Bond County Museum

10/11/2026

Digitizing VHS tapes from the 1990s-2000s and beyond continues behind the scenes here at the museum! Here's an Oral History Interview featuring Elsie Jett Smith, retired school teacher & farm wife; facilitated by her friend and neighbor, Glen Diamond, and Dean Anthony of Bond County Genealogical Society. Filmed at Mrs Smith's home near Woburn, March 28, 1990.
https://youtu.be/h2p557z490w

🎥 Visit our website to watch more Bond County Remembered: Video Legacies https://www.bondcountyhistorical.org/videolegacies.html

Oral History Interview featuring Elsie Jett Smith, retired school t...

10/10/2026

Bond County Historical Society officially opened and dedicated its new Carson Donnell Gallery during a ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday, Sept. 30, at the Bond County Museum in Greenville. Before the ribbon cutting, let's listen in on remarks by Dr. Cary Holman, BCHS President.

10/10/2026

Bond County Museum is open today - Saturday from 10am-12pm!

Tour our first floor of historical exhibits at 409 South Fourth Street, Greenville!! Catch some of our seasonal displays - like the Kiwanis Club and Masonic Organizations - before they're gone!

10/08/2026

Join us for lunch Friday, October 9th at The Milk House in Greenville. Come meet your local NSDAR chapter ladies and grab a sandwich cooked by the one and only Wes Porchout! Delicious home-baked desserts as well, yummmmmy! Proceeds raised will go toward benefiting school kids, veterans, and first responders in the communities of Benjamin Mills Chapter and Isaac Hull Chapter!

10/07/2026

Item: Greenville, Bond County, Illinois Election Poll Book, 16 May 1863, 8 pages. Acquired in an Auction 2020. Privately held by the Faulkner–Hull Collection, Massachusetts. Compiled and researched by Kimberli Faulkner Hull, who writes on her website:

"The Poll Book is a register that was used to record votes for an election that occurred on Saturday, 16 May 1863, in Greenville, Bond County, Illinois. Judges for the election were T. S. Hubbard, Wm McShall (William M. C. Shaul), and William Davis, . The 'book' is made of several sheets of paper pinned together; the pages are approximately 12 1/2 inches by 4 inches (folded, actual paper is 8 inches wide).

"It is unknown the purpose of the 16 May 1863 election, however, it is possible it was held to elect the Board of Trustees. Those elected to the board in 1863, all who voted in the 16 May election, were: President, J. S. Denny (voter 106); Clerk, M. V. Denny (107); Treasurer, Alexander Buie (87); H. B. Alexander (3), Lemuel Adams (20), D. H. Kingsbury (96), W. H. Williams (185)."

https://cooladventures.com/collection/greenville-bond-illinois-poll-book-16-may-1863/

10/02/2026

✂️ A ribbon has been cut—and a piece of Bond County history has a new home! 🎨

The Bond County Historical Society officially dedicated the Carson Donnell Gallery at the Bond County Museum with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on September 30.

The gallery brings together newly acquired Donnell paintings from the collection of Kendra Finley, widow of Donnell friend and collector Walt Finley, along with works already in the museum’s collection and currently on loan.

A special thank-you goes to Kendra Finley, Michael Hubbard, Frank & Susan Watson, and Robert Whiteside for the roles each played in bringing this gallery to life—and to everyone who helped preserve the work of one of Bond County’s most celebrated artists. ❤️

Come see the gallery for yourself and experience a little piece of Bond County’s artistic heritage! 🖼️

10/01/2026

We're excited to see how the new Pocahontas,Il. History Museum comes together and looking forward to partnering with them in 2027! And proud of our Displays Committee chairwoman, Michelle Haller, for her work on their board! Thank you, Southwestern Electric Cooperative!

On Tuesday, we had Pocahontas,Il. History Museum Secretary Michelle Haller at our Greenville headquarters to accept a donation from the cooperative's Operation Round Up initiative. Pictured are Haller, right, and Southwestern Electric Manager of Member Services Brooke Scott.

