Ottawa, Illinois
Encyclopedia
Ottawa is a city located at the confluence of the Illinois River
and Fox River
in LaSalle County, Illinois
, USA
. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 18,786. It is the county seat
of LaSalle County and it is part of the Ottawa-Streator Micropolitan Statistical Area
, which was the 259th-most populous area
in the United States
in 2007.
. During the Ottawa debate Stephen A. Douglas
, leader of the Democratic Party
, openly accused Abraham Lincoln
of forming a secret bipartisan group of Congressmen to bring about the abolition of slavery
.
The John Hossack House
was a "station" on the Underground Railroad
; Ottawa being a major stop, because of its rail, road and river transportation. Citizens in the city were active within the abolitionist movement
. Ottawa was the site of a famous 1859 abduction of a runaway slave named Jim Gray, from a courthouse by prominent civic leaders of the time. Three of the civic leaders, John Hossack, Dr. Joseph Stout and James Stout, later stood trial in Chicago for violating the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850.
Ottawa was also important in the development of the Illinois and Michigan Canal
, which terminates in LaSalle, Illinois, 12 miles to the west. The canal linked the Mississippi River
to Chicago
and Lake Michigan
, in the 19th century.
On February 8, 1910, William Dickson Boyce
, then a resident of Ottawa, incorporated the Boy Scouts of America
. Five years later, also in Ottawa, Boyce incorporated the Lone Scouts of America
. Boyce is buried in Ottawa Avenue Cemetery
. The Ottawa Scouting Museum, on Canal Street, opened to the public on December 6, 1997. The museum features the history of Boy Scouting, Girl Scouting and Camp Fire.
In 1922 The Radium Dial Company
(RDC) moved from Peru, Illinois
to a former high school building in Ottawa. The company employed hundreds of young women who painted watch dials using a paint called "Luna" for watch maker Westclox
. RDC went out of business in 1936, two years after the company's president, Joseph Kelly Sr., left to start a competing company, Luminous Processes Inc., a few blocks away.
Sabic recently purchased GE Plastics, a successor to Borg Warner automotive glass manufacture, operates a large plastics facility in Ottawa, and is a major employer.
was 2,497.9 people per square mile (964.3/km²). There were 8,030 housing units, at an average density of 1,095.6 per square mile (423.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 95.26% White, 1.37% African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.83% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.93% from other races and 1.39% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.21% of the population.
There were 7,510 households out of which 31.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.4% were married couples
living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present and 34.9% were non-families. 30.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.2% had someone living alone, who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.98.
In the city, the population was spread out with 24.9% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 28.2% from 25 to 44, 20.8% from 45 to 64 and 17.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $36,513 and the median income for a family was $44,435. Males had a median income of $41,943 versus $22,041 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $19,426. About 9.8% of families and 11.3% of the population were below the poverty line
, including 16.8% of those under age 18 and 7.0% of those age 65 or over.
, the most popular state park in Illinois, with some 2 million visitors per year. The Fox River
, which flows through communities like Elgin
and Aurora
empties into the Illinois
in downtown Ottawa. Ottawa is also home to one of the largest skydiving operations in the country, Skydive Chicago.
Ottawa Scouting Museum honors Ottawa resident, William D. Boyce
, the founder of the Boy Scouts of America
. Once an old Norwegian Lutheran Church, Norsk Museum, is located 9 miles northeast of Ottawa, on Highway 71. The museum is dedicated to the Scandinavian settlers who founded the area around neighboring Norway, Illinois
in the 1800s.
” who worked in the watch dial industry. The women, who had been told the paint was harmless, ingested deadly amounts of radium after being instructed to lick their paintbrushes to sharpen them; some even painted their fingernails with the glowing paint.
Many of the women began to suffer from anemia
, bone fracture
s and necrosis
of the jaw, a condition now known as radium jaw
. Many of these women died young.
The documentary interviews survivors from the industrial tragedy who relate their experiences of the poisoning and the bureaucratic nightmare they were forced to contend with in seeking compensation and justice.
