O'Fallon Illinois Historical Society

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O'Fallon Illinois Historical Society Preserving the history of the O'Fallon, Illinois area since 1988. Admission is FREE This is the official page of the O'Fallon (Illinois) Historical Society.

Founded in 1988, the Society has operated a museum at 101 W. State St. in Downtown O'Fallon, Illinois since 1996. The museum is in the old First National Bank building which was also the former public library. Built in 1904 and remodeled in 1922 when its iconic outdoor clock was added, the building is a St. Clair County Historic Site. The museum boasts 3 floors of exhibits and features the original bank vault in the basement. Hours are Wednesdays and Saturdays from 1 to 4 pm and by appointment. Tour groups are welcome with advance notice. Admission is free. The Society also owns and operates the red Caboose in the 100 block of West First Street, as well as operates the Scale House at First & Apple, both in the O'Fallon Downtown District. The O'Fallon Historical Society was incorporated in 1989 as an Illinois not-for-profit organization and has been 501(c)3 tax-exempt since 1992. The Society is a member of the O'Fallon-Shiloh Chamber of Commerce and the Downtown District. Mailing and Street Address: 101 W. State St., O'Fallon IL 62269
Regular Museum Hours: Wednesdays and Saturdays, 1 to 4 pm. Phone Number: 618-624-8409 (museum), 618-410-9020 (president's cell number)
Email Address: [email protected]

O'Fallon Historical Society Officers and Board of Directors for 2026 (calendar year)
President - Brian Keller
Vice President - Caroline Malare
Secretary - Valerie Hancock
Treasurer - Sam Fussell
Directors - Vern Malare, Elinor Schlosser, Greg Zelinske, Thomas Gehrer, Nancy Pfannkuche

This week marks the 100th anniversary of the famous 1926 World Series between the St. Louis Cardinals and the New York Y...
10/09/2026

This week marks the 100th anniversary of the famous 1926 World Series between the St. Louis Cardinals and the New York Yankees. Played at Sportman's Park in St. Louis and Yankee Stadium in New York from October 2 through October 10, it featured such baseball legends as Rogers Hornsby and Grover Cleveland Alexander playing for the Cardinals, and Lou Gehrig, Waite Hoyt, and Babe Ruth for the Yankees. St. Louis won the Series, 4 to 3, its first World Series appearance and first World Series victory.

For O'Fallonites, it was an exciting time. Some were able to score tickets to Sportsman's Park. Others were glued to radios to get the play-by-play, which, for some, determined the fate of their bets on who would win.

Here are three articles run by the O'Fallon Progress back then, giving a local flavor to the Series.

10/05/2026

The next Pub Table Historian is Thursday night, October 8, 2026, from 6 to 7 p.m. at Gears Bar and Cafe inside Bike Surgeon at 201 E State in Downtown O'Fallon.

By popular request, this month's topic will be O'Fallon Halloween and Halloween-ish Stories. Intrigued? Come and listen in... and bring your stories, too! 👻 🎃

As always, food and drinks are available for purchase, and all ages are welcome.

Pub Table Historian is a free monthly history talk sponsored by the O'Fallon Historical Society. It is usually held on the second Thursday of each month (with some exceptions) from 6 pm to 7pm and covers different topics relating to the history of O'Fallon and the surrounding area. It's an informal evening, and questions and input are welcome and encouraged. Watch this page for future dates and topics.

Whether you've lived here all your life or just arrived yesterday or even today, this is your town, this is our town—and everyone is equally welcome to come and join us for a bit of O'History!

10/01/2026

Come visit the Haunted Ca-BOO-se during District Frights this Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026, from 5 to 9 pm! All ages are welcome, but we ask that children be accompanied by an adult.

09/14/2026

The next Pub Table Historian is Thursday night, September 17, 2026, from 6 to 7 p.m. at Gears Bar and Cafe inside Bike Surgeon. This month's topic is Early Laws of O'Fallon. We'll take a look at how O'Fallon was structured when it became a village in 1874, and talk about some of the early ordinances that said what was legal and not legal within the village limits back in the horse-and-buggy days.

As always, food and drinks are available for purchase, and all ages are welcome.

*** PROGRAMMING NOTE. We'll be back to our usual second Thursday next month. In October, Pub Table Historian will be on the 8th.

Pub Table Historian is a free monthly history talk sponsored by the O'Fallon Historical Society. It is usually held on the second Thursday of each month (with some exceptions) from 6 pm to 7pm and covers different topics relating to the history of O'Fallon and the surrounding area. It's an informal evening, and questions and input are welcome and encouraged. Watch this page for future dates and topics.

Whether you've lived here all your life or just arrived yesterday or even today, this is your town, this is our town—and everyone is equally welcome to come and join us for a bit of O'History!

09/07/2026

Reminder - this month, Pub Table Historian will be on Thurs, Sept. 17, at 6 pm at Gears Bar and Cafe.

Recently, the City of O'Fallon has been considering the possibility of asking the voters, perhaps next year, to eliminat...
08/27/2026

Recently, the City of O'Fallon has been considering the possibility of asking the voters, perhaps next year, to eliminate the elected positions of City Clerk and Treasurer and transfer their duties to the City's professional staff. The two positions date back to 1905, when O'Fallon converted from a village to a city form of government. We thought it would be interesting to look back at what the City Clerk and Treasurer did back then. Here are pages from O'Fallon's 1905 code of ordinances listing the duties of each.

Back then, unlike today, the City Clerk and Treasurer, as well as the Mayor, ran for 2-year terms. What were they paid? The City Clerk made $100 per year plus 25 cents for each license issued or transferred. The Treasurer made $50 per year. Both were required to post bonds. The Clerk's bond was $1500. The Treasurer's was "fixed at a sum not less than double the amount of the estimated tax receipts and special assessments for the current year and the estimated annual receipts of the city from licenses and other sources."

The first City Clerk was William R. Lawrence. He had been the Village Clerk from 1903 to 1905. He served as City Clerk from 1905 to 1907, when he was defeated by Rudolph Kampmeyer for a second term. He died on May 24, 1907, not long after the election, at the age of 28.

The first City Treasurer was Joseph Taylor. He was elected unopposed in 1905 and served until 1907, when he decided not to run for re-election. He later served as City Mayor from 1909 to 1911.

08/10/2026

The next Pub Table Historian is Thursday night, August 13, 2026, from 6 to 7 p.m. at Gears Bar and Cafe inside Bike Surgeon at 201 E. State St. in Downtown O'Fallon. With school starting up again, this month's topic is the early history of schools in the O'Fallon area. We promise - no pop quizzes!

As always, food and drinks are available for purchase, and all ages are welcome.

*** PROGRAMMING CHANGE. Next month, Pub Table Historian will be on the 3rd Thursday, September 17. We'll switch back to the usual 2nd Thursday the following month. Same time - 6 p.m.

Pub Table Historian is a free monthly history talk sponsored by the O'Fallon Historical Society. It is usually held on the second Thursday of each month (with some exceptions) from 6 pm to 7pm and covers different topics relating to the history of O'Fallon and the surrounding area. It's an informal evening, and questions and input are welcome and encouraged. Watch this page for future dates and topics.

Whether you've lived here all your life or just arrived yesterday or even today, this is your town, this is our town—and everyone is equally welcome to come and join us for a bit of O'History!

Address

101 W State St
O'Fallon, IL
62269

Opening Hours

Wednesday 1pm - 4pm
Saturday 1pm - 4pm

Telephone

+16186248409

Website

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