About two dozen residents attended a Drop Party at the Kewanee Historical Society on Friday, Feb. 2.
Dropping were two episodes of Kewanee Memory Lane, a new podcast endeavor by LeeAnn Bailleu and Marianne Culver. With the help of Jon Looney, the two history buffs have begun recording episodes that will feature Kewanee history for “historical weirdos.”
But coming up with the idea was easier than actually pulling it off. Bailleu said she came up with the idea that she and Culver should do the podcast in the bathroom. Her next question was, how do we do a podcast? Enter Looney, an IT guy, who agreed to come aboard and act as producer and director.
Looney said that the team chose to do the video podcasts in a live recording session, with no cuts and the assembled party guests were treated to a blooper reel before viewing the first two podcast episodes.
Kewanee Memory Lane is recorded on the top floor of the historical society and Culver and Bailleu sit behind a desk that was the original circulation desk from the 1906 Kewanee Public Library. The blooper reel, enjoyed during the podcast’s premiere, reveals its rough start when the women struggle to introduce themselves and Bailleu, at one point, forgets the podcast’s title.
The three friends admit that the first episode is a little shaky.
“We hope, we at least think, they’re getting better,” said Looney.
The first episode of the podcast is an introduction to the two hosts, upcoming topics that viewers can expect to learn about, as well as the women’s motivation behind creating it.
Both Culver and Bailleu volunteer for the Kewanee Historical Society and both spend a great deal of time together during their research sessions. Culver has been researching churches while Bailleu has taken an interest in breweries and taverns.
“We are so proud to highlight Kewanee in a positive way,” Culver states in episode one.
Culver’s love of Kewanee history and history in general started at a young age and she remembers accompanying her mother to Henry County Genealogical Society meetings.
“It was always interesting for me to see how far back my mom could go without the internet,” said Culver.
Bailleu, who is a Kewanee transplant, said her dad always loved history.
“I remember in eighth grade one of my writing assignments was to discuss our family tree,” she said.
Her dad called her sister who brought her the family tree and family Bible. When she moved to Kewanee, she got involved with the Kewanee Historical Society and began to research her husband Rob’s genealogy.
“In my family, I’m the keeper,” she said. “I collect the knowledge.”
Culver and Bailleu first and foremost pay tribute to the man responsible for the Kewanee Historical Society, Bob Richards. Richards founded the museum in 1976.
“We have a saying, ‘God bless Mr. Richards,’” Culver said. “Because nothing would have been preserved without him,” adding that Richards would have loved a podcast because he loved to talk.
The women highlighted a column Richards wrote for the Star Courier called Fast Fax. In February of 1990, Richards noted in his column the payroll of the Kewanee Boiler. On Jan. 29, 1913, payroll for the manufacturing company was $667,000. Today that amount would be the equivalent of over $20 million. That’s just one example of what you’ll learn by viewing the new podcast.
Other topics lightly touched upon during the roughly half-hour episode are bootlegging, prohibition, the skating rink during the 1970s, the three former bowling alleys in Kewanee, the Jupiter store, the haunted second floor of the Downtown Eatery building, and the Brick, which was built in 1923 and also the subject of their second podcast.
In upcoming episodes the plan is to delve into all things Kewanee.
“We do enjoy a deep dive into some topics,” Bailleu said, and prohibition in Kewanee is on that list.
The women also touch lightly on odd facts, such as a street that no longer exists. Kewanee’s numerous fires, E.E. Baker and Kewanee parks, and penny candy at neighborhood grocery stores are also the brief topic of discussions.
The first episode is “Ghosts, Grocers and the Spirit of ‘76.” The second episode is “The Brick & other Shenanigans” and the third episode delves into prohibition in Kewanee and is set to drop on Feb. 22.
You can view the podcasts by clicking here. Like and follow Kewanee Memory Lane on Facebook.
