As President of the Mount Pulaski Township Historical Society, I have had the distinct pleasure of inviting Dr. Richard Norton Smith to our Fall Festival and introducing him to the town of Mount Pulaski. We rolled out the red carpet with a tour of the newest addition of the Historical Society, the upstairs which was made possible in part by the generosity of Mrs. Betty Hickey and the money received from last years style show.

Today, I have the privilege of "reintroducing" a girl from this town of ours, someone long gone but not forgotten. A few months ago I received the most curious email from Cheryl Rothwell, a former resident. Cheryl and I have been emailing for years since I began collecting names and dates for the Mount Pulaski Cemetery. This night she emailed a peculiar request for a photo of a tombstone. Along with the information I have collected I have also taken photos of the tombstones with unique artwork and our local dignitaries. Needless to say, Cheryl was surprised I could email a photo right back. The next few days we were discussing this tombstone, so plain and unpretentious for someone we both admired and felt never received the popularity they so well deserved. Cheryl and I were in touch with a woman in England who totally agreed with us. Back and forth the emails flew; questions, answers and more questions. Finally, one early morning I received a phone call. "Hello, Luv," she said and I knew immediately it was Gillian from England. We spoke for over an hour and I promised to send her any and all information I could find. In return, Gillian Atkinson sent me the music you have been listening to today. May I present to you the music of Miss Vaughn de Leath. The company Gillian works for, Document Records, is home of the world's largest catalog of vintage blues and jazz. The selections you are listening to today are the "Edison Editions" of Lenore Vonderlieth of Mount Pulaski, Illinois! This limited edition CD has been inscripted with this label: "Presented to the Mount Pulaski Township Historical Society with the compliments of Document Records June 2006." Cheryl Rothwell, Gillian Atkinson and I present this offer for a donation to the Society for the price of $50. This money will be used for display cases and mannequins we so desperately need. And thank you for attending today.

Click here for more on Mt. Pulaski's own Vaughn de Leath.

Now on with the show. We have pictures of the lovely models in the style show. Look at how much fun they are having and think about what is in the back of your closet for next year's show. Click here to view the style show.