How do you take over a legacy small business that was founded in Springfield 20 years before you were born? If you’re Emmanuel “Manny” Davis, you just dive right in. The 24-year-old Davis became the new owner of Tax Partners Holding, Inc. on Feb. 1. The tax preparation and bookkeeping business, located at 2060 W. […]
David Blanchette
David Blanchette has been involved in journalism since 1979, first as an award-winning broadcaster, then a state government spokesperson, and now as a freelance writer and photographer. He was involved in the development of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum and more recently the Jacksonville Area Museum. David and his wife, Sue, live in Petersburg.
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Rabbi Rob returns to Jacksonville
He tools around town in a pickup truck with the license plate “Rabbi R.” He has bought several downtown buildings and is transforming them into retail, entertainment and living spaces. He’s going to bring actual World War II tanks to town and have them fire off a few rounds. He’ll even officiate at a wedding […]
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Q&A with Bob Sibert
Bob Sibert is the third generation of his family to serve as president of Bound to Stay Bound Books. His grandfather, Lawrence D. Sibert, began working for a Jacksonville printing and bookbinding company in 1908 and later started his own company with a business partner. Originally known as the New Method Book Bindery, Bound to […]
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Q&A with Pat Joyce
Where were you born and raised, and what was your first job? I was born in Chicago, and we moved to Oak Park when I was 10. I caddied for a couple of years when I was a freshman and sophomore in high school and made decent money for a 15-year-old kid. When I was […]
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A self-serve farmers market
The tiny Scott County community of Riggston, 50 miles west of Springfield, with a mere 18 residents, is drawing national attention for a self-serve operation in a small building that is addressing the issue of rural American food deserts. “There is not another one like this in the United States,” said Jenny Sauer-Schmidgall, the owner […]
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Q&A with Dr. Traci Krause
Dr. Traci Krause came to Springfield in May 2023 to serve as the chancellor of St. John’s College of Nursing. She had spent a decade as dean of the School of Nursing, Health Sciences and Wellness at Minneapolis College and prior to that was the assistant director of nursing in the Minnesota Department of Veterans […]
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Q&A with Robert Fair
Robert Fair is a Decatur native who holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in political science from University of Illinois Springfield. He originally envisioned having a career in government and worked on Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign and for the Illinois Senate Democratic Caucus before joining Habitat for Humanity – Sangamon County in 2023 as the community […]
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The end of an era
A 149-year-old family manufacturing business in Chatham is closing its doors in early June and an unrelated, but well-known, national franchise business will move into its space along Interstate 55. Armbruster Manufacturing Company will close and its 33,000-square-foot facility will be the new home of the central Illinois Roto-Rooter franchise. The sale of the legacy […]
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A history of the Armbruster Manufacturing Company
Rudolph Herman “R.H.” Armbruster was born in 1852 in Baden, Germany. He emigrated with his parents to the United States before the Civil War and the family settled in Springfield in 1855. In 1875, R.H. Armbruster broke away from his family’s prominent Springfield jewelry business to open an awning and upholstery store. His first shop […]
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“There’s a magic about this place.”
Several Armbruster Manufacturing Company employees have worked for the 149-year-old firm for approximately one-third of its history. What keeps the employees coming to work at the same place for decades? “It’s been a fun job. I’ve been to England four times and to Norway,” said Jim Wiggins, who has worked for 51 years at Armbruster. […]
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A Q&A with Rev. Silas Johnson
Silas Johnson was born and raised in Mississippi but has lived in Springfield for the past 50 years. He had a dual career for many years, working as a journeyman electrician in the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 193 while also pastoring Community Baptist Church for a decade and then Calvary Baptist Church for […]
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How to succeed as a Black-owned business
Black people comprise more than 14 percent of the nation’s population but only 2.3 percent of businesses are Black-owned, according to recent U.S. Census Bureau figures. The most recent American Communities Survey shows that while Black businesses make up approximately 11 percent of all businesses in Illinois, they comprise only two percent of the state’s […]