Portraits Exhibit Now Open
Wright Seaman
Princeton’s First Fire Foreman
The Bureau County History Center invites the public to attend its first exhibit of 2025: Portraits! Curator Jessica Gray has opened the archives and chosen images and portraits that have rarely been seen, or in many cases, have never been on display. “Every image features a Bureau County citizen or local artist. We are committed to representing the entire county in our exhibits,” said Gray. “Portraits features pictures from Cole Hollow, Dover, Malden, Neponset, Seatonville, Tiskilwa, LaMoille and Princeton.”
Patrons will learn the individuals’ interesting and varied stories of life in early Bureau County through to the present. Paintings are paired with items the subjects treasured, created, or used in life, adding a personalizing touch to who these individuals were. In the case of Wright Seaman, Princeton’s first fire chief, the fire department’s first minutes book solemnly memorializing his death at the Battle of Shiloh in 1862, or Judge George W. Stipp, the relatively unknown man who spoke following Abraham Lincoln in Bryant Woods in 1856, in dual wedding portraits with his wife, Louisa, alongside his gold-tipped cane.
The most contemporary image is that of Army Staff Sergeant Lincoln Hollinsaid, who died in 2003 serving his country in Operation Iraqi Freedom. The exhibit is an intimate look at the variety of individuals who have impacted Bureau County in numerous ways – from farming, road building, teaching, soldiering, and more – whose memory was preserved in a timeless portrait. The exhibit will open Saturday, March 1 and will run through Saturday, July 26, 2025. In addition to the March exhibit, the Center announced a growing slate of exhibits and events.
“We are very excited about the coming year,” said Lex Poppens Executive Director. “We are collaborating with other organizations to really create the opportunity for people to explore their county’s history.” Upcoming events include a collaboration with the new Walnut Historical Society about Avanti Foods, who is also hosting the event. For more information on all events, the history center website, www.bureauhistory.org, is the best location for information.
Mandana McConihe Stevens Templeton
Lincoln Hollinsaid
Army Staff Sergeant
Exhibit Admissions: Museum members are admitted free. Non-members admission is $5.00 for Seniors and children and $7.00 for adults (18+). There is no charge for active-duty service members. The museums will be open Friday and Saturdays from Noon until 4:30pm. Private tours are available Wednesdays and Thursdays. Patrons are encouraged to call 815-875-2184 in advance to schedule private tours on alternate dates. The museum offices will be open Tuesday through Friday Noon until 5pm.