Community News
Benld City Council Meeting August 8: Alderman Take Cut
With 5 alderman in attendance and nothing on the agenda for executive session, the council heard from multiple guest speakers on August 8:
- Toni Wargo had 2 concerns to share with the council. First, she asked if the city could cut the library’s grass since it was a city building afterall and it would be less expense for the library. Toni estimated it would save the library $50-75 a month. Jim Savant agreed with Toni, but told her he was advised a few years ago to not cut it. Savant went on to say that he has no problem cutting the grass, but later in the meeting Chiarodo said the alderman can pitch in some time and take care of it. The second thing Toni mentioned was the repair on the library. The library has received three bids and the library will choose a bid Wednesday evening. Wargo said the library may have to close for a temporary time, but the chances are very slim.
- Lynn Fraelle told the council that permanent bike route signs will be installed if there is no problem. All the hardware for the signs will be provided and Build Benld will install them. There was no concern by the council. Fraelle also said that Build Benld will be painting curves and the Fire Department is planning to paint the fire hydrants.
- Gloria advised the council that the Build Benld art fair will be held in conjunction with the Croatian Picnic. She asked the council if they could volunteer an hour in the morning and an hour in the evening to help set-up and tear down. The council agreed.
- Jerry Saracco then asked the council the status of the red collection box for clothes. The council stated at a previous meeting they were getting rid of the boxes, but they are still in sight and there has been no progress made. The council had called the company already, but mayor Hendricks said the city will make another phone call.
- Ferdinand Girardi then suggested the council take “Department” out of the ordinance and change it to “District” since the Fire Department is a district now. Girardi said it would be less confusing if you change it. Girardi also wanted to know the status of the installation of ditches in the town. Mayor Hendricks said he is still working on it. Girardi said, “I would like to see more dug and if I live another 30 years – I may get to witness it.”
Vertichio updated the city on the Tenikat property.
Rick Vertichio then updated the city that they acquired the RECA Ltd. Partnership property at 218 West Walnut in Benld.
Next on the agenda were reports. The police report was carried 5-0 along with the the 5-0 carry of the treasurer’s report. There was discussion under the committee reports:
- Robinson updated the council on city property. First, Robinson said on any fire, you have to watch the water carefully. Jim Savant, city maintenance worker, was commended by the council for responding within 5 minutes to the Coliseum fire. Savant corrected the water shortage and had to learn how to work problems with the new tower in an emergency and he did just that. Robinson went on to say he cannot approve 2 invoices because they are missing information. Robinson said there is a collapse in the sewer line in the north-east corner. To find this out, workers had to drain the grease pit and send a camera down to find the collapse. Robinson also went on to say the stage door at the city park was kicked in yet again, but Savant replaced all the hinges and reinstalled it.
- The finance committee approved all bills, but said the chief of police should be in attendance at all the meetings because not only is it stated, but half of the budget supports the police force.
- The police committee approved all bills.
- The maintenance committee commended the maintenance crew on a splendid job at the Coliseum fire; all other bills were paid.
- All sewer bills were approved and paid.
- All water bills were approved and paid.
- Motion made by Hedricks to approve all warrants, carried 5-0.
In old business, Mayor Hendricks said the city is free to move forward on the Tenikat property and he suggested, “No mercy, move quickly as possible.” Hedricks said the property can be put up for bid and then someone else can tear it down and then own the property. Lynn Fraelle asked if the city would consider giving the property away if there are no bids; the city council said yes.
In new business, the prevailing wage resolution was carried 5-0 with a motion made by Robinson. In other business, Bernot recommended a utility nonpayment rate amendment. The late payment percentage is now 10% and Bernot recommended increasing it to 20%. “The ordinance states that if you pay the water bill after 15 days of billing, you are slapped with a 10% late fee percentage. I want to raise it to 20%, Gillespie just raised theirs. I think it is very minimal and late payments are becoming a big problem.” Robinson made sure that the amendment is not pertaining to the water turn off. Bernot assured the council that no action is being taken with that, the water is till to be turned off after the bill has not been paid 31 days after the bill was received. The amendment was carried 4-1, motion made by Tilashalski and objected by Chiarodo.
Ferdinand Girardi said he would like to see more ditches dug.
In other updates, Mayor Hendricks said the city should make arrangements to bury the time capsule soon. Hendricks went on to say he is in the progress of writing formal thank-yous to everyone involved in the Coliseum fire. “I was amazed by the job everyone did and by the fantastic job of all the surrounding communities,” Hendricks said.
