native fruit trees and
Yorkville resident Barb Johnson, left, demonstrates the ancient Norwegian kuub game in last Summer’s “How to be a Viking” camp at Yorkville Public Library. Johnson will co-lead the fourth annual camp at the Library, 902 Game Farm Rd. in Yorkville, from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. July 16, 18 and
By John Montesano – For the past three years, The Voice has allowed me to write a feature story of a military veteran each month. It has been my privilege to obtain and tell these stories. Due to vacation plans, this month’s feature is not about a specific veteran, but
July 12 A heat advisory is issued in Chicago in a warning of an impending record-breaking heat wave. Temperatures in the city reach 106F and the heat index was above 120 F. By the time the heat breaks a week later, nearly 1,000 residents are dead in Illinois and Wisconsin.
“The Constitution is not neutral. It was designed to take the government off the backs of the people.” —Justice William O. Douglas Given the turbulence of our age, with its police overreach, military training drills on American soil, domestic surveillance, SWAT team raids, asset forfeiture, wrongful convictions, profit-driven prisons, and
First of two parts “In depth, in height, in circuit, how serene. “The spectacle how pure. Of Nature’s works in Earth.” — William Wordsworth The threads of discovery were intertwined with hardship and hope. Many of the stalwart men and women who travelled across the seas were fleeing both religious
Organizers of the inaugural Aurora Pride Parade last week submitted a Letter of Intent to the city government of Aurora requesting to hold the next Aurora Pride Parade Sunday, June 9, 2019. “The inaugural Aurora Pride Parade is now a celebration for the history books,” said Chuck Adams, founder and
Renowned artist and illustrator Wendell Minor born in Aurora has been named Artist Laureate for 2018/2019 by the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, Mass.. Established in 2008, the Museum’s Artist Laureate Award honors the contributions of outstanding visual artists whose exceptional dedication to the Museum and its mission have guided
The iconic Oscar Mayer Wienermobile makes an appearance at the Mariano’s grocery store Sunday near 75th Street and Naper Boulevard in Naperville. There are six similar vehicles traveling throughout the country handing out a limited number of hot dogs and wiener whistles. Jason Crane/The Voice
July 5 In the East End of London, revivalist preacher William Booth and his wife, Catherine, establish the Christian Mission, later known as the Salvation Army. Determined to wage war against the evils of poverty and religious indifference with military efficiency, Booth modeled his Methodist sect after the British army,
“Let’s ring freedom bells!” said president John F. Kennedy when he established the national Independence Day bell-ringing observance in 1963. At that time Congress set aside two minutes on the Fourth of July when citizens all across the country would simultaneously ring bells of all kinds. The Aurora Historical Society
Last of two parts In 1917 radio messages were intercepted about a possible German spy named H-21. H-21 was Mati Hari. That year she was again arrested in Paris and put on trial, accused of spying for Germany and consequently causing the deaths of at least 50,000 soldiers. During her
June 28 Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife, Sophie, are shot to death by a Bosnian Serb nationalist during an official visit to the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo. The killings sparked a chain of events that led to the outbreak of World War I by early August. –
