Spark! Places of Innovation Exhibition in Durand, IL

2023 Citizen of the Year and 4th of July Parade Marshall. (Photo courtesy Kelly Giovanine, Executive Director, Durand Charm)

Citizen of the year2023 Durand
When

Dec 2, 2023 – Jan 6, 2024
Days and Times Vary

Where

Durand Masonic Lodge #302
420 N Center St
Durand, IL 61024

Cost

Free
Open to the public

Exhibition Hours and Location

  • Monday - Friday: 5:00 - 8:00 p.m. CST *
  • Saturday: 11:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. CST *
  • Sunday: 2:00 - 5:00 p.m. CST *
  • Saturday, December 30, 2023: 2:00 - 5:00 p.m. CST
  • Saturday, January 6, 2024: 5:00 - 8:00 p.m. CST
  • Durand Masonic Lodge #302, 420 North Center Street, Durand, IL

*Closed: Saturday, December 23 - Monday, December 25, 2023, Sunday, December 31, 2023, and Monday, January 1, 2024

This exhibition and related activities are hosted by Durand Charm
For information on exhibition hours, tours, and local events, please call (815) 248-2606 or visit facebook.com/DurandCharm.
Durand Site Specific SM Tiles Square

About Spark! in Durand

After two fires in the 1800s in the town's business core, a volunteer fire department was created in Durand. They became the first municipal volunteer fire department in Illinois, sporting District #1 on their fire engine. 

As a companion to the Spark! exhibition in Durand, Durand Charm is producing an exhibit highlighting the Durand Fire Department. Included in this exhibit will be the department's original 1926 antique Peter Pirsch fire engine. The exhibit will also display regional agricultural innovations.

Durand Charm has an exciting calendar of events planned in conjunction with the Spark! exhibition: Road Scholar programs by Norman Moline and Cynthia Clampitt, visits from Santa Claus, and a Youth and Innovation Project Competition. Read more about Durand and their history of innovation in this article written by our very own Matt Meacham.

Durand Village of Volunteers sign

Upcoming Events

Spark! Places on Innovation is presented in partnership with Durand Charm, the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service, and Illinois Humanities.

About Spark! Places of Innovation

Spark! Places of Innovation, part of Illinois Humanities’ Museum on Main Street program, is a Smithsonian traveling exhibition that highlights innovation in rural America from the perspectives of people who have lived it. Their words, images, and experiences, gathered through an ambitious crowdsourcing initiative, are the heartbeat of the exhibition. The communities featured in Spark! – including seven small towns in Illinois – have enhanced their vitality through innovations in fields such as technology, agriculture, economic development, education, and the arts. Explore the diversity, ingenuity, and tenacity of rural Americans in Spark! Places on Innovation.

Spark! will visit seven towns in Illinois from June 17, 2023, to March 29, 2024.

Plan Your Visit!

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