Williamson County Illinois Historical Society

Williamson County Illinois Historical Society Williamson County Illinois Historical Society supporting historical & genealogical research housed i Free WiFi is made available for researchers.

The historical society located in the old Williamson County Jail at 105 S. Van Buren in Marion, Illinois houses an excellent genealogy and historical research library. There are many displays of period furniture, tools, entertainment, clothing, military uniforms and much more. Our Hours of operation from February to Nov. 26th are Mon-Sat, 9:30 - 3:00. After Thanksgiving the museum is reduced to Saturday operation, 10 AM to 3 PM. The phone number is 618-997-5863.

09/11/2025

Seeking anyone with experience in installing a modular aluminum wheelchair ramp, please contact the Williamson County Historical Society at wchsmail@yahoo.com or call 618-997-5863."

Spooky time in Herrin!!
09/06/2025

Spooky time in Herrin!!

08/19/2025

Thank you everyone for your patience!
(July and so far in August have brought a lot of unexpected medical appointments; don't worry, nothing serious happening to me!)
The link to the FREE old time jail photos from the old jail at Williamson County Illinois Historical Society during the Marion Connects June Third Thursday are FINALLY up!
*Please download by October 20th
https://onefinedayphotography.shootproof.com/gallery/OldTime2025/

The Williamson County Historical Society has just published the book, ”Old Marion Cemetery, a.k.a . Aikman Cemetery.” Th...
08/08/2025

The Williamson County Historical Society has just published the book, ”Old Marion Cemetery, a.k.a . Aikman Cemetery.” The book was just released by author Helen Lind and contains the names of 590 people. The first burial in the cemetery was John A. Aikman, son of Samuel and Henrietta Aikman in 1845. As time moved on, more members of the Aikman family were buried there and eventually all sorts of burials occurred there, including cholera victims of Marion from 1866. The cemetery became a city Cemetery, but that all changed in 1883 when the new city cemetery we know today was created at Rosehill. Many of the burials in the old cemetery were moved to the new cemetery after its creation.
The book if fully indexed, spiral bound, sells for $10 and is available at the historical society.

06/29/2025

The Williamson County Historical Society will be holding a membership meeting on Sunday, July 27, 2025 here at the museum/library at 2:00 P.M.
During the meeting we will be going over projects undertaken at the museum & library since the last meeting, accessions taken in, upcoming projects and the state of the museum. The program will be by historian, Darrel Dexter, and the topic will be,” George L. Burroughs: Using the Illinois Central Railroad as an Underground Railroad.”

With the Miss Illinois Pageant taking place in Marion this week, it has attracted a lot of visitors to Marion and a port...
06/29/2025

With the Miss Illinois Pageant taking place in Marion this week, it has attracted a lot of visitors to Marion and a portion of them have filtered through the museum. On Friday, June 27th, 2025, junior police officer, Declan Tobin from St. Charles, Illinois got a chance to check out our old cell block in the jail. Declan also spent some time with the Marion Police Department and by the time he arrived here he was sporting a utility belt complete with hand cuffs and Marion PD patches.

On June 20th, 2025, Sharon Vansaghi, WCHS Curator/Coordinator donates historic photos to Autumn Vinyard of the Saline Co...
06/20/2025

On June 20th, 2025, Sharon Vansaghi, WCHS Curator/Coordinator donates historic photos to Autumn Vinyard of the Saline County Historical Society. Occasionally we are gifted items that relate to other counties, and we try to repatriate these items to their corresponding county historical societies.

The WCHS participated in another Third Thursday event held in downtown Marion and sponsored by the Marion Connect’s orga...
06/20/2025

The WCHS participated in another Third Thursday event held in downtown Marion and sponsored by the Marion Connect’s organization on June 19, 2025. Our organization took part by offering photos taken in the old county Jail by professional photographer, Autumn Vinyard. In addition, the local Masonic Lodge participated by offering a free Family ID package to children and their families.
The Family ID program is a program that allows you to collect vital details about family members that can then be used should they be abducted. Information gathered involves photos, videos, fingerprints and the ability for the parents to gather the child’s DNA themselves and store it in case it is required. All of the information gathered is then placed on a flash drive and given to the parents to hold on to. None of the personal information is retained by the Masons.
Over a 2-hour period, 152 men, women and children passed through the WCHS museum and 11 children took part in the family ID program..

