The Beauty of Grant County

Having grown up in the Chicago suburbs, as a child I was not familiar with the landscape where I have made my home over the past 30 years. Moving with my family to Galena, IL in 1991 was a big change and one I’ve never regretted. As we drove northwestward with a truck loaded down … Read more

Laura Rountree’s 150th Birthday Party

Join us from 1:00-4:00 pm on Saturday September 12, 2020 at the Mitchell-Rountree Stone Cottage at the corner of Madison and Lancaster Sts. in Platteville. (Rain Date: Sunday September 13, 2020) Come celebrate Laura Rountree’s birthday with Grant County Historical Society. Laura (1870-1966) was the grand-daughter of Reverend Samuel Mitchell who commissioned the building of … Read more

Grant County Historical Society COVID-19 Announcement

The Grant County Historical Society will reopen all three of its public sites on May 1, 2021. Masks and social distancing will be required until further notice. Please check the Grant County Historical Society’s Website grantcountyhistory.org/events/ or our Facebook page for updates on upcoming events and programs. Thank you for your support!

Lillie Greene Richmond Sings

The Wisconsin Folk Music Project was a collaboration between the University of Wisconsin and the Library of Congress to record music from the state’s diverse population. In the summers of 1940 and 1941 Helene Startman-Thomas and Robert “Bob” Draves traveled throughout Wisconsin recording folk music. Stratman-Thomas was a faculty member of the University of Wisconsin School of Music. Draves was a graduate student and her recording technician. In the summer of 1946, Startman-Thomas was assisted by student-technician Aubrey Snyder. In their travels they recorded over 700 performances by singers and musicians representing more than 30 ethnic and regional groups. On August 24, 1946, Lillie Greene Richmond performed in Lancaster, Wisconsin for the Folk Music Project. She was the only African American included in the project.

Lillie Green Richmond portrait, seated outdoors
Photograph of Lillie Greene Richmond taken August 23, 1946 by Helene Startman-Thomas. WHi Image ID: 25305

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