Our volunteers will be away, to help others this Saturday . . . The competition will be keen on the downtown Collinsville scene . . . Barbequers will fire-up charcoal pits; and be advised, they t'ain't cookin' grits . . . Surely you know what's happening; tis the event Smokin' on Main 2019 . . . Be sure to visit our volunteers there; & have yourself some BBQ and beer . . . The proceeds go to help those in need; like the U.S. Veterans Foundation and the Collinsville Food Pantr

Open and shut long, long ago, These doors were lost then found, wouldn't you know? . . . Salvaged they were, way back when, by the Historic Preservation Commission . . . Forgotten and put away into storage, Kind of like yesteryear's use of the word, "porridge" . . . Their character is grand with lines of wear and tear; A witness to tidbits of gossip and history from our Collinsville forebearers . . . Worn paint now with a crackled texture, At one time was a simple door's vest

You may know that our Independence Day did not become an official federal holiday until 1941; but it was slated to become a celebration since July 3, 1776 when John Adams wrote in a letter to his wife, Abigail . . . "I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with sho