A BIG THANKS to Hill Printing in Marion for thier great work on this reproduction photo. If you needed it printed, see H...
06/19/2025

A BIG THANKS to Hill Printing in Marion for thier great work on this reproduction photo. If you needed it printed, see Hill Printing on the square, in business for over 100 years!❤️

The WCHS museum and library hasn’t had a paranormal group come look around since before covid struck. That all changed o...
06/09/2025

The WCHS museum and library hasn’t had a paranormal group come look around since before covid struck. That all changed on June 7th, 2025 when a group called Phantastic Ghost Hunters from Paducah, Kentucky came to see what they could find. The group is comprised of husband-and-wife team, Paula and Gavin Kelly with assists from their friend Sami Collins. They also occasionally work with the assistance of Gavin’s father and Vietnam vet, Joe Stimas.
The Kelly’s have investigated locations all over the U.S. and particularly Paducah where they are from and often stay in contact with other paranormal groups. They also do business under the names of “In the Shadows Productions Group.” Some of their investigations are available on Roku TV under “Truths and Legends, in your hometown” and on Amazon Prime under “Paranormal Journey.”
The group carries a lot of equipment with them including cameras, infrared sensitive devices and various “Phantasm” boxes that are designed to pick up sounds outside the range of human hearing and repeat them back in a range we can hear.
It was determined by the group that our building has a lot of activity. Our military room tended to spit back words related to the military. Our jail cell in the museum got a little more handsy when one spirit pulled Sami Collin’s hair and then said “pulled.” Another hot spot in the museum was the coal mining room which previous paranormal groups also indicated was active. Once their research is processed, we may find out more about their visit. Till then, I take the stance, “Don’t bother me, and I won’t bother you.”
Meanwhile more information about the group and links to some of their published work can be found at

Periodically we receive items that are not related to Williamson County. Recently within a collection we received a post...
06/06/2025

Periodically we receive items that are not related to Williamson County. Recently within a collection we received a postcard of a Spandrel Bridge built in 1926 that crosses Hills Branch by the Chocolate Factory in Pope Co. Illinois. When we contacted them they had never seen this example of the bridge and they also had some papers for us, so it was a perfect opportunity for a Sunday road trip.
Pictured on left, Sharon Vansaghi, Curator at WCHS, on right, Cheryl Cossey, Secretary, Pope Co. Historical Society.
If you ever have the chance or just need a Sunday drive check out Pope Co. Historical Society Museum, in Golconda, Illinois located at 112 Columbus Ave. They are open April-Nov Saturday 9-3:30 and Sunday noon to 3:30. They have wonderful exhibits pertaining to their area and volunteers that will help inform you of history.

Approximately 80 fifth grade students from the local Marion Washington school toured our museum on May 5, 6, 9 and 19th,...
05/22/2025

Approximately 80 fifth grade students from the local Marion Washington school toured our museum on May 5, 6, 9 and 19th, Accompanying the students were teachers Mrs. Holderfield, Mrs. Kadela, Mrs. Rowland and Mr. Vickery. The students were divided into two groups each day and guided through the museum under Curator Sharon Vansaghi and society president Sam Lattuca. The students were introduced throughout the museum with what labor was involved in just doing ordinary everyday tasks in the past that we take advantage of today.

Address

105 S Van Buren Street
Marion, IL
62959

Opening Hours

Wednesday 9:30am - 3pm
Thursday 9:30am - 3pm
Friday 9:30am - 3pm
Saturday 9:30am - 3pm

Telephone

(618) 997-5863

Website

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