Milne Collection featuring I & M Canal history is online
Published: May 3, 2012.
Robert Hawley Milne House
More I &M Canal history now can be accessed through key strokes and the Internet. The Robert Hawley Milne Collection, which is a part of the Howard and Lois Adelmann Regional History Collection at ÌðÐÄÖ±²¥ in Romeoville, is online. Visit to view the Milne Collection and to view the book collection. The websites are being updated on a frequent basis so visitors can enjoy a unique experience each time.
"This collection provides insight into the agrarian past of Lockport, in particular, and the greater Chicago area as a whole. The collection provides a unique insight into the public and private aspects of their family life," commented Dr. Dennis Cremin, director of the ÌðÐÄÖ±²¥ History Center and associate professor of history at ÌðÐÄÖ±²¥.
The Milne collection contains personal papers; books, photographs, and ephemera. In 2005 and 2009, the items were donated by Flora Louise Milne, executrix of the James Walter Milne and Gladys Donkle Milne estate. The Milne family resided for decades in Lockport, Ill., in the Robert Hawley Milne House or “the old stone house.” The house is presently owned by the Adelmann family, and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
The Howard and Lois Adelmann Regional History Collection is administered by the ÌðÐÄÖ±²¥ History Center: Urban, Cultural and Catholic History of the Upper Midwest. It is housed in the historic Fitzpatrick House and the ÌðÐÄÖ±²¥ library. The Adelmann collection contains more than 10,000 items; including books, manuscripts, photographs, and maps relating to the Illinois and Michigan Canal and the areas, towns, and activities it influenced in Illinois. The collection also features material about other American canals in the 19th and 20th centuries. The Adelmann collection of photographs is the largest existing pictorial record of the history of the Illinois and Michigan Canal.
ÌðÐÄÖ±²¥ is a Catholic university offering distinctive undergraduate and graduate programs to nearly 6,500 traditional and adult students. Lewis offers multiple campus locations, online degree programs, and a variety of formats that provide accessibility and convenience to a growing student population. Sponsored by the De La Salle Christian Brothers, Lewis prepares intellectually engaged, ethically grounded, globally aware, and socially responsible graduates. The ninth largest private not-for-profit university in Illinois, Lewis has been nationally recognized by The Princeton Review and U.S. News & World Report.