Robinson updated the council that a 5 member committee was formed to keep something in remembrance of the coliseum in Benld. “I just want to make everyone aware, something is being done,” Robinson said.
Jerry Sarracco then asked if anything was being done with the repairs needed at the city park. Mayor Hendricks said the city is in the process of dealing with the insurance company, but there is progress being made.
Lastly, Bernot suggested the alderman take a cut. The cut proposed was to abolish the phone compensation the alderman presently receive from the city. The alderman receive about $17 per month for phone usage. The cut will save the city around $1,800 each year. “Every little bit counts,” Tilashalski said. The motion was carried 4-1, with Robinson voting present.
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Dana Carr Skinner, 52, of Gillespie has announced her candidacy for Macoupin County Circuit Clerk. She will be on the November 5, 2024, General Election ballot.
Dana, a lifelong Macoupin County resident was born and raised in Wilsonville by her
parents, Barb and Van Baker. She graduated Gillespie High School in 1990 and attended SIUE
before starting her family. She has raised eight children all of whom graduated college or attended trade school. Dana is married to Todd Skinner.
Dana is currently a public servant, serving the people of Illinois as a paralegal. She has
over 25 years legal experience with 15 of those years being directly in the courtroom. She has
worked in law firms that practiced in all areas of the law from probate, family, civil, traffic,
criminal and real estate. After working several years in the legal field, Dana went back to college and obtained a paralegal degree.
Dana is running for Circuit Clerk because, “It is time for me give back to my community
and the residents of Macoupin County. Lee Byots Ross has done an amazing job as our current Circuit Clerk and I want to continue the work that she has accomplished. My adult life has been focused on my family and my children, and they are now grown. My focus now, would be to demonstrate to the residents of Macoupin County that I can and will do an excellent job as
Circuit Clerk,” Dana said.
The Circuit Clerk is responsible for establishing, maintaining and keeping all records of
the court, as well as several administrative, financial and public services.
“There are employees in the office now that have worked there a number of years, and I will be committed to them and their opinions, as well as the people the Macoupin County. I will learn from the current employees if I am elected in November and I believe that I have the experience, the knowledge and the work ethic that would make me an asset to the Circuit Clerks Office’s team,” Dana said.
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United Mineworkers of America President Cecil Roberts will commemorate the 125th anniversary of Union Miners’ Cemetery in Mt. Olive on October 13. Ceremonies begin at noon with a short historical parade, Roberts, IL AFL-CIO President Tim Drea, and frequent labor music.
Afterward, a meal will be provided as the labor music continues. The event is free and open to the public. A portable chair is recommended.
The cemetery is located on near 5536 Mt. Olive Road in Mt. Olive and can be found by following North Lake Street.
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Background of Union Miners Cemetery by the Mother Jones Museum:
The Union Miners Cemetery is in Mt. Olive, a small mining-town that was once the center of a rebellious group of miners who helped to secure Illinois as the solid rock for the United Mine Workers Union. Today thousands of visitors come each year to pay their respects to the memory to Mother Jones and the spirit that guided her and the founders of the labor movement in the United States. They reflect about the connections between the past and the present.
The cemetery was established in 1899, when commemorations of the miners killed in the 1898 “Virden riot” became controversial in the Mt. Olive cemetery where they were originally buried.
The bodies of the Virden “martyrs” were re-interred in a cemetery established as the Union Miners Cemetery by the Mt. Olive United Mine Workers local. Commemorations of these events in the following years contributed to a generation of activism in the Illinois coal fields.
They did this by claiming the kind of memorial space that was denied in other places, such as Haymarket, where police often disrupted commemorations. This built a sense of connection between past and present in the area, and made it clear that ordinary workers had changed the course of history. The role of the ordinary worker came into focus. Mt. Olive was one of the few places in the country where labor history was taught before the 1970s.
This is a unique place in the history of the labor movement; it was the only union-owned cemetery in the country. This is a place with a monument to Mother Jones, but it also evokes the power and potential of the labor movement. It is a place of reflection and remembering, of thinking of the labor movement’s roots. It is a shrine not only to Jones but to the sacrifices that connected human rights and labor rights, a place where people wonder when and why labor lost power.
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When I decided to write this article, my original intent was to find out when they removed the rails down the middle of Macoupin Street, but I thought I might research when the railroads came and went in Gillespie. So here is a brief history!
In the 1850’s, railroads were becoming more important to the US for both transportation of people and goods. Chicago was the hub of railroad traffic in the west and cities throughout Illinois were vying to have railroads come through their section of the state. Having a railroad meant prosperity and growth. Towns would grow with increased population. The key question was where are the railroads going to go? Influence by key political people throughout the state was important.
