The Society met its fundraising goal and the marker commemorating 1917 East St. Louis Race Massacre will be installed soon.
Our History Must Be Remembered.
WHO WE ARE
The Society will create educational programming for the community and visitors to include exhibits, workshops, lectures, hands-on
crafting, tours, artistic performances, and sporting events. The Society will engage the community in cultural observances, motivational speaking, fundraisers, and contests. The Society will work collaboratively with other community centric organizations for community events.
WHAT WE DO
TESTIMONIALS
“I can’t express the amount of gratitude I have for the ESTL Historical Society and the impact of the scholarship.”
Keith Kimbrow II
Mr. Tuskeegee・ 2023-2024
Good morning, Jaye! Thank you, Andy, and Ms. Billie for a wonderful bus tour of East St. Louis this past Monday, September 18, 2023.
Tuyet Ngoson
Program Manager, Grand Victoria Foundation
TRUSTED BY
OUR TEAM
Executive Director
Jaye P. Willis is a certified Project Manager and sits on several Executive Boards in St. Clair County. She is a published author, poet, and playwright from East St. Louis, Illinois. Mrs. Willis is a retired federal employee with the Department of the Treasury.
President
The Honorable Judge Walter C. Brandon Jr., retired, has over 35 years of experience in the legal profession. This native East St. Louisan has an extensive history which includes his experience as Corporate Council for the Township of Centreville, Illinois, service as Municipality Attorney for the City of East St. Louis, Illinois, employment as a partner in a major Medical Mal-Practice Law Office, and experience as the Primary of his own law office in East St. Louis, Illinois.
Vice-President/Treasurer
Andy Theising is Professor Emeritus of Political Science at SIUE. He is the author of several books on East St. Louis history and served as one of the city’s 1917 commissioners (a predecessor group to the historical society).
Secretary
Billie served on the board of directors for the Children’s Museum in Edwardsville, and the Catholic Social Services which later became Caritas Family Solutions. She gained extensive knowledge about nonprofits while employed with the River Bluffs Girl Scout Council. She worked for the University of IL Urbana-Champaign’s East St. Louis Action Research Project as the Non-For-Profit Director and later as a Community Liaison. In addition, she was the Chief GED Examiner for St. Clair County, and served on the Illinois GED State Advisory Board.
Founder
Reginald E. Petty is a civil rights icon and local historian with extensive knowledge of East St. Louis. Mr. Petty is a four-time US Presidential appointee and served as one of the first African American Peace Corps Country Directors in 1967 in Africa and served as the Executive Director of the National Advisory Council on Vocational Education in Washington, DC.
LATEST NEWS
Our local history summer road trip, PASTports, will kick off Saturday, June 29th. Join us at the Daphne Sumner History Discovery Center from 12 P.M. – 2 P.M. to get your PASTports. Preregister here: https://forms.gle/R4qP4ELnEnfkNPQN6 6/29 kickoff info here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1143000463590594 Our local history summer road trip, PASTports, will kick off this Saturday, June 29th. Join us at the Daphne Sumner History Discovery Center from 12 P.M. – 2 P.M. to get your PASTports. Preregister here: https://forms.gle/R4qP4ELnEnfkNPQN6 6/29 kickoff info here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1143000463590594
