LATEST NEWS
A makeover for the Public Health building
The Sangamon County Board has approved $7.5 million for the first phase of renovations at the Sangamon County Department of…
Grayson’s death likely to erase his conviction
In a legal twist that the family of Sonya Massey didn’t expect, the murder conviction of her killer, former Sangamon…
Residents bring open minds, skepticism to 19th Street Rail Corridor Open House
Springfield residents reviewed displays explaining the options for the 19th Street rail corridor improvements during a Sept. 9 open house…
Becoming a billet
Ask a veteran hockey player about their parents, and they’ll often answer: Which ones? For players that had enough talent…
COVER STORY
A man on a mission in Athens
Who is Sameer Somal, and what has he been doing in Athens? The 43-year-old Pennsylvania resident, entrepreneur and Abraham Lincoln historian has been a frequent presence in the Menard County community in recent months. Somal is on the board of the town’s Abraham Lincoln Long Nine Museum, and he envisions transforming vacant and available property…
NEWSLETTER
News
Nominations open for 64th First Citizen Award
Nominations are open through Oct. 1 for the 64th Springfield Area First Citizen Award, and the recipient will be honored…
Mental Health Board faces forks in the road
Some community members, including the former Massey Commission’s managing director, say the inaugural Sangamon County Mental Health Board has to…
New ambulance for mental health crises
A Springfield Fire Department ambulance that specializes in helping Sangamon County residents during substance-abuse and mental health crises went into…
Legislative Inspector General Michael McCuskey resigns amid criticism
Illinois’ legislature will once again soon find itself without a legislative inspector general. Michael McCuskey will resign that watchdog post…
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Previous Issues
opinion
A teacher remembers 9/11
I was teaching at Southeast High School on Sept. 11, 2001. My American literature class of juniors had just read The Crucible. I was…
An uplifting season
I’ll be the first to admit, I’m not much of a sports fan. The idea of the Women’s Professional Baseball League playing its inaugural…
Letters to the editor 9/10/26
We welcome letters. Please include your full name, address and telephone number. We edit all letters. Send them to editor@illinoistimes.com. NEED A PLAN Nine…
Legislature needs to question its inspector general
In the past week or so, three women have told stories about their dissatisfaction with the way they were treated by the state’s legislative…
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> More Rich Miller
Food and drink
Slow cooker apple butter
Subtle hints of fall have begun to appear in spite of this month’s sweltering start. There’s a tinge of gold…
No waste, all taste
As the COVID pandemic began to wind down and restaurants reopened for indoor dining, I was anxious to end my…
Budget dinners
August is undoubtedly our household’s most expensive month of the year, and the busiest. In addition to both of my…
> More Food and Drink
Music
September music rises
With Labor Day behind us, that means only four days of toil for you workers of the…
Labor Day weekend music
It’s here and so are we as the Labor Day holiday comes on Monday preceded by a…
August ending music rambles
As we roll on through the end of August, next weekend brings Labor Day and the unofficial…
> More Music
ARTS AND CULTURE
Honor Flight veterans receive a warm welcome home
Throngs of people stood, clapped and cheered to welcome home and thank 92 veterans and their guardians when the Land of Lincoln Honor Flight returned…
The Runner and Runner both fall short, Fix lacks a purpose
Logic trips up The Runner You gotta give it to Gal Gadot. She can run, and do so in a variety of ways. If you…
Intervention
I was at the Ben & Jerry’s ice cream factoryin Vermont. I saw a small boy about to losethe scoop atop his cone; he was…
> More Arts and Culture
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Best Of Springfield 2025
See the results Every year, we ask our opinionated readers to tell us about their favorite people, places and things in the Springfield area. Over the decades we’ve been doing this, we’ve continued to tweak both the process and the results issue to try to keep things fresh and interesting. While anything food-related typically dominates…
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