{"id":163457,"date":"2025-08-21T09:36:11","date_gmt":"2025-08-21T09:36:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/163457\/"},"modified":"2025-08-21T09:36:11","modified_gmt":"2025-08-21T09:36:11","slug":"total-solar-eclipse-stuns-southern-illinois-but-left-city-stuck-in-the-clouds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/163457\/","title":{"rendered":"Total solar eclipse stuns southern Illinois, but left city stuck in the clouds"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Here\u2019s a look back at what happened in the Chicago area on Aug. 21, according to the Tribune\u2019s archives.<\/p>\n<p>Is an important event missing from this date? <a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicagotribune.com\/2025\/08\/21\/chicago-history-august-21\/mailto:krumore@chicagotribune.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Email us<\/a>.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"PjVi4pJcV7\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicagotribune.com\/2022\/08\/21\/sister-jean-loyola-basketball-chaplain-birthday\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Sister Jean turns 106: Get to know Loyola basketball\u2019s famous team chaplain<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>Weather records <\/strong>(from the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.weather.gov\/wrh\/climate?wfo=lot\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">National Weather Service, Chicago<\/a>)<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>High temperature: <strong>99 degrees<\/strong> (1955)<\/li>\n<li>Low temperature: <strong>46 degrees<\/strong> (1950)<\/li>\n<li>Precipitation: <strong>2 inches<\/strong> (1874)<\/li>\n<li>Snowfall: <strong>None<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\" lazyautosizes lazyload\" alt=\"A child stands in front of statues of Abraham Lincoln, left, and Stephen A. Douglas in Ottawa, Illinois. The park is where they first debated. (John J. Kim\/Chicago Tribune)\" width=\"4800\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/ctc-l-douglas-lincoln-Ottawa.jpg\" data-attachment-id=\"17286924\" \/>A child stands in front of statues of Abraham Lincoln, left, and Stephen A. Douglas in Ottawa, Illinois. The park is where they first debated. (John J. Kim\/Chicago Tribune)<\/p>\n<p><strong>1858:<\/strong>\u00a0The first of seven debates between\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/enews.chicagotribune.com\/q\/AxSD81XsozE0Y4V3vS6gi8eBlAFzddqfdz0jZcOJa2pydW1vcmVAZ21haWwuY29tw4gIXI_Zfl2eoNLtNKkI_1jgriVzOw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/enews.chicagotribune.com\/q\/AxSD81XsozE0Y4V3vS6gi8eBlAFzddqfdz0jZcOJa2pydW1vcmVAZ21haWwuY29tw4gIXI_Zfl2eoNLtNKkI_1jgriVzOw&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1755797687745000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0fbBMLSsJ70QZ0savxxxWP\">Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas<\/a> took place at Washington Square in Ottawa, Illinois.<\/p>\n<p>Papers outside Illinois first\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/enews.chicagotribune.com\/q\/4EddRtTISCA0YFHRrdz80QN3cPTwwJD9yf6OZcOJa2pydW1vcmVAZ21haWwuY29tw4gV3Zb5sAidanL-RgJ5xwKs01N3Xw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/enews.chicagotribune.com\/q\/4EddRtTISCA0YFHRrdz80QN3cPTwwJD9yf6OZcOJa2pydW1vcmVAZ21haWwuY29tw4gV3Zb5sAidanL-RgJ5xwKs01N3Xw&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1755797687745000&amp;usg=AOvVaw05wM6w4JfYVqGl2T5I6AmB\">published only Douglas\u2019 speeches<\/a>. As Lincoln\u2019s fame spread, his side began to appear in print also. Although Lincoln won the popular vote, he lost in the Illinois legislature at a time when state legislators, not voters, chose senators. But the debates established Lincoln as a national figure.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\" lazyautosizes lazyload\" alt=\"Chicago White Sox pitcher Ted Lyons, circa 1925. (Chicago Tribune historical photo)\" width=\"4330\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/CTC-L-CTHIST-White-Sox-033_229063299-e1755715605250.jpg\" data-attachment-id=\"26858459\" \/>Chicago White Sox pitcher Ted Lyons, circa 1925. (Chicago Tribune historical photo)<\/p>\n<p><strong>1926:<\/strong> Chicago White Sox pitcher <a href=\"https:\/\/chicagotribune.newspapers.com\/article\/chicago-tribune-lyons-wins-no-hit-no-ru\/179331830\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ted Lyons<\/a> hurled a no-hitter during his 26th start of the 1926 season. The White Sox beat the Red Sox in Boston 6-0.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"kxn0Pnthth\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicagotribune.com\/2021\/04\/15\/chicago-white-sox-pitchers-have-thrown-20-no-hitters-since-1902-including-3-perfect-games-relive-them-all-here\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Chicago White Sox pitchers have thrown 20 no-hitters since 1902 \u2014 including 3 perfect games. Relive them all here.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>1951:<\/strong> The Chicago Bears took their <a href=\"https:\/\/chicagotribune.newspapers.com\/article\/chicago-tribune-bears-really-take-to-the\/179328744\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">first team flight ever<\/a> \u2014 to Los Angeles aboard a United Airlines Mainliner.