Peru Historical Society

08/31/2026

As Maid Powell’s birthday month comes to a close, here is a look at her ancestry. Some articles published during her lifetime suggested she was Hungarian. Check out the post to see what we found.

Our society attended a birthday celebration for Maud Powell on August 22nd in Centennial Park. The event was hosted by The Maud Powell Society of America and featured several musicians focusing on string instruments. After the event as we were getting ready to take down our display for the Peru Hist...

08/28/2026

This 1869 document found in a local probate file looks like an ordinary lumber bill. But a closer look reveals history related to a Peru business, 19th century building costs, and a local widow managing her family's affairs over two decades of probate. Click the link in the first comment to discover these stories!

08/25/2026

For those who reserved a book, you can pick them up tonight at the meeting!! And if anyone else is interested in purchasing a book, we will have extra copies for sale before or after the meeting: $15 for members/$20 for non-members. Thank you very much to all who have already purchased one - don't forget to leave a review on Amazon.

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08/25/2026

Next up - it is August and that means it is everything Maud Powell! So please join us at our meeting tonight at 6:30 pm at Peru City Hall to celebrate her birthday month 🎂 (there will be treats!). The Maud Powell Society of America will give us a short presentation about Maud Powell and update us on their important work to keep her memory alive. Did I mention there will be treats? 😊🧁

08/25/2026

A couple announcements for today starting with this one - we are super excited to participate with other local organizations and the Piacenti family in this Step Back in Time event on Sept. 11th from 4 to 7 pm. It is open to the public so please join us and learn about this historic and unique home!

08/24/2026

Peru, Illinois - Few more Celebrate Maud Powell in Centennial Park photos on August 22nd. Peru Historical Society in Attendance.

08/22/2026

Enjoying the music at Centennial Park in Peru and celebrating Maud Powell’s birthday. 🎻

08/20/2026

Come see us this Saturday at Centennial Park between 3pm and 6pm - Peru Historical Society will be set up in Park to Celebrate Maude Powell. This Event is ponsored by the Maude Powell Society of America and the Morning Larks. Any Peru Historical Society members willing to help us out, your help would be greatly appreciated.

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08/20/2026

At our June meeting we learned about the Peru Zimmerman family. Here is a short slideshow about this Peru family who built a home where the current post office now stands.https://www.peruhistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/The_Zimmerman_Blueprint.pdf

08/19/2026

The I&M Canal Visitor Center is hosting an event this Sunday about how the canal operated and about the illustrations in the Passage to Chicago book. Looks interesting!

Joining us Sunday will take a lot less effort. 😉

This illustration from Tom Willcockson’s Passage to Chicago shows just how much work went into loading an I&M Canal boat—carefully packing barrels, sacks of grain, wool, stoneware and other cargo to make the most of every inch of space.

See more of Tom’s work—and discover the research and creative process behind it—this Sunday at the I&M Canal Visitor Center.

Tom will give a behind-the-scenes look at the original illustratations he created for our new 18-panel History of the I&M Canal exhibit, discuss writing and illustrating Passage to Chicago, answer questions and sign books following the presentation.

📅 Sunday, August 23 | 1 pm
📍 I&M Canal Visitor Center | 754 First Street, La Salle
🎟️ FREE (donations appreciated)

Please RSVP to [email protected] so we have an idea of attendance.

🔗 https://iandmcanal.org/events/tomwillcockson