Picture yourself writing in your diary of a winter’s day by candlelight, while outside, the northwest winds howl, blowing snow against the door, a small barrier between you and the elements. The fire you made in the fireplace begins to loose the battle to heat your log home. You shiver with the fear that your ink might freeze under the harshest conditions you have ever experienced in your lifetime. You attempt to divert your wavering thoughts of the day when a burst of warmth breaks the icy grip to no avail.

Scenes like this were common among the inhabitants of central Illinois during the winter seasons of the nineteenth century. Throughout the recent decades, we have experienced the rage of winter’s wrath. To some of us, winter’s fury has been a major inconvenience, stumping transportation or an occasional power outage that disables the use of the Internet. Whatever the inconvenience, those before us had to struggle during the icy nights of central Illinois that we sometimes forget how difficult it was.

Explore with us the history of those bone-chilling nights when the skies unleashed the wrath of winter that defines An Illinois Winter.