Illinois Humanities

🎤 El Paso, Illinois and surrounding communities, we want to hear your story.

Join Illinois Voices 250 at the Hidden Histories Festival on Saturday, August 15, and share your memories, experiences, and hopes for Illinois. Whether you're from El Paso, Gridley, Panola, Minonk, or anywhere nearby, your voice is part of our state's story.

Stop by the recording booth at Project XV Museum and help preserve the voices of today for future generations.

📅 August 15, 2026
⏰ 4-8 p.m.
📍 Project XV Museum, 1 W. Front St., El Paso, IL

Learn more at il250.org/community-recording-days

Community Recording Days — Illinois America 250 Community Recording DaysThe Illinois 250 Community Recording Days Calendar highlights upcoming events across the state where residents can stop by and share their stories for the Illinois Voices 250 project. These pop-up recording opportunities make it easy for people to participate by visiting a lo...

Whose stories shape our understanding of Illinois?

To honor the nation's 250th anniversary, Illinois Humanities is investing $250,000 in 50 organizations that document, preserve, and celebrate the many histories and lived experiences of communities across the state.

Together, we're helping ensure that Illinois stories are remembered, shared, and passed forward.

Meet the recipients: ilhumanities.org/news/investing-in-illinois-history

📍Looking for August plans?

Find an Illinois Humanities event near you and get involved with the humanities in your community. Learn more at ilhumanities.org/events

Meet the Honoree: Susan Eleuterio

Susan Eleuterio has dedicated her career to preserving cultural traditions, supporting communities, and advancing public understanding of folklore. A folklorist, educator, and nonprofit consultant, she has developed exhibitions, educational programs, and public humanities initiatives that connect people to their stories, histories, and cultural heritage.

Illinois Humanities is proud to honor Susan Eleuterio as the 2026 Beacon Award Recipient for her lifelong commitment to cultural preservation, public folklore, and community leadership, including her service as former Chair of the Illinois Humanities Board.

Join us on September 23 at Home Court at the Obama Presidential Center to celebrate Susan and this year's extraordinary honorees at the 2026 Public Humanities Awards.

Get your tickets today at: ilhumanities.org/pha

Join singer/songwriter and longtime Illinois Humanities Road Scholar Chris Vallillo as he travels around the state sharing our nation’s history through song!

The Power of Song in Democracy explores the important role of music as a social and political tool in our democracy. Learn more and RSVP today at ilhumanities.org/events/power-of-song

And be sure to catch Chris’s upcoming performance, "Forgottonia," at the Steppenwolf Theater on Saturday, August 8 - a musical, storytelling journey of people and places in rural Midwestern America.

More details and ticket information can be found at steppenwolf.org/whats-on

Episodes 3 and 4 of Illinois 250 on Community Voices are now available! 🎶

This special six-part series, created in partnership with NPR Illinois, explores the people, places, and ideas that connect Illinois to the 250th anniversary of the United States.

In Episode 3, public historians Jeanne Schultz Angel and Erika Holst explore the roads that helped shape America. From the Historic National Road to Route 66, they discuss how Illinois highways fueled migration, commerce, innovation, and freedom while connecting communities across the nation.

In Episode 4, Connie Martin and Leila Wills explore how Illinoisans are preserving Black history across the state. From Underground Railroad quilt codes to the Illinois Black Panther Party Heritage Trail, they discuss the people, places, and stories that continue to shape Illinois history and help future generations better understand the state's past.

Listen at nprillinois.org/community-voices

NPR Illinois 91.9 UIS Illinois America 250

What happens when history, music, and imagination meet in one room?

Last month, a packed Garfield Park Conservatory welcomed Damon Locks' Black Monument Ensemble for a powerful evening performance. Surrounded by community, the Ensemble offered a moving exploration of memory, possibility, and the stories that shape who we are.

A special thanks to everyone who attended, and our partners Garfield Park Conservatory, Empty Bottle, Jane M. Saks | Project& for their partnership in bringing this unforgettable evening to life.

Swipe to see some moments from the special night.

Some of the challenges communities face don't start with the justice system. They start with closed schools, underinvestment, and barriers to opportunity.

Join us in East St. Louis for a community conversation exploring how school closures, neighborhood disinvestment, and incarceration are connected and what it takes to build pathways forward.

💬 Honest dialogue
🎙️ Community storytelling
🍽️ Food provided

RSVP at ilhumanities.org/events/schoolhouse-to-cellblock

Dr. Treasure Shields Redmond, Envisioning Justice Community Hub Partner, uses art, storytelling, and community dialogue to confront the ongoing impacts of mass incarceration in Illinois, one of today's most urgent freedom issues.

Through the East Side Arts Collective and an upcoming mural marking the nation's 250th, Dr. Redmond and local artists are asking: whose stories are remembered, and whose freedom is still unfinished?

Read the full spotlight at: https://lnkd.in/e4JkP8Ka

Join the McHenry County Historical Society & Museum on July 30, for an evening of community conversation, history, and corned beef and cabbage as we explore the enduring ideals of the Preamble and Declaration of Independence while celebrating McHenry County’s oldest tree, a living witness to American history.

This is the first event in the "History Belongs to All of Us" conversation series presented in partnership with the McHenry County Historical Society & Museum.

Save the date for the remaining events in the series on August 6 and 13.

For more information, please visit mchenrycountyhistory.org

Home - McHenry County Historical Society and Museum Discover History Register for programs here Purchase Quilt Raffle Tickets here Museum In addition to our expansive collection of artifacts, the Society owns several historic buildings: The 1843 Gannon Log Cabin, an 1885 town hall, now known as Perkins Hall; a mid-20th-century modern tourist cabin, r...