State senate candidate gets tour of Bureau County History Center buildings

The Bureau County History Center hosted Li Arellano, an uncontested Republican candidate for Illinois Senate, on Thursday.

Lex Poppens, history center executive director, gave Arellano a tour of the Newell Bryant Museum and the Sash Stalter Matson building in Princeton, in which the True Leaves Bookshop opened its main floor store in late June. On a tour of the upper floor, Poppens pointed out areas where additional renovation work to floors, walls, ceiling and other areas is needed at an estimated cost of about $100,000.

Arellano served as mayor of Dixon from 2015 to 2023. Voters elected him in the aftermath of the Rita Crundwell embezzlement scandal, and he and the City Council instituted multiple municipal reforms. Arellano is running unopposed in the November election for the state senate seat held by Win Stoller, who is retiring at the end of his term.

Speaking of the damage done to the historic Red Covered Bridge in November 2023, Arellano likened that problem to the city of Dixon’s efforts to preserve and restore its 1850s-era railroad viaducts that also have been struck by vehicles over the years. Arellano was invited to tour the History Center campus by Jim Dunn, president of the History Center board. Dunn became acquainted with Arellano while serving as opinion page editor of Sauk Valley Media from 2004 to 2017.

The primary mission of the Bureau County Historical Society in operating its museum is to educate the public on the history of Bureau County and the surrounding area through the collection, preservation, interpretation and exhibit of artifacts and related materials. For information, call 815-875-2184 or visit bureauhistory.org.