Newspaper Extracts

The two newspapers active today are listed below, along with the mailing addresses:

Clinton Daily & Weekly Journal
1463 State Rte 54 W.
Clinton, IL 61727-2195
Phone: (217) 935-3171
Fax: (217) 935-6086

De Witt County Constitution
104 S. Monroe Street
Clinton, IL 61727-2058

INDEX OF TRANSCRIPTIONS

These pages contain early newspaper articles sent in by volunteers. They give us an insight into how our ancestors lived their daily lives and the hardships and blessings that came their way. I hope you enjoy the articles as much as we do. This is an on-going project, so be sure to check back often to see what's. As the articles get typed, we will add more links below.

If you have any newspaper articles, why not share them? You can either type them and send them by e-mail: or send copies and we will see that they get posted.

Featured Article

Friday, December 1, 1899
Clinton Register
Clinton, Illinois

JIMTOWN.

Mr. HECTOR's health is quite indisposed since he came from the tall corn stalk. He was so excited that he ate too much corn for his digestive organs. But he is still a great experimenter and inventor. He has been very attentive to some pumpkin vines this summer. He is trying to produce what he calls a "dynamite pumpkin." He mixes saltpeter and some other preparation unknown to us, in the water which he irrigates them with. He thinks the pumpkin will become so impregnated with the stuff that they will explode like bombs. He raised a few of the combustibles this year; he says by throwing them on the ground they would pop like pistols. He thinks by saving the seed and using the preparation next year they will be strong enough to blow up a large stump and intends to make a fortune raising torpedo pumpkins. His cow got in and ate most of them but he has seed saved. He keeps the cow in the far part of the farm for fear of her exploding. He is very much grieved about the cow eating them as he thought they had enough snap that he could charge them with another preparation and cause an explosion. If they are a success he is going to throw pumpkins at Tanner and blow him up. Tanner, look out for torpedo pumpkins in 1900. They are just awful.

DEWITT COUNTY NEWS

1877 1897
1878 1899
1879 1900 New Articles!
1882 1901
1883 1902
1885 1903
1886 1905
1887 1906
1889 1907
1890 1908
1893 1910
1895 1914
1896

Note: The Clinton Public was also known as The Central Transcript, The Weekly Central Transcript, and The Clinton Public and Central Transcript. The name changed frequently in the early days of the paper, but it eventually ended up as The Clinton Public so, for simplicity's sake, it is often just referred to as The Clinton Public.

FARMER CITY NEWS

Public Reaper November 1879 (First Edition)
Public Reaper December 1879

HEADLINES AND SCANDALS

Railroad Accidents

The Death Of Dr. W. H. Taylor

All For Love

The Murder of Daniel Lindley by James Waldron

Murder In Creek Township

Dr. Joseph Byrant Convicted of Manslaughter

The Fortune Teller That Stole A Wife

Drowning At Lake Weldon

The Kenney Tragedy

Snell Divorce Case

The Trial Of Aaron Goodfellow's Murderer

Murder of Harry Summers, Jr.

Bloody War In Wilson Township

Murder of Dr. Samuel Chapin

Death Of James A. Wilson

Joseph Moore Estate

The Cyclone of 1883

John Warner Will

Murder In McLean County

Murder of Ira Day

Trial Of Henry M. Teal

The Demise Of Pet (Gandy) Magill

Murder Of Marion Huffacre

Contested Estate of Col. Thomas Snell

The Death Of Gilbert Hand

Frank Harrold & The Farmer's State Bank

The Sentence Of Eddie Cook

OTHER NEWS

Civil War News
Born, Bound, and Buried - 1879
A View of Clinton
Taylor-Magill Hotel

Special thanks to the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library, through whom we can share some of these pages from the past with you. We are also especially grateful to C. H. Moore, who saved all his newspapers, bound them every year, and left them to the city.  If it were not for him, we would never have had all the newspapers on microfilm.

More Newspaper Clippings

USGenWeb Archived Submissions for DeWitt County