Radium City outlines the aftermath of these events with a focus on the social and political consequences as well as the medical ones.
According to the film, after the Radium Dial workers began to get sick, a lawsuit was brought against Radium Dial Company. With the looming lawsuit, it closed and then re-opened under the name Luminous Processes in another part of town. The workers, though more concerned, kept on working.
The film shows the dismantling of the High School where the Radium Dial Company
was housed. The building materials were eventually turned into landfill. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency began removing contaminated material in 1986 http://www.epa.gov/R5Super/npl/illinois/ILD980606750.htm. The work continues.
After the plant closed and before it was dismantled many residents took items from the factory for their homes. This spread the contamination even further.
released a study http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/hac/pha/ottawa/ott_p1.html outlining areas where contamination by radium-226 (Ra-226) as well as emissions of radon-222 (Rn-222) are at above normal levels. These areas include homes, public areas, schools, and even a car sales lot that is housed directly over the old Radium Dial Company
site.
It should be noted that the radium in Ottawa's water supply is not from Radium Dial and Luminous Processes. Rather, it's naturally occurring and found in water from deep wells all over northern Illinois http://www.isws.illinois.edu/pubdoc/IEM/ISWSIEM2006-04.pdf. A reverse osmosis water treatment plant removes the radium so the city's tap water complies with federal regulations http://www.cityofottawa.org/water2.htm.
Illinois River
The Illinois River is a principal tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately long, in the State of Illinois. The river drains a large section of central Illinois, with a drainage basin of . This river was important among Native Americans and early French traders as the principal water route...
and Fox River
Fox River (Illinois River tributary)
The Fox River is a tributary of the Illinois River in the states of Wisconsin and Illinois in the United States. There are two other "Fox Rivers" in southern Illinois: the Fox River and a smaller "Fox River" that joins the Wabash River near New Harmony, Indiana.-Wisconsin:The Fox River rises near...
in LaSalle County, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 18,786. It is the county seat
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
of LaSalle County and it is part of the Ottawa-Streator Micropolitan Statistical Area
Ottawa-Streator Micropolitan Statistical Area
The Ottawa-Streator Micropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of three counties in north central Illinois, anchored by the cities of Ottawa and Streator....
, which was the 259th-most populous area
Table of United States Micropolitan Statistical Areas
thumb|An enlargeable map of the 942 [[Core Based Statistical Area]]s of the [[United States]]. The 576 [[Micropolitan Statistical Area]]s are shown in blue....
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 2007.
History
Ottawa was the site of the first of the Lincoln-Douglas debates of 1858Lincoln-Douglas debates of 1858
The Lincoln–Douglas Debates of 1858 were a series of seven debates between Abraham Lincoln, the Republican candidate for Senate in Illinois, and the incumbent Senator Stephen Douglas, the Democratic Party candidate. At the time, U.S. senators were elected by state legislatures; thus Lincoln and...
. During the Ottawa debate Stephen A. Douglas
Stephen A. Douglas
Stephen Arnold Douglas was an American politician from the western state of Illinois, and was the Northern Democratic Party nominee for President in 1860. He lost to the Republican Party's candidate, Abraham Lincoln, whom he had defeated two years earlier in a Senate contest following a famed...
, leader of the Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
, openly accused Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
of forming a secret bipartisan group of Congressmen to bring about the abolition of slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
.
The John Hossack House
John Hossack House
The John Hossack House is a historic house in Ottawa, Illinois, USA. It was built in 1854–55 and was a "station" on the Underground Railroad. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.-History:...
was a "station" on the Underground Railroad
Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad was an informal network of secret routes and safe houses used by 19th-century black slaves in the United States to escape to free states and Canada with the aid of abolitionists and allies who were sympathetic to their cause. The term is also applied to the abolitionists,...
