School children listen intently in the "Music Room"
The Historic Cheney Mansion
Cheney Mansion Tours

Museum Tours

Lone Star School Tours

Genealogy Research

Family History Research

Underground Railroad
Tour guide Helen Gubser talks to the children at the
beginning of a tour of 2nd grade students
Educational Tours are given to children of the local
schools every year.  A favorite day of the school year
for the children is when they have the chance to see all
of the items and artifacts that are located at the
Historical Society site.

During the month of May of 2004 there were over 250
young students from the primary grades that toured the
site and one High School Junior History class spent
about 2 hours learning about the history of Jerseyville.  
In the early 1800's the small community was called
"Hickory Grove".   The children are amazed at what is
available today as compared to 1833 when only three
families and one single gentleman made their residence
in the small community.  Only ten persons were counted
here in 1833.  By 1850 there were 750 persons on the
Federal Census schedule in Jerseyville.  The name of
the community was changed to Jerseyville in 1834 when
18 men met in the "Little Red House" and chose to form
their own County and officially changed the name to
Jerseyville and the county to Jersey, since most of the
inhabitants in the area were from the State of New
Jersey.  They elected their first Postmaster and
afterwards, celebrated the event by relaxing and toasting
the event with "tanzy bitters" beneath a hickory tree on
the site just outside the Red House.

During the month of May, tour dates may have to be
changed to accommodate the school children's tours,
as they take precedent each spring.
During the annual "Apple Festival" and other scheduled
events, tours of the Cheney Mansion, Lone Star School
and Museum will be available.
The Lone Star School
Museum and Research Center
The Cheney Mansion
was a station for the
Underground Railroad
On the last weekend in September of each year the
Historical Society hold their "Apple Festival"

In the year of 2004 the Apple Festival will held on
Saturday and Sunday the 25th and 26th of September
Jersey County Historical Society
601 North State Street
Jerseyville, Illinois  62052
Enter starting street address:

City, State or Zipcode:
For more information contact the Historical Society at:

618 498 3514

iriscot@yahoo.com
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Jersey  County  Historical  Society
Organized in 1904