James W. McKinney 1873-1950
James W. McKinney, minister, educator, and County Superintendent of Schools, was born March 13, 1871. He was the eldest son of James H. and Minerva McKinney, and was born and raised on their family farm near Hudgens in Southern Township a few miles south of Marion. His father, James H. McKinney, enlisted at Marion in Company B, 81st Illinois infantry. His desire to defend the Union cost him months of imprisonment at Andersonville Prison. Continue reading
The Warder Street Baptist Church was formerly known as the Free Will Baptist Church of Marion, Illinois. Continue reading
When spring awakens the hibernating farms of Southern Illinois, look closely. A second force stirs amidst green pastures and black fields. Here live the imaginary figures of men in wide-brimmed hats and dungarees and women in flowing calico skirts and children in dusty coveralls who run barefoot over gardens. Continue reading
Coal miners rode the electric line to get to work and school children watched plays like “Peck’s Bad Boy” at an opera house on Union Street. Continue reading
One of the platforms Mayor Robert L. Butler ran on in that first election in 1963 was a promise to take care of Marion’s chronic flooding problem. It was to his advantage that just before the primary, the town’s streets filled with water after a storm. Water was four feet deep at the four-way stop and much of the city was drenched. Continue reading