LaSalle County Historical Society Museum

06/11/2026

Check out the new exhibit upstairs in the Heritage Center all about our State Parks.

06/10/2026

Chris Freiler is publishing a three-part essay series titled "What the Ground Remembers," on the Lincoln-Douglas debates of 1858. The series is not a survey - it is an argument for why these exchanges still matter. Part 1 is out now, look for parts 2 and 3 over the next few weeks.

06/09/2026

The LaSalle County Historical Society currently has 6 locations. Our video begins with Kinnason at the Heritage Center with a military display, and you can learn more about The Radium Girls. Next, we go to the Canal Market which is open every Saturday and Sunday from 10-4 through the end of September. Visit the LaSalle County Historical Society Museum to take a look at President Abraham Lincoln's carriage that transported him to his debate in Ottawa, IL with Stephen A Douglas. Riley and Christian take you to school...the Aitken school that is. Then we finish up at the Blacksmith Shop and The Barn. Make plans to stop by all 6 buildings on Museum Campus.

06/09/2026

Mark your calendars...this movie will be playing at the Ottawa Historical and Scouting Heritage Museum in July.

John Hossack: No Apologies is a riveting story set in LaSalle Count...

06/06/2026

06/06/2026

82 years ago today on June 6th 1944, thousands of Allied soldiers landed on the beaches of Normandy in the largest amphibious invasion the world has seen. These landings would start the downfall of N**i Germany’s occupation of France and Western Europe during World War II. The invasion would not have been possible without the LST(Landing Ship Tank). These landing crafts brought thousands of troops, supplies, and equipment onto the beaches that day and in the weeks that followed. Several of the LSTs that took part were built right here in Lasalle County at the Prairie Shipyard in Seneca along the Illinois River. To learn more about the Prairie Shipyard and Lasalle County’s role in building these warships visit the Lasalle County Historical Society and the Seneca Area History Museum.

Lasalle County Historical Society’s Heritage Center
208 S. Clark
Utica, IL.

Seneca Area History Museum
431 N. Main St.
Seneca, IL.

06/05/2026

Throwback post!

06/02/2026

Our friends at the Ottawa Historical and Scouting Heritage Museum will be hosting this awesome event next Friday June 12. If you love history and music, this one’s for you! Tickets may be purchased at the museum during open hours.

02/27/2026

Two great (and different) programs at two great venues! Mark Walcyznski, Starved Rock historian and author, will be presenting at the Starved Rock State Park Visitors Center on March 14 at 1pm.
He will then hit the road and be presenting with us a separate program on May 3! If you love local park history these programs are a must!

Attention nature lovers, history buffs, and fans of Starved Rock State Park, historian and author Mark Walczynski will be presenting a program at the Starved Rock State Park Visitor Center at 1:00 pm on March 14 entitled Exploring Starved Rock's Past.

This is a different program from the one he will be presenting in May at the LaSalle County Historical Society. Both great programs but different themes, locations, and dates.

C'mon out. We'd love to see you!

Exploring Starved Rock’s Past
Date: March 14, 2026
Start Time: 1:00 PM

Discover the turn of the 20th century events that created the foundation for the second state park in Illinois-Starved Rock State Park, with historian and author Mark Walczynski.

Illinois Department of Natural Resources
Starved Rock Lodge & Conference Center
Starved Rock Foundation

02/15/2026

Visit the Seneca Historical Guild today to wish them Happy Birthday! They are one of the 13 stops on the LaSalle County Museums' Passport Weekend and will be open today and tomorrow 10-4pm.

Happening 161 years ago in Crotty (Seneca) this week - 1865...

On February 16th, the state legislature in Springfield approved the charter for a new town in Illinois... Crotty. There was an organized government for a few years before this incorporation, but this is the date it was recognized by the state.

Happy Birthday to US!

The Crotty Village Council, with Anthony Mallaney as President (the position was not called a mayor), approved to draw $5.00 from the treasury to send H. Armstrong to Springfield to obtain a copy of the charter.

The Village Council established a committee to determine the possibility of constructing a bridge across the Illinois & Michigan Canal.

We don't have a picture from 1865 Crotty/Seneca, so we will settle for a 50th birthday picture (circa 1915) of downtown Seneca looking north from Armour Street.