; Ottawa being a major stop, because of its rail, road and river transportation. Citizens in the city were active within the abolitionist movement
Abolitionism
Abolitionism is a movement to end slavery.In western Europe and the Americas abolitionism was a movement to end the slave trade and set slaves free. At the behest of Dominican priest Bartolomé de las Casas who was shocked at the treatment of natives in the New World, Spain enacted the first...
. Ottawa was the site of a famous 1859 abduction of a runaway slave named Jim Gray, from a courthouse by prominent civic leaders of the time. Three of the civic leaders, John Hossack, Dr. Joseph Stout and James Stout, later stood trial in Chicago for violating the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850.
Ottawa was also important in the development of the Illinois and Michigan Canal
Illinois and Michigan Canal
The Illinois and Michigan Canal ran from the Bridgeport neighborhood in Chicago on the Chicago River to LaSalle-Peru, Illinois, on the Illinois River. It was finished in 1848 when Chicago Mayor James Hutchinson Woodworth presided over its opening; and it allowed boat transportation from the Great...
, which terminates in LaSalle, Illinois, 12 miles to the west. The canal linked the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
and Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron...
, in the 19th century.
On February 8, 1910, William Dickson Boyce
William D. Boyce
William Dickson "W. D." Boyce was an American newspaper man, entrepreneur, magazine publisher, and explorer. He was the founder of the Boy Scouts of America and the short-lived Lone Scouts of America . Born in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, he acquired a love for the outdoors early in his life...
, then a resident of Ottawa, incorporated the Boy Scouts of America
Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
. Five years later, also in Ottawa, Boyce incorporated the Lone Scouts of America
Lone Scouts of America
Lone Scouts of America was a Scouting organization for American boys that operated from 1915 until it merged with the Boy Scouts of America in 1924. The LSA was founded by W. D. Boyce, a Chicago newspaper entrepreneur and one of the founders of the BSA...
. Boyce is buried in Ottawa Avenue Cemetery
Ottawa Avenue Cemetery
The Ottawa Avenue Cemetery is located in Ottawa, Illinois. Originally founded as the Ottawa Cemetery Association in 1847 by George H. Norris and was incorporated in 1865.- External links :**...
. The Ottawa Scouting Museum, on Canal Street, opened to the public on December 6, 1997. The museum features the history of Boy Scouting, Girl Scouting and Camp Fire.
In 1922 The Radium Dial Company
Radium Dial Company
The now defunct Radium Dial Company, was one of a few United States companies along with the United States Radium Corporation, involved in the painting of clocks, watches and other instrument dials using radioluminescent paint containing radium. These dials are collectively known as radium dials...
(RDC) moved from Peru, Illinois
Peru, Illinois
Peru is a city in LaSalle County, Illinois, United States. The population was 10,295 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Ottawa–Streator Micropolitan Statistical Area...
to a former high school building in Ottawa. The company employed hundreds of young women who painted watch dials using a paint called "Luna" for watch maker Westclox
Westclox
Westclox was a former manufacturer and is a current brand of clocks and alarm clocks.-Early history as United Clock Company:Charles Stahlberg and others from Waterbury, Connecticut originally formed as "United Clock Company" on December 5, 1885 in Peru, Illinois, intending to manufacture clocks...
. RDC went out of business in 1936, two years after the company's president, Joseph Kelly Sr., left to start a competing company, Luminous Processes Inc., a few blocks away.
Industry
Because of numerous silica sand deposits (Ottawa sand was on board the ill-fated Columbia space shuttle for experimental purposes) Ottawa has been a major sand and glass center for more than 100 years. One of its largest employers is Pilkington Glass works, a successor to LOF (Libbey Owens Ford). Formerly concentrated in automotive glass, the plant now manufactures specialty glass and underwent a $50 million renovation in 2006. Ottawa sand continues to be extracted from several quarries in the area, and is recognized in glass-making and abrasives for its uniform granularity and characteristics.Sabic recently purchased GE Plastics, a successor to Borg Warner automotive glass manufacture, operates a large plastics facility in Ottawa, and is a major employer.