Prominent people in the US and central Illinois like Judge Joseph Gillespie, William Mattoon, Electus B Litchfield and Robert Rantoul (Massachusetts senator) and others help bring the railroad south.
The move south was brought about by the chartering of the Terre-Haute & Alton Railroad in January 1851 out of Mattoon, Illinois. It was to extend south to Alton because legislators wanted Alton to compete with St. Louis in the growth of the area. The work was started in 1852 to originally go 172 miles. It was completed in March 1856. Extensions were created from Alton to Belleville and eventually to St. Louis. By 1857 the route was completed and a railroad went through Gillespie. The St. Louis connection was helped by the building of the Eads Bridge in 1874.
In June 1867, the Terre-Haute Alton Railroad was leased to the Indianapolis & St Louis Railroad but went into foreclosure in 1882 and sold to the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad (known as the Big Four). This railroad came under control of Vanderbilt and the NY Central Railroad system.
The Terre-Haute Alton Railroad/Big Four Railroad came to Gillespie on an east west route. It passed through Gillespie today in the land next to the Civic Center, crossing Macoupin Street next to Subway. The Big Four Terminal was just off Macoupin Street where the Civic Center is located. There were additional terminals in Hornsby and Dorchester.
A 2nd railroad will add additional prosperity to Gillespie. The Illinois Traction System was a brainchild of William B. McKinley (not the president). He had a vision to create an electric railroad empire that covered at its peak 550 miles of rail.
The Traction system started in connecting Danville and Champaign in 1901-02, then to Decatur to Springfield in 1904. He also completed the route from Springfield to Granite City going through Gillespie and Benld in 1904. This Interurban as most people called it was a passenger service. It would eventually connect to Peoria by 1907 and St Louis by 1910. It was also possible to go to Chicago by connecting with other railroads. The Illinois Traction Terminal was on the corner of Macoupin and Spruce Streets where United Community Bank is located and at one time did have a small spur to the east.
Everyone associates the growth of Gillespie-Benld and the surrounding area to the coal mines, but the railroad also played a key part in the growth of the area.
You might wonder why main street is so wide compared to other towns’ business districts? Gillespie was unique by having the Interurban rail down the center of Macoupin Street but also the Big Four crisscrossed near Walnut Street. The town has to be one of the few towns in Illinois to have that unique situation.
In the early days, the crisscross intersection was controlled by only railroad signs. The “Stop, Look and Listen” slogan did not stop accidents at the crossing. Eventually, a crossing watchman was hired to control the car and pedestrian traffic at the intersection of the two railroad lines. It was also not unusual for a parked car to back into the Interurban in the business district.
These two railroads went north-south and east-west throughout town until the Interurban ceased to operate. The last Interurban use was on March 3, 1956. The rail line was eventually taken over by other railroads and would only be used for freight transportation, especially by Norfolk Western and other railroad lines. The rail line did have a brief arrangement to transport coal from Monterrey Coal Junction to Edwardsville in 1970, but the last use of the old Interurban Line for freight use occurred on August 20, 1970.
The eventual decline of the railroads in Gillespie coincides with the decline of the coal mines. Railroads were being transformed from coal to diesel and coal use immediately declined.
The Big Four stopped operating on December 17, 1964. Slowly they started to remove the tracks between Litchfield and Bethalto. Illinois maps show Big Four railroad tracks in 1965, but they are gone by 1967.
Now to the original premise of the article, when were the railroad tracks removed down the middle of Macoupin Street? My sources throughout town were varying, I got all kinds of guesses. I narrowed it down by my own memory. It was there in 1972 when I started teaching but then all of a sudden it was gone. I searched newspapers in the fall of 1972, then 1973 and I found it in 1974.
In January of 1974, the city decided to do something about the water lines in the business district. There was a conversation in late February to remove the tracks, but when will they do it? At the same time there was discussion about the sewer lines where the tracks are located. So, the city decided to it all at the same time, remove the tracks, and do water and sewer lines. By early April 1974, the tracks are gone and by early May, the downtown was a mess because of the water main project. After the downtown removal of tracks, the city eventually moved further north and south on Macoupin to remove the remaining tracks.
So, what proved to be a simple search gave you, the readers, a history of the railroads in Gillespie. Stop by the library and see the assorted railroad pictures and if you have anything railroad-related or an interesting picture involving the railroad such as an accident involving the railroads. I would like to see them.
