Category Archives: All Marion Content

All content related to Marion Illinois

Schafale, Oscar 1897-1988

Posted on by January 14, 2014

Oscar Schafale 1897-1988Oscar Schafale, the son of a blacksmith, was born September 11, 1897 in Cherry Valley, southwest of Marion. He moved with his parents, Mike Schafale and Mary Weilmuenster, to Marion when he was 6 years old. His father later started an International Harvester farm implement dealership in Marion.

He began working at the Schafale Brothers International Harvester farm implement dealership when he was 11 years old, working there until he was 42 years old.

Schafale attended Marion schools through the eighth grade. He took a short business course at Brown’s Business College in Marion, as well as attending bank courses at the University of Wisconsin for three summers. Continue reading →

1941, Illinois Ordnance Plant Property Acquisitions

Posted on by January 13, 2014

Ordnance property AcquisitionsCrab Orchard Lake was formed by bottling up Crab Orchard Creek and 22,000 acres were purchased by the U.S. Government starting in 1936 as part of a W.P.A. project. As the new lake was filling up with water in 1940, it had already been decided to establish a military reservation in the form of the Illinois Ordnance Plant or Ordill. Many of the properties were purchased in 1940 and 1941.

The following list indicates the properties that were purchased in conjunction with Ordill. Continue reading →

Crouse, Lee 1912-1965, Crouse Jewelry

Posted on by January 13, 2014

Crouse Jewelry
South Market 1940\'s
Crouse Jewelry
Marion\'s Eat Shop

Lemoine Henry “Lee” Crouse was born September 7, 1912 in Council Bluff, Iowa, the son on Don B. Crouse (1884-1970) and Sarah Nancy Ansberry (1884-1935). Sarah’s mother was born in Ireland.

In the 1920 census when Lee was only 7, his father was a self-employed farmer and the family lived on a farm at Notch, Wyoming. Lee had two brothers sharing the home, Don B. Jr., 10, and John B., 5. Continue reading →

2014, Polar Vortex Causes Big Chill

Posted on by January 10, 2014

Polar Vortex 2014A rare weather condition described by the National Weather Service as a “polar vortex” or a large swirling mass of arctic air dropped into the United States causing record low temperatures in early January 2014 across the country.

Southern Illinois, depending on where you lived, received anywhere from very little to several inches of snow followed by subzero temperatures that was part of “one of the coldest air masses in years” to blanket the region, according to the National Weather Service. Continue reading →