Demographics
As of the 2000 census, there were 18,307 people, 7,510 households and 4,889 families residing in the city. The population densityPopulation density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 2,497.9 people per square mile (964.3/km²). There were 8,030 housing units, at an average density of 1,095.6 per square mile (423.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 95.26% White, 1.37% African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.83% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.93% from other races and 1.39% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.21% of the population.
There were 7,510 households out of which 31.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.4% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 11.7% had a female householder with no husband present and 34.9% were non-families. 30.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.2% had someone living alone, who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 2.98.
In the city, the population was spread out with 24.9% under the age of 18, 8.1% from 18 to 24, 28.2% from 25 to 44, 20.8% from 45 to 64 and 17.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $36,513 and the median income for a family was $44,435. Males had a median income of $41,943 versus $22,041 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $19,426. About 9.8% of families and 11.3% of the population were below the poverty line
Poverty threshold
The poverty threshold, or poverty line, is the minimum level of income deemed necessary to achieve an adequate standard of living in a given country...
, including 16.8% of those under age 18 and 7.0% of those age 65 or over.
Tourism
Ottawa has many historic homes and registered historic landmarks. Recent additions to Ottawa have included renovations to its historic mansion, Reddick Mansion, and artistic murals throughout the central business district. Ottawa is known as the scenic gateway to Starved Rock State ParkStarved Rock State Park
Starved Rock State Park is a state park in Illinois, characterized by the many canyons within its 2360 acres. Located just southwest of the village of North Utica, in Deer Park Township, LaSalle County, Illinois, along the south bank of the Illinois River, the park hosts over two million visitors...
, the most popular state park in Illinois, with some 2 million visitors per year. The Fox River
Fox River (Illinois River tributary)
The Fox River is a tributary of the Illinois River in the states of Wisconsin and Illinois in the United States. There are two other "Fox Rivers" in southern Illinois: the Fox River and a smaller "Fox River" that joins the Wabash River near New Harmony, Indiana.-Wisconsin:The Fox River rises near...
, which flows through communities like Elgin
Elgin, Illinois
Elgin is a city in northern Illinois located roughly northwest of Chicago on the Fox River. Most of Elgin lies within Kane County, Illinois, with a portion in Cook County, Illinois...
and Aurora
Aurora, Illinois
Aurora is the second most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois, and the 112th largest city in the United States. A suburb of Chicago, located west of the Loop, its population in 2010 was 197,899. Originally founded within Kane County, Aurora's city limits have expanded greatly over the past...
empties into the Illinois
Illinois River
The Illinois River is a principal tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately long, in the State of Illinois. The river drains a large section of central Illinois, with a drainage basin of . This river was important among Native Americans and early French traders as the principal water route...
in downtown Ottawa. Ottawa is also home to one of the largest skydiving operations in the country, Skydive Chicago.
Ottawa Scouting Museum honors Ottawa resident, William D. Boyce
William D. Boyce
William Dickson "W. D." Boyce was an American newspaper man, entrepreneur, magazine publisher, and explorer. He was the founder of the Boy Scouts of America and the short-lived Lone Scouts of America . Born in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, he acquired a love for the outdoors early in his life...
, the founder of the Boy Scouts of America
Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
. Once an old Norwegian Lutheran Church, Norsk Museum, is located 9 miles northeast of Ottawa, on Highway 71. The museum is dedicated to the Scandinavian settlers who founded the area around neighboring Norway, Illinois
Norway, Illinois
Norway, Illinois is an unincorporated community in Mission Township, LaSalle County, Illinois. The community was the site of an early Norwegian-American settlement.-History:...
in the 1800s.
Media
- Ottawa is served by two local newspapers. The older of the two The Times formed in 2005, when the Streator Times-Press merged with The Daily Times, based in Ottawa. The second is a weekly newspaper called "Ottawa Delivered"
- Ottawa is also served by the NewsTribune of La Salle, IllinoisLa Salle, IllinoisLaSalle is a city in LaSalle County, Illinois, United States, located at the intersection of Interstates 39 and 80. It is part of the Ottawa–Streator Micropolitan Statistical Area. Originally platted in 1837 over one square mile, the city has grown to...
