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OPINION: Jerseyville City Council choice on roof is matter of transparency: Page A4 NEWS: Jerseyville council accepts road closure for Veteran’s parade : Page A3
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PAID Jerseyville, IL PERMIT NO. 204
ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED
P.O. Box 407 Jerseyville, IL 62052
JERSEY COUNTY
JERSEYVILLE, IL 62052
INSIDE NEWS
Police search for Alton man ends in Jersey. See page A2 Girls walk dogs to raise Treehouse donations. See page A3
FRIENDS & NEIGHBORS
Welcome, baby Harper. See page A10
SPORTS
Southwestern hosts 9th annual Cross Country meet. See page B7
OCTOBER 9, 2019
Numbers are up for deer season tors that it has almost recovered. By KRIS SCHEFFEL One of the most notable being the Jersey County Journal potential for late-season hunting. Deer season kicked off on Oct. A seven-day span in November 1 for bowhunters. added two counties that require Over the past couple of years, additional curbing of the deer the numbers have shown a posi- populations. tive increase not just in deer pop“Macoupin reopened that seaulations, but also in the area totals son last year,” Krumwiede said. following deer season. After the “The population is rebounding, devastation of epizootic hermor- and that signals that it may come rhagic disease (EHD) in 2012, back to Jersey.” the numbers are a welcome sign In other news, it appears that of a return to norcrossbow season is malcy. more, nota“The population seeing Tim Krumbly younger, parwiede, a wildlife is rebounding, ticipants. biologist with the Brian Soffray, Illinois Depart- and that signals who sells permits ment of Natural that it may come and hunting equipResources, has ment at Farm and been studying back to Jersey.” Home Supply, deer populations noted that there across several been increased Tim Krumwiede has counties includinterest in hunting Illinois Department of Natural following the addiing Jersey. Resources wildlife biologist “There was a tion of a crossbow substantial EHD season. die off in 2012,” Krumwiede said. “There are more younger “Populations did go down in West people— people I’ve never seen Central Illinois.” before,” Soffray said. EHD is a viral disease carried Crossbows used to be only perby midge flies, which causes deer mitted for those with disabilities to hemorrhage. or above a certain age because “It starts to show itself after of the physical demands of bow waters recede,” Krumwiede said. hunting. However, the state, durKrumwiede said this year’s ing the previous deer season in population has still not completely late 2017 and early 2018, repealed returned to where it was 15 years ago, but there are strong indica(See, DEER SEASON, A2)
JOURNAL VOL. 17, NO. 41 - 75¢
Clocks will be turned back for Cheney Mansion Home to look as it did in 19th century By KRIS SCHEFFEL Jersey County Journal Halloween is around the corner, but this year, it is history, rather than the dead, that will be coming alive. The Jersey County Historical Society will be hosting tours for a new exhibit, Dearly Departed: Funeral and Mourning Customs of the 1800s. The 45-minute long tour will take visitors through the Cheney Mansion to experience and learn about how funerals have been transformed through new technologies and influential figures. In particular, the tour will dive into the roles Abraham Lincoln and Queen Victoria had in shaping the funeral customs of the 19th century. Beth McGlasson, vice president of the historical society, said the idea for the exhibit came from Conner Ashlock, a volunteer. “This was really the brainchild of Conner,” she said. “Conner came to me and said, ‘Hey, I think this would be really cool,’ because he has a background in mortuary sciences.” Ashlock has been work-
Kris Scheffel/Jersey County Journal
Volunteer Matt Eschback prepares the Cheney Mansion for the upcoming exhibit by placing black ribbon around the portrait of P.D. Cheney.
ing with the historical society to create the exhibit, which will turn the clocks back to July 5, 1900 when former owner P.D. Cheney passed. It is the first of its kind for the historical society, having the Mansion become a part of the exhibit itself.
WEEKEND WEATHER 61 33 Low
SATURDAY, OCT. 12
By JARAD JARMON Jersey County Journal The Grafton Ferry will be closed this weekend because of newly forecasted high waters on the Mississippi River. The new forecasted river levels have gone up from 22.1 to 22.5 feet, Grafton Mayor Rick Eberlin said in a Facebook post. Calhoun Ferry Company closes the Grafton Ferry when levels go above 21.6 feet, Lonnie Baalman, ferry operator, said. He added this might continue into to next weekend if the water levels do not go down, but so far, the plan is to only close the ferry this weekend. The Grafton Ferry runs exclusively on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. Eberlin said the ferry at Golden Eagle will remain open. That crest will not happen until October 15, he added.
