Community
Upcoming eclipse drawing local interest
The date of the total solar eclipse, Aug. 21, is fast approaching, as Monroe County residents scramble to find safety glasses and make plans for viewing the event. A total…
Read MoreMarquardt rules the roost as poultry superintendent
Hank Marquardt strode into the poultry and rabbit barn last Wednesday afternoon at the Monroe County Fair. Another volunteer followed behind, carrying a box overflowing with hundreds of tags awarding…
Read MoreSmooth sailing at this year’s fair
Mild temperatures and largely clear skies brought out the masses last week to the 70th annual Monroe County Fair. “It was just a great fair this year,” said Monroe County…
Read MoreCountdown to Illinois Bicentennial to begin in Randolph County
The governor’s office of the Illinois Bicentennial announced that Kaskaskia Island has been selected as the site to begin the 100-day countdown to the Illinois Bicentennial celebration. Events are being…
Read MoreColumbia to recognize 100 years of scouting
Eighty years have passed since Florence Haberl, a Columbia resident currently at Oak Hill, was among the few to join the first Columbia Girl Scout troop, led by Lucille McKinney.…
Read MoreHartman crowned queen; Cissell is little miss
The 70th annual Monroe County Fair kicked off in grand fashion Sunday night with the crowning of a new fair queen and little miss in the main arena of the…
Read MoreCounty fair gets underway
The 70th annual Monroe County Fair takes place July 23-30 at the fairgrounds located off Route 156 at the western end of Waterloo. “We have new outside metal on the…
Read MoreWriting makes Griffith feel at home
Kathryn Meyer Griffith, 67, has had her world rocked by tragedy on more than one occasion. In 1971, the Columbia author’s brother, Christopher, was murdered by his best friend over…
Read MoreBaebler Farm aims to cultivate youth
Down a stretch of country road south of Waterloo exists a vast expanse of land ripe with the potential for conservation projects and educational experiences. The land at 4022 JJ…
Read MoreMonroe County Fair celebrating 70 years
Seventy years of history. Fifty-seven years of the Open Class Horse Show. Forty-seven years of demolition derbies. Generations of 4-H learning and development. The Monroe County Fair, which kicks off…
Read MorePoison frontman headlining Songs4Soldiers
Songs4Soldiers announced that Bret Michaels will be the first-ever national headlining act to play the annual benefit concert. Michaels, who gained fame as lead singer of the band Poison, will…
Read More‘Waterloo Rocks’ pays kindness forward
Officially it dates back to something called The Kindness Rocks Project, a worldwide movement to bring strangers together through the simple gesture of painting rocks. Messages, signs, random acts of…
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