In writing Freedom, Land and Community, Greg Koos has captured some of his deep knowledge of McLean County history based on his years of research for programs, exhibits, and publications. A native of Bloomington, Illinois, Koos began work at the McLean County Museum of History in 1977 as an archivist. For over forty years, he served the institution in various capacities, retiring in 2019 as its director.
Greg Koos and the McLean County Museum of History are to be commended for this and other books on topics ranging from corn farming, the Chicago & Alton Railroad Shops, the Civil War, foodways, Black history, and an Illustrated History of McLean County (1980). I worked recently on an update to DuPage Roots, a multi-authored county history; it gave me some sense of the challenges to crafting a county history. Koos and McLean County serve as a publication model for the...