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SUNDAY, OCT. 13
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TOP STORIES ONLINE Sept. 25 - Oct. 2 1. Federal government denies individual assistance for Illinois 2. Largest Flag on the Mississippi inspires awe in Grafton 3. Jerseyville Council OKs cannabis tax 4. Owner of Linn's Shoe Store retiring
Jarad Jarmon/Jersey County Journal
REMOVING
BATS FROM THE STEEPLE
Crews work on removing bats from the steeple of the St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church along State Street Monday morning. Also, crews were putting up blocks to ensure bats would not get back in.
5.18-year-old Brighton woman dies in car crash
INDEX Court . . . . . . . . . . . . .B7 Editorial . . . . . . . . . .A4 News . . . . .A2-3, A6, B8-9 Obituaries. . . . . . . . . . A5 Our Town. . . . . . . . . .B9 Public Notice . .B3-4, B6 School . . . . . . . . . . . .A7 Sports . . . . . . . . . . .B10 OBITUARIES: BAILEY, BURGESS, FOILES, GEISLER, KNIFFEN, KRAUSE, MYERS. JERSEY COUNTY
JOURNAL
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(See, TURNING BACK, A2)
Grafton Ferry to close for weekend
FRIDAY, OCT. 11 High
“It will look like they are in a house of mourning,” McGlasson said. The house will be filled with artifacts from the period with many from the Gubser family collection on loan from the Alexander
County Board amends proposed annual budget By KRIS SCHEFFEL Jersey County Journal The County Board has updated the annual budget for the coming fiscal year beginning on Dec. 1. The board will not take action on the budget until the Nov. 12 meeting. The changes have come about following reevaluations of costs and needs for the county. “There have been some additional developments that have come about,” Chairman Don Little said. The unamended budget accounted for the purchase of one new patrol vehicle for the Sheriff’s Department. This will now have been revised to include two vehicles with the initial budgeted cost at roughly $60,000 now being updated to roughly $85,000. Chairman Little proposed a reassessment of Jersey’s public defenders. The amendment, if adopted, would now see the three part-time public defenders
reduced to one full-time public defender. This will reduce the funds going toward public defenders and extend the court traffic funds, which Chairman Little noted have been “declining over the years.” The state will reimburse about $32,000 of the public defender’s salary.
“There have been some additional developments that have come about.”
Don Little Chairman The board has also proposed a reevaluation of the county’s recycling program, which had previously been cancelled. “It is my understanding that the program was popular with a significant proportion of Jersey
citizenry,” Little said. The County Board will be meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 15, at 6:30 p.m. to go more in depth on these and additional amendments to the county’s annual budget. The amended budget will be on display on the county website, and there will be printed copies at the county office. In addition to the presentation by the Finance Committee on the budget, the board briefly discussed increasing the salary of the county engineer, Tom Klasner. The board resoundingly agreed to a 2 percent increase in his salary, putting it on par with other county officials. The salary is still under that which is recommended by the Illinois Department of Transportation which will be discussed by the board in the future. “Tom you are well worth it,” Little said. A request to hire a surveyor for 12 unplotted pieces of land along Macoupin Creek and Spanky was (See, BUDGET, A2)
Local state lawmakers’ town hall addresses gun rights By KRIS SCHEFFEL Jersey County Journal
S
tate Sen. Steve McClure, R-Springfield, and State Rep. C.D. Davidsmeyer, R-Jacksonsville, made their way down to Jerseyville to speak with constituents about their concerns regarding a wide range of issues including gun control, taxes and abortion, to name a few. The two legislators spoke about the uphill battle for down state interests in a state legislature that holds a Democratic majority. “Things have changed a lot over (my) seven years,” Davidsmeyer said. McClure elaborated on this point, touching on legislation passed earlier this year that will raise minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2025. “Chicago can do that, but other places can’t,” he said. “It only makes sense to make it regional.” The goal, simply put, is “to make it less bad,” Davidsmeyer said. The two touched on the issues of marijuana, abortion, the gas tax and the cable and satellite tax as examples of the domination of upstate interests in the state legislature. “They can do whatever they want, even if it’s unpopular with their constituents,” Davidsmeyer said. Following this introduction, the floor was open (See, TOWN HALL, A2)