Once Upon a Time: Stories from Adams County
Every Sunday, the Herald-Whig features fascinating glimpses into Adams County's past through our "Once Upon a Time" column. HSQAC members research and share compelling narratives about the people, places, and moments that built our community. Browse our collection of articles from August 2011 to present using our searchable database by title, subject, or author.
If you are interested in submitting an article for consideration for the Once Upon a Time column, please email us or call the HSQAC Office at 217-222-1835.
Town provided aid for persecuted Mormons
The city of Quincy has always been a welcoming community, but never more so than during the winter of 1838-1839 when the residents provided aid, shelter, and comfort to the…
Rural Electrification
This is the cover of the pamphlet published by the REA to informed new electricity users. (Photo courtesy of the National Museum of American History.) We have all heard about…
General Grant Recalls His Experiences on Both Sides of the River
1861 photo of Ulysses S. Grant while he was serving with the 21st Illinois Infantry. (Photo courtesy of Library of Congress) Ulysses S. Grant was not quite 40 in April…
Part Two: Sammy Samuels, a 19th-century Jewish Baseball Player
By his late teens, Sammy Samuels, who was born in Quincy but living in Chicago, was playing baseball in the Chicago City League, “the Windy City’s top circuit for aspiring…
Sammy Samuels: Quincy’s Jewish Community and Baseball
By the mid-1850s, Quincy’s population was nearing 11,000. Much of the recent increase was made up of Germans escaping the upheaval resulting from the Revolution of 1848 and 1849. While…
The Long Legal Career and Adventures of John Franklin Garner
A photo of John Garner used in a Lions Club publication. (Photo courtesy of the Historical Society of Quincy and Adams County.) There is an archival box in the research…
