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Mar 1, 2025 | 
shawlocal.com | Scott Holland |Tom Wadsworth
Understanding a few operating philosophies can help clarify why elected officials make certain choices. One is deploying preventive efforts as a way to minimize the costs of downstream effects. Another is that governments can cancel funding, but refusing to spend doesn’t eliminate demand. The former echoed when reading an email from a reader opposed to House Bill 2466, mentioned Feb.
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Jan 31, 2025 | 
shawlocal.com | Tom Wadsworth
Editor’s note: This is part two of a three-part series on Ronald Reagan’s brother. Part 1 was published Jan. 17. Look for part 3 on Feb. 14. DIXON – In 1937, Ronald Reagan’s radio fame caught the attention of Warner Brothers studios in Hollywood. After nailing a winning audition, Warner offered him a lucrative contract to join their family of movie stars. Being single and 26, Ronald then left Des Moines and moved to Hollywood in May 1937.
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Jan 17, 2025 | 
shawlocal.com | Tom Wadsworth
Editor’s note: This is part one of a three-part series. Look for part 2 on Jan. 31 and part 3 on Feb. 14. DIXON – He was born in Tampico, but his boyhood home was in Dixon. He attended Dixon High School and later graduated from Eureka College. After becoming a sportscaster at WOC radio in Iowa, he auditioned with Warner Brothers and moved to California. As his career progressed, he became widely known and was elected president twice.
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Dec 6, 2024 | 
shawlocal.com | Tom Wadsworth
Editor’s note: This is Part 4 of our series on Walgreens’ founder Charles Walgreen and Dixon. The first three parts, covering his life from 1873 to 1929, were published in print on Nov. 1, 15 and 29. Most Dixonites know about the connection between the Walgreen family and Hazelwood, also known as the Walgreen Estate. Another prominent Dixon landmark connected with the Walgreens is Charles R. Walgreen Field at the Dixon Municipal Airport.
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Oct 31, 2024 | 
themandarin.com.au | Joshua Gliddon |John Glenn |Simon Jones |Tom Wadsworth
“Our goal is to help public purpose-driven organisations become stronger and have a lasting legacy of change,” says Richard Gwilym, Interim CEO and Advisory Leader at Scyne. Mr Gwilym says what sets Scyne apart is its focus on working with public purpose-driven organisations to deliver customised solutions for clients. Through partnerships and ethical practices, Scyne works to address societal challenges and contribute positively to the community, creating shared value beyond business outcomes.
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Sep 20, 2024 | 
themandarin.com.au | Tom Wadsworth
article-body From complexity to clarityAre you thinking about doing a plain language writing workshop? Maybe you’re looking to brush up on your skills or you want to learn how to adopt this clear, concise style for your workplace writing. You might think that doing a 1- or 2-day workshop will solve all your writing problems and sweep away the bad habits that are holding you back. But in our experience, a plain language workshop is not a quick fix.
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Aug 18, 2024 | 
shawlocal.com | Tom Wadsworth |TNChicken Fettucine Alfredo |TXChicken Spaghetti
Editor’s Note: This is the second installment of a three-part series about the history of Dixon as it pertains to religion. The first installment, “The ‘wickedness’ of 1836,” was published Aug. 12. The third installment, “Dixon’s First Baptists, Episcopalians and Presbyterians,” will be published Aug. 30. DIXON – In part 1, we learned that Dixon’s only formal presence of Christianity in 1836 was an occasional visit from a traveling preacher.
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Jun 27, 2024 | 
shawlocal.com | Tom Wadsworth
Editor’s note: Today’s column is the second of a two-column series about Dixon’s castle high school. The first column was published in the June 21 editions of the Dixon Telegraph and Sterling Gazette. In part one, this column chronicled the many battles and elections that were needed to build Dixon High School in 1929. This concluding column reveals unique aspects of the building design, its ongoing struggle with overcrowding, and its 1929 leaders whose names are etched in DHS history.
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Jun 20, 2024 | 
shawlocal.com | Tom Wadsworth
On June 20, 1927, 97 years ago, the citizens of Dixon voted to build one new high school for all northsiders and southsiders. After that momentous election, Dixon built “the castle,” its majestic high school that has prominently stood along the banks of the Rock River for almost a century. However, building the castle required years of battles and special elections.
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May 24, 2024 | 
shawlocal.com | Tom Wadsworth
This is the rarely told story of the “lost” Lincoln Pavilion, which also was known by other names. Created when the Sterling-Dixon electric trolley opened in May 1904, it was first called “Oak Park, the Sterling and Dixon pleasure park.”Sitting on 5 fenced acres 1 mile east of Prairieville, Oak Park featured a 24-by-48-foot dance pavilion that soon was expanded to 36 feet by 64 feet. The park also had a bandstand, gas lighting, a dining hall and concession stands for ice cream and soda water.