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\" lazyautosizes lazyload\" alt=\"The solar eclipse is seen in totality at the campus of Southern Illinois University in Carbondale on Aug. 21, 2017. (Zbigniew Bzdak\/Chicago Tribune)\" width=\"3228\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/CTC-L-CT-Total_Eclipse_36_181981179-e1755718946660.jpg\" data-attachment-id=\"26859019\" \/>The solar eclipse is seen in totality at the campus of Southern Illinois University in Carbondale on Aug. 21, 2017. (Zbigniew Bzdak\/Chicago Tribune)<\/p>\n<p><strong>2017:<\/strong> The first total solar eclipse to stream across the continental United States was visible along a narrow path from Oregon to South Carolina.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"0yyQty6zRC\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicagotribune.com\/2024\/04\/03\/vintage-chicago-tribune-solar-eclipses-and-how-chicagoans-viewed-them\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Vintage Chicago Tribune: Solar eclipses and how Chicagoans viewed them<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Chicago\u2019s view of a merely partial eclipse was mostly obscured by cloud cover, but Makanda and Carbondale in southern Illinois <a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicagotribune.com\/2017\/08\/22\/despite-clouds-eclipse-still-inspires-awe-from-chicago-to-carbondale\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">had a great view<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>All over the internet, WGN-TV chief meteorologist <a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicagotribune.com\/2017\/08\/22\/tom-skillings-solar-eclipse-sob-a-joy-to-viewers\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Tom Skilling<\/a> became the incarnation of eclipse-incited rapture.<\/p>\n<p>Southern Illinois once again <a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicagotribune.com\/2024\/04\/08\/solar-eclipse-carbondale\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">plunged into darkness<\/a> on April 8, 2024, and onlookers offered a standing ovation for the last total solar eclipse the contiguous U.S. would see for the next two decades.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"RUWRCPN9cG\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicagotribune.com\/2024\/04\/08\/solar-eclipse-carbondale\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">\u2018I know why a lot of people chase them.\u2019 Solar eclipse lives up to its hype in Illinois.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Want more vintage Chicago?<\/p>\n<p>Subscribe to the free\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/membership.chicagotribune.com\/newsletters\/subscribe\/lid\/2d8200fe-eefd-4f1d-bcaa-26a0ce79a461\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-mrf-link=\"https:\/\/membership.chicagotribune.com\/newsletters\/subscribe\/lid\/2d8200fe-eefd-4f1d-bcaa-26a0ce79a461\">Vintage Chicago Tribune<\/a>\u00a0newsletter, join our\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/groups\/762760217263236\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-mrf-link=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/groups\/762760217263236\/\">Chicagoland history Facebook group,<\/a> stay current with<a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicagotribune.com\/tag\/chicago-history\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> Today in Chicago History<\/a> and follow us on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/vintagetribune\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-mrf-link=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/vintagetribune\/\">Instagram<\/a>\u00a0for more from Chicago\u2019s past.<\/p>\n<p>Have an idea for Vintage Chicago Tribune? Share it with Kori Rumore and Marianne Mather at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicagotribune.com\/2025\/08\/21\/chicago-history-august-21\/mailto:krumore@chicagotribune.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">krumore@chicagotribune.com<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.chicagotribune.com\/2025\/08\/21\/chicago-history-august-21\/mailto:mmather@chicagotribune.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">mmather@chicagotribune.com<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t<script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Here\u2019s a look back at what happened in the Chicago area on Aug. 21, according to the Tribune\u2019s&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":163458,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5124],"tags":[66557,94431,1339,24328,960,531,6387,1274,49014,5386,1818,94433,69511,94432,71660,94435,94434],"class_list":{"0":"post-163457","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-chicago","8":"tag-abraham-lincoln","9":"tag-august-21","10":"tag-basketball","11":"tag-carbondale","12":"tag-chicago","13":"tag-chicago-bears","14":"tag-chicago-history","15":"tag-chicago-white-sox","16":"tag-george-halas","17":"tag-il","18":"tag-illinois","19":"tag-loyola","20":"tag-nun","21":"tag-sister-jean","22":"tag-solar-eclipse","23":"tag-stephen-douglas","24":"tag-ted-lyons"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115066082727647813","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/163457","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=163457"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/163457\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/163458"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=163457"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=163457"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=163457"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}