It was early Sept. 8, 1860, and the PS Lady Elgin was sailing from Milwaukee to Chicago, but was struck by another schooner in Lake Michigan. It happened off the town of Port Clinton, Illinois, which was located between what is now Highland Park and Highwood.
Less well-known than other sinkings, such as the Edmund Fitzgerald more than a century later, about 300 people died when the Lady Elgin went down in what remains the deadliest shipwreck in Great Lakes history. On this episode of Statewide, we look back at that fateful night and the legacy that followed.
Also:
* This Week in Illinois History focuses on the state fossil - the Tully Monster.
* We hear from the Democrat and Republican running for governor, JB Pritzker and Darren Bailey, during recent central Illinois stops. Among the topics they discuss, data centers.
* A southern Illinois lawmaker speaks out after a his photo was altered online with AI.
* State Climatologist Trent Ford looks at the extreme weather in Illinois this summer.