Haller said the donation will help the newly formed museum, which hopes to be in its new physical home inside the former The Strand Theater building sometime in 2027, offer a Dolly Parton's Imagination Library program. Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is dedicated to inspiring a love of reading by gifting books free of charge to children from birth to age five. We can't wait to see the new museum and all the good you do for Bond County children with this program!

This donation is possible because of our members who choose to round up their electric bill each month. Thank you for helping us give back to the communities. If you are interested in participating in ORU, please call us at (800) 637-8667.

09/28/2026

📆🎨🖼 Bond County Historical Society will host an official opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new Carson Donnell Gallery inside the Bond County Museum. The dedication is scheduled for Wednesday, September 30, 2026, at 5:00 PM at the museum, located at 409 S. Fourth St., Greenville, IL.

The event is held in deep gratitude to recognize a generous donation from Frank and Susan Watson, which enabled the museum to purchase nine pieces from the Walt and Kendra Finley family of Hillsboro. This new permanent installation honors the legacy of Bond County’s own talented, classically trained, prairie artist, Carson Donnell (1885-1969).

In addition to the newly acquired pieces, the gallery opening will feature a special, temporary display of a large Donnell landscape painting – “Kaskaskia River” – graciously on loan from Bradford National Bank. Attendees will also have the opportunity to view various Donnell works owned by the museum alongside private pieces loaned by historical society members. Together, the collection showcases a rare gathering of Donnell’s striking American Post-Impressionism paintings, wood-cut block prints, and oil wash sketches.

“Putting Carson Donnell’s art on display does more than just celebrate our past; it reminds everyone how much love and upkeep this grand old 1900 home actually needs,” said Cary Holman, Bond County Historical Society President. “This new gallery is part of a big push to help us raise the funds needed to maintain the U.S. DeMoulin Mansion, bring in new active members, and get the neighborhood connected through some great new programming.”
Following the official ribbon cutting and remarks, guests are invited to explore the museum’s fully ADA-accessible ground floor, where all public exhibits and artifacts are showcased, while enjoying light snacks.

For community members unable to attend the opening night, the artwork will remain on display for public viewing during regular museum hours through the end of the calendar year. This exhibition serves as a perfect prelude to the historical society’s next major gathering, the Annual Dinner Meeting & Elections, scheduled for Tuesday, October 27, 2026, at 6:00 PM at the St. Lawrence Catholic Church Hall. The meeting will feature guest speaker Kevin Kaegy, who will present on “The Clingman Gang: Bushwacker Activity in and near Bond County in 1864.”

Event Details:
• What: Carson Donnell Gallery Dedication & Ribbon Cutting
• When: Wednesday, September 30, 2026, at 5:00 PM
• Where: Bond County Museum, 409 S. Fourth St., Greenville, IL
• Features: Art exhibition, light refreshments, and donor recognition

09/28/2026

An elegant table, set with our gold-rimmed bone china, conveys a formal, welcoming mood. Add matching platters, a lidded serving dish, and dinner is served! This Lenox china in the Lowell pattern from the U.S. DeMoulin estate includes pieces from both before and after 1930 (determined by the back stamp). Both dinnerware and serveware were donated in early 2025 by Scott Malan, a DeMoulin cousin who once lived in the mansion and acquired many family artifacts.

Originally introduced by Lenox Corporation in 1917, this Presidential-style design remained a staple of formal tables for over a century before being discontinued in 2021. The pattern is famous for its intricate, textured gold basket-weave or scrollwork pattern running inside the heavy metallic rim.

Bond County Museum in Greenville, Illinois is open Saturdays 10am-noon year round. Also open Sundays 1pm-3pm June, July, August. And by special appointment/tour. One Room School Museum is open by appointment only, plus special events. Contact Bond County Historical Society to schedule a group tour!