.
Radium City Documentary
In 1986 documentary film maker Carole Langer made a film that covered the plight of the so called “Radium GirlsRadium Girls
The Radium Girls were female factory workers who contracted radiation poisoning from painting watch dials with glow-in-the-dark paint at the United States Radium factory in Orange, New Jersey around 1917....
” who worked in the watch dial industry. The women, who had been told the paint was harmless, ingested deadly amounts of radium after being instructed to lick their paintbrushes to sharpen them; some even painted their fingernails with the glowing paint.
Many of the women began to suffer from anemia
Anemia
Anemia is a decrease in number of red blood cells or less than the normal quantity of hemoglobin in the blood. However, it can include decreased oxygen-binding ability of each hemoglobin molecule due to deformity or lack in numerical development as in some other types of hemoglobin...
, bone fracture
Bone fracture
A bone fracture is a medical condition in which there is a break in the continuity of the bone...
s and necrosis
Necrosis
Necrosis is the premature death of cells in living tissue. Necrosis is caused by factors external to the cell or tissue, such as infection, toxins, or trauma. This is in contrast to apoptosis, which is a naturally occurring cause of cellular death...
of the jaw, a condition now known as radium jaw
Radium jaw
Radium jaw is an occupational disease brought on by the ingestion and subsequent absorption of radium into the bones of radium dial painters. The symptoms are necrosis of the mandible and the maxilla as well as constant bleeding of the gums and after some time, severe distortion due to bone...
. Many of these women died young.
The documentary interviews survivors from the industrial tragedy who relate their experiences of the poisoning and the bureaucratic nightmare they were forced to contend with in seeking compensation and justice.
Radium City outlines the aftermath of these events with a focus on the social and political consequences as well as the medical ones.
According to the film, after the Radium Dial workers began to get sick, a lawsuit was brought against Radium Dial Company. With the looming lawsuit, it closed and then re-opened under the name Luminous Processes in another part of town. The workers, though more concerned, kept on working.
The film shows the dismantling of the High School where the Radium Dial Company
Radium Dial Company
The now defunct Radium Dial Company, was one of a few United States companies along with the United States Radium Corporation, involved in the painting of clocks, watches and other instrument dials using radioluminescent paint containing radium. These dials are collectively known as radium dials...
was housed. The building materials were eventually turned into landfill. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency began removing contaminated material in 1986 http://www.epa.gov/R5Super/npl/illinois/ILD980606750.htm. The work continues.
After the plant closed and before it was dismantled many residents took items from the factory for their homes. This spread the contamination even further.
Areas still impacted by Radiation
Several areas of Ottawa are still radioactive. The Centers for Disease Control and PreventionCenters for Disease Control and Prevention
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are a United States federal agency under the Department of Health and Human Services headquartered in Druid Hills, unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, in Greater Atlanta...
released a study http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/hac/pha/ottawa/ott_p1.html outlining areas where contamination by radium-226 (Ra-226) as well as emissions of radon-222 (Rn-222) are at above normal levels. These areas include homes, public areas, schools, and even a car sales lot that is housed directly over the old Radium Dial Company
Radium Dial Company
The now defunct Radium Dial Company, was one of a few United States companies along with the United States Radium Corporation, involved in the painting of clocks, watches and other instrument dials using radioluminescent paint containing radium. These dials are collectively known as radium dials...
site.
It should be noted that the radium in Ottawa's water supply is not from Radium Dial and Luminous Processes. Rather, it's naturally occurring and found in water from deep wells all over northern Illinois http://www.isws.illinois.edu/pubdoc/IEM/ISWSIEM2006-04.pdf. A reverse osmosis water treatment plant removes the radium so the city's tap water complies with federal regulations http://www.cityofottawa.org/water2.htm.
