Picture of the Day: Flooded Grain Elevators at Alton
The Mississippi River creeps toward downtown Alton, Illinois (photo taken December 31, 2015). See more photos here. Flooding at Alton, IL
Lilydale
Population (2010) 623 History The small village of Lilydale, named for the lilies that cover Pickerel Lake, was built in a rather unfortunate location, a low-lying floodplain that, well, floods regularly. So many of its residents lived in boats or trailers--it was easier move out of the way when
Ursa
Population (2010) 626 History Richard M. Johnson is credited with coming up with the name Ursa but for reasons no one knows; it is the only place in the US that is called Ursa. Sure, some people called the area Bear Creek before 1850, and Ursa is apparently Latin for
Meyer
Population (2010) Unincorporated History This small village on the river was named for C. Henry Meyer, the one-time business manager for the Quincy Journal who owned a lot of land in the area. Meyer was a late bloomer. It got a post office in 1895 with Ida Lloyd as
Niota
Population (2010) Unincorporated History Amzi Doolittle (one of my all-time favorite names) and Edward White arrived in 1826. Doolittle built a mill near where a little village called Appanoose was platted in 1836. Another European who arrived early was Patrick Dougherty of Sligo County, Ireland. He built a home
Picture of the Day: Why Location Matters
Location matters. Sometimes it takes a while to figure that out.