Oregon

An Ogle County farm was once again bursting with yellow, green, red, and a bit of blue as several hundred garden tractors converged on May 17, 2025 for the 16th annual AJ’s Garden Jamboree, 1675 S. Columbian Rd., Oregon. The event also included activities for kids.

According to Oregon fire crews, occupants in the vehicles were treated at the scene and did not need to be transported to a medical facility.

Members of the Oregon High School Ag Construction class spent Friday, May 16, 2025, building a mini-food center at Dixon Public Library. The center will be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week for people to take the food they need.

Blackhawk Steak Pit in Oregon has become a destination for travelers and locals to enjoy dinner in the relaxed surroundings of a supper club atmosphere.

Oregon qualified seven individuals and three relays for this week's state meet at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston.

It will be at least another eight months before an Ogle County jury decides the fate of a Stillman Valley man who is charged with killing his ex-wife in 2016 and then setting her Byron home on fire, also resulting in the death of their 3-year-old son.

City Manager Darin DeHaan introduced the ordinance last month, telling city commissioners the new ordinance would give the city necessary information and time to prepare for demonstrations.

Jared Babler, 28, was charged in connection with an April 15 incident.

This year’s sale will be held at the Oregon Coliseum in downtown Oregon from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, May 30, and 8 a.m. to noon Saturday, May 31.

In a the field next to the grade school, sixth grade students of Aaron Mendoza’s science class lined up their creations ready to compete for bragging rights for the farthest “shot”.

The Ganymedes’ home venue, south of the Chana School Museum home at Oregon Park East, cannot be used for 2025 games due to renovation work at Park East.

The IHSA Music Sweepstakes is one of the most comprehensive and respected measures of high school music excellence in the state of Illinois.

The driver of the semi-tractor and trailer was ticketed for failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident and improper lane usage.

A group of eight Dixon students with disabilities attended a clinic May 6 at an Oregon nonprofit to learn about horse care and safety. Students helped groom the horses, walked them around the arena and learned how to introduce themselves to the animals.

The workshop will be taught by artist Valerie Butcher of Rock Falls and is open to everyone and not limited to just

Lee County Special Education Association's Transition Program students attended a workshop at Pegasus Special Riders in Oregon on Tuesday, May, 6, 2025, to learn about horse care and safety.

FFA students brought their tractors and animals to the lawn of the elementary school for kids to learn about agriculture.

The weather was perfect and the animals and tractors did not disappoint as Oregon Elementary School students flocked to the Oregon High School's FFA Petting Zoo and Ag Event on Friday, May 9, 2025. FFA students brought their tractors and animals to the lawn of the elementary school for kids to learn about agriculture.

The idea of adding shade came from a citizen

Matthew L. Thoreson, 23, is charged with aggravated arson, a Class X felony, following a Thursday, May 1, house fire in Oregon.

Pleas for due process were among messages displayed by approximately 150 people May 1 in a May Day rally to protest actions by President Donald Trump.

Attendees displayed a variety of signs critical of the Trump administration during a May Day Rally on Thursday, May 1, 2025, around the historic Ogle County Courthouse in Oregon, Illinois. Approximately 150 people attended the evening event.

Timothy J. O’Dell, 28, of Rochelle, was remanded to the Ogle County Jail following the decision by Judge Anthony Peska on April 24.

Spring concert to include favorite tunes, reenactments from 1940s radio show

Derek Swanlund, 44, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder charges that accuse him of fatally shooting Cameron Pasley on April 21, 2025, in Mt. Morris.

A rural Dixon man charged with the attempted murder of three police officers at his residence in June will now be represented by a private attorney, a move that comes after two Ogle County public defenders who both defended him left the office.

Robert DeVries, a former Forreston High School multisport standout athlete, has been hired as the Cardinals’ new boys basketball coach.

Bryan Wills chosen board president.

Derek Swanlund, 44, will remain in custody in the Ogle County Jail in connection with the death of Cameron Pasley, 25, also of Mt. Morris.

Current principal, Heidi Deininger, is leaving the district to be superintendent at West Carroll.

Duane Meyer, 42, of Stillman Valley, is charged with four counts of first-degree murder, two counts of aggravated arson and one count of concealment of a homicidal death in connection with an Oct. 19, 2016, Byron house fire.

Hector Losoya, 57, was sentenced through a plea agreement April 16 after pleading guilty to a 2023 charge of not registering with Rochelle police.

Derek Swanlund, 44, is charged with first-degree murder in connection with the shooting death of Cameron Pasley, 25, also of Mt. Morris.

The show starts at 6:30 p.m.

Held throughout March, the long-running contest encourages Sterling Federal employees to nominate and select local charities for a chance to receive financial support.

Cameron Pasley, 25, was shot several times at his residence in Mt. Morris in what police describe as a “domestic incident.”

The event was designed to allow Forreston high school students to teach elementary students about the different aspects of agriculture.

Approximately 250 people carried signs criticizing the Trump administration.

For the second time in less than a month, people lined the north and east sidewalks around the historic Ogle County Courthouse on Saturday, April 19, 2025, protesting recent actions and decisions by President Donald Trump.

Local artists to display their works at ENAG Art Gallery in Conover Square

Program begins at 10 a.m. at the Oregon Depot

Voters this week in Whiteside, Lee, Ogle and Carroll counties determined who will make the important decisions regarding their communities, schools, townships, fire departments, parks and libraries. See the results here.

Under the direction of two staff members, Lindsey Breeden and Aaron Mendoza, students revamped the area April 5.

Rock River Madness bicycling event is May 3 in Dixon; Wed on the Rock is May 4 in Oregon.

Victims tell court about 'horrors' they say Duane Upchurch, 60, caused during 2004, 2008.

April 28, 6:30 p.m. in Oregon

Victims tell court about 'horrors' they say Duane Upchurch, 60, caused during 2004, 2008.

The event matches donated art from local residents with donors, all while raising funds to benefit Serenity Hospice and Home's patients and their families.

It was a packed house on Wednesday, April 9 for the Serenity Hospice and Home’s Fourth Annual Art Dash fundraiser, held at River’s Edge Experience, 103 S. First St., Oregon. The unique event provided attendees a fun way to choose local works of art while raising funds for the organization.

The Next Picture Show, Dixon, also will host a Chapter and Verse Open Mic Night for the area’s authors Friday, April 11, that will appear on a local video podcast.