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Category Archives: Local History
Happy Valentine’s Day and Presidents Day!
Staff at the Richardson-Sloane Special Collections Department at the Davenport Public Library would like to wish everyone a Happy Valentine’s Day. This Valentine’s house was built for the season in the old Conservatory at Vander Veer Botanical Park. Originally built … Continue reading
Hostetler’s Houses: West 8th and Vine Streets (cont’d)
This is a follow-up to the November 9, 2024 post identifying the four residences on West 8th and Vine Streets shown in this J.B. Hostetler panoramic photograph. As promised, information about the families who first lived in these homes is … Continue reading
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2024: An Overview!
The Richardson-Sloane Special Collections Center had a wonderful 2024! From our in person events to our virtual offerings, we have encouraged our community and beyond to learn about Davenport, Scott County and Quad Cities history. Programming We visited the Palmer … Continue reading
Posted in Library, Local History
Tagged Davenport Public Library, Outreach, statistics
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The Central Junior High School Fire of 1949
It was an unusually warm, but windy evening on Sunday, December 11, 1949. It was shortly before 7:00 p.m. when Ruth Ann Brasnar and Merline Frost were walking near Central Junior High (607-611 21st Street) in Rock Island, Illinois. The … Continue reading
Victor Animatograph Company of America
Davenport and the other Quad Cities have a robust and vibrant industrial history. This region saw the development of many new technologies that have impacted the rest of the country and the world. One such example is the Victor Animatograph … Continue reading
Posted in Local History
Tagged Alexander Victor, Davenport (Iowa), Films, Local History, Resources, Victor Animatograph Company
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The Claus Groth Gilde Jahrmarkt
“Thanksgiving tide” in turn-of-the-twentienth-century Davenport brought not only family turkey meals and church services, but a popular event known as the “Jahrmarkt.” This fair was a fundraiser for the Claus Groth Gilde, a local benevolent society named in honor of … Continue reading
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Turkey Notes: Our 2024 edition
Since we began this blog in 2008, we have revisited the unique local tradition of the Turkey Note many times over the years. This short poem using three- or four-lines along with the word “Turkey” in the first two lines … Continue reading
QC Architecture: The Chicago Connection
Join the Scott County Historic Preservation Society (https://www.scottcountyiowa.gov/history/historic-preservation-society) for their November meeting featuring Ellen Shapley, an Iowa native, architectural historian, and a former guide for the Chicago Architecture Center and the Architectural Heritage Center in Portland, OR. She will be … Continue reading
Posted in Library, Local History
Tagged Davenport (Iowa), Ellen Shapley, Moline (Illinois), Programs, Rock Island (Illinois)
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Hostetler’s Houses: West 8th and Vine Streets
In addition its large number of portrait photographs, the Richardson-Sloane Special Collections Center’s J.B. Hostetler Studio Collection includes many panoramic images of Davenport and the surrounding area. A few of these feature houses. While Oak Knoll and the World War … Continue reading
The Steenbock – Pohlers Affair: Part II
If you haven’t read part I of this series we invite you to do so now. When we ended Part I of this blog series, Adolph and Lottie Steenbock had their divorce finalized on October 26, 1933. Lottie had received … Continue reading
