Illinois Historic Preservation Group Awards $17K In Grants

CHICAGO (CBS/AP) -- A historic preservation group is giving out $17,000 in grants to projects across Illinois.

Landmarks Illinois announced the New Philadelphia Association in Pike County will receive a $3,500 matching grant to use toward its virtual reality program.

The New Philadelphia historic site, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, honors the first town platted and registered by a Black man before the Civil War.

Frank McWorterc platted the property in 1836 and sold lots in the town to purchase children and grandchildren who were still enslaved in Kentucky.

The site was once a stop on the Underground Railroad. Other grant recipients include the Morgan County Historical Society, which is receiving $2,500 for window restoration at the Old Post Office in Jacksonville.

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