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[SEPT. 14, 2002]
That’s right! Beginning Sept. 16, CITV will be seen on
Channel 5!
The changeover will begin Monday, and
it’s scheduled to be completed within the week. CITV is offered in
the basic cable plan. You can get CITV only with cable, so be sure
to order your favorite cable offerings.
[CITV press release] |
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"As secretary of state and state
archivist, one of my constitutionally mandated duties is to ‘keep
the Great Seal of the State of Illinois’ and use it to certify
copies of official state documents," said White. "There are very few
impressions of the original seal, and none are as good as this newly
discovered version."
On Feb. 19, 1819, two months after
Illinois became a state, the General Assembly passed a law requiring
the secretary of state to procure a permanent state seal. That fall,
gunsmith Philip Creamer was paid $85 for producing a device that
allowed two engraved pieces of metal to affix a paper seal to any
document.
While processing old court records,
staff of the state’s archives discovered a document dated Nov. 18,
1819, containing the impression of the state seal. Prior to this
discovery, the oldest known imprint of the seal was found on a Sept.
4, 1820, governor’s proclamation that ordered the state to be
divided into three electoral districts.
White made the announcement of the
discovery of the state seal on the 184th anniversary of the adoption
of the state constitution, which occurred Aug. 26, 1818. That is the
date used on the state seal, even though President James Monroe did
not sign the congressional resolution to make Illinois a state until
Dec. 3, 1818.
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column in this article] |
Currently, the Illinois Blue Book
contains an artist’s rendition of the original state seal. White
said this recent discovery means that the rendition will be updated
to reflect previously unknown details visible on the new find.
According to White, Illinois has had
three state seal designs. The second seal was created in 1836, but
the first extant example of it is found on an 1839 proclamation. The
third design, the current one, has been used since Oct. 26, 1868.
While the three designs differ slightly, they all contain an eagle;
a banner with the state motto, "State Sovereignty - National Union";
and the date "Aug. 26th, 1818."
Archives’
employees identified the seal while processing early 19th-century
court records from Madison County. The Circuit Court had fined
Joshua Atwater for "keeping a disorderly house" in which drinking
and card playing had created a public nuisance. On the
recommendation for mercy by "many respectable & worthy citizens" of
the county, Illinois’ first governor, Shadrach Bond, reduced
Atwater’s fine from $100 to $8 and then "caused the seal of state"
to be affixed to it.
[News release] |
