May 25 Illinois History Minute

It’s May 25th, the day that the Illinois State Museum was founded in 1877. Illinois law tells the museum to educate the public about geology, wildlife, and “the life and work of man”. The state museum’s first home was inside the state Capitol building in Springfield. Today, it’s in its own building, constructed in the 1960s.

On this day in 2011, Oprah Winfrey hosted the final episode of her long-running Chicago-based talk show. During its 25 years on the air, The Oprah Winfrey Show featured approximately 28-thousand guests, 65 selections from Oprah’s Book Club, and 55 schools built with funds raised by Oprah’s Angel Network.