Notable people
- William D. BoyceWilliam D. BoyceWilliam Dickson "W. D." Boyce was an American newspaper man, entrepreneur, magazine publisher, and explorer. He was the founder of the Boy Scouts of America and the short-lived Lone Scouts of America . Born in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, he acquired a love for the outdoors early in his life...
, founder of Boy Scouts of AmericaBoy Scouts of AmericaThe Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
. - Stephen L. BrusatteStephen L. BrusatteStephen Louis Brusatte , is an American paleontologist.-Biography:He is the author of the 2002 book Stately Fossils: A Comprehensive Look at the State Fossils and Other Official Fossils and the 2008 book Dinosaurs...
, paleontologist. - Tom Corcoran, congressman.
- William Cullen, congressman.
- Santiago DurangoSantiago DurangoSantiago Durango is an American guitarist remembered for his work with the 1980s punk rock groups Naked Raygun and Big Black. Mostly retired from music as of the early 2000s, he works as an attorney.- Biography :...
, notable influential musician, now an appellate defender in Ottawa, IL. - Tim FinchemTim FinchemTimothy W. Finchem is the current Commissioner of golf's PGA Tour.Finchem was born in Ottawa, Illinois. He took the position on June 1, 1994 succeeding Deane Beman, who retired after nearly 20 years in the post...
, golf commissioner. - Tom FlanaganTom Flanagan (political scientist)Thomas Eugene Flanagan is an American-born political science professor at the University of Calgary, author, and conservative political activist. He also served as an advisor to Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper until 2004. Flanagan's scholarship has focused on Native and Metis rights in...
, political scientist. - Maria KanellisMaria KanellisMaria Louise Kanellis, , or simply Maria, is a singer-songwriter, actress, model, and professional wrestler, best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment. Kanellis's career began as a contestant on the reality show Outback Jack in 2004...
, actress, singer and former WWE Diva. - Harry KellyHarry Kelly (politician)Harry Francis Kelly was an American politician. He served as the 39th Governor of Michigan from 1943 to 1947.- Early life :...
, Governor of Michigan. - George R. LawrenceGeorge R. LawrenceGeorge Raymond Lawrence was a commercial photographer of northern Illinois. After years of experience building kites and balloons for aerial panoramic photography, Lawrence turned to aviation design in 1910.-Life:...
, photographer. - Russell LeeRussell Lee (photographer)Russell Lee was an American photographer and photojournalist.Lee had trained as a chemical engineer, and in the fall of 1936 became a member of the team of photographers assembled under Roy Stryker for the federally sponsored Farm Security Administration documentation project...
, photographer. - John Patrick LooneyJohn Patrick LooneyJohn Patrick Looney was a gangster in the Rock Island, Illinois area during the early 1900s. Looney was also a successful lawyer and newspaper man in Rock Island.-Background:...
, gangster. - Theophilus Lyle DickeyTheophilus Lyle DickeyTheophilus Lyle Dickey was an Illinois jurist and military leader.-Pre-war life:Born in Paris, Kentucky, Colonel Dickey moved to Macomb, Illinois in 1834 to study law under Cyrus Walker and was admitted to the Illinois Bar in 1835...
, federal judge and Mexican-American War cavalry officer. - Terrence MalickTerrence MalickTerrence Frederick Malick is a U.S. film director, screenwriter, and producer. In a career spanning almost four decades, Malick has directed five feature films....
, film writer/director. - Bob McGrathBob McGrathRobert Emmet "Bob" McGrath is an American singer and actor best known for playing the human character Bob on Sesame Street. He was born in Ottawa, Illinois. McGrath was named for Irish patriot Robert Emmet....
, actor, Sesame StreetSesame StreetSesame Street has undergone significant changes in its history. According to writer Michael Davis, by the mid-1970s the show had become "an American institution". The cast and crew expanded during this time, including the hiring of women in the crew and additional minorities in the cast. The...
. - Viola Miller, The first female police officer in Illinois and only the second in the United States.
- Aaron SheaAaron SheaAaron T. Shea is a former American football tight end of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the fourth round of the 2000 NFL Draft...
, 2005 NFL player, Cleveland BrownsCleveland BrownsThe Cleveland Browns are a professional football team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are currently members of the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
. - Arthur L. WagnerArthur L. WagnerArthur Lockwood Wagner was a United States brigadier general and military instructor.-Biography:Born in Ottawa, Illinois, Wagner graduated from West Point in 1875 near the bottom of his class with a commission in the infantry...
, Brigadier General. - W. H. L. Wallace, Brigadier General.
- Walt WilleyWalt WilleyWalt Willey is an American actor. He is best known for playing Jackson Montgomery on the soap opera All My Children from 1987 to 2011....
, television actor, All My ChildrenAll My ChildrenAll My Children is an American television soap opera that aired on ABC from January 5, 1970 to September 23, 2011. Created by Agnes Nixon, All My Children is set in Pine Valley, Pennsylvania, a fictitious suburb of Philadelphia. The show features Susan Lucci as Erica Kane, one of daytime's most...
. - Alexander Wilson, writer and activist.
- Reed G. LandisReed G. LandisMajor Reed Gresham Landis was a World War I flying ace credited with twelve aerial victories.-Early life and World War I:Landis was the son of federal judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis. In 1916, he enlisted in the 1st Illinois Cavalry of the National Guard, and served as a private along the Mexican...
, World War I ace and National Commander of the American Legion. - Charles Edgar WoodwardCharles Edgar WoodwardCharles Edgar Woodward was a United States federal judge.Born in New Salem, Pennsylvania, Woodward was educated at Northwestern University, and he read law to enter the bar in 1899...
, federal judge United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
See also
- Fisher-Nash-Griggs HouseFisher-Nash-Griggs HouseThe Fisher-Nash-Griggs House, also known as the Cottage Home, is a historic high-style Greek Revival house in the city of Ottawa, Illinois, USA. It was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1998.-History:...
- John Hossack HouseJohn Hossack HouseThe John Hossack House is a historic house in Ottawa, Illinois, USA. It was built in 1854–55 and was a "station" on the Underground Railroad. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.-History:...
- Knuessl BuildingKnuessl BuildingThe Knuessl Building is a historic mid-19th Century commercial building in downtown Ottawa, Illinois. It was built around 1868 by a local pharmacist. The Knuessl Building was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1992.-History:...
- Marquette High SchoolMarquette High School (Ottawa, Illinois)Marquette Academy is a private, Roman Catholic high school in Ottawa, Illinois. It is located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Peoria.-History:...
- Andrew J. O'Conor III HouseAndrew J. O'Conor III HouseThe Andrew J. O'Conor III House is a historic house in the city of Ottawa, Illinois, USA. The O'Conor House is a good example of Colonial Revival architecture. It was originally constructed in 1848 and underwent major remodeling in 1922. The house was added to the U.S...
- Ottawa Avenue CemeteryOttawa Avenue CemeteryThe Ottawa Avenue Cemetery is located in Ottawa, Illinois. Originally founded as the Ottawa Cemetery Association in 1847 by George H. Norris and was incorporated in 1865.- External links :**...
- Ottawa Township High School
- Starved Rock
- Jeremiah Strawn HouseJeremiah Strawn HouseThe Jeremiah Strawn House is a historic house in the city of Ottawa, Illinois. It is a good example of a front-gabled house with Italianate detailing. The Strawn House was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1995.-History:...
- Washington Park Historic DistrictWashington Park Historic District (Ottawa, Illinois)Washington Park Historic District, also known as Washington Square is a historic district in and around Washington Park in the city of Ottawa, Illinois, USA. Washington Park was the site of the first Lincoln-Douglas debates of 1858 and is surrounded by several historic structures...
- Ottawa Station (Rock Island Line)Ottawa Station (Rock Island Line)Ottawa Station was a Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad station in Ottawa, Illinois. It was located just east of Columbus Street and on the south side of the track. The building had the same design as Rock Island Line stations in Iowa City and Council Bluffs, Iowa. The station is east of a...