217 Today: The Funk Family’s impact on farming and American history

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A planter is going across one the Funk Family's fields.
The Funk family recently celebrated 200 years of farming in McLean County. Members of the family befriended Abraham Lincoln and helped bring hybrid corn to America.
  • Photo: Photo courtesy of the Funk Family website

Friday, August 16, 2024

Today’s headlines:

  • The site of the 1908 race riots in Springfield will now be a national monument.
  • It was Republican Day at the Illinois State Fair yesterday.
  • Many schools are still scrambling to hire teachers before the kids go back to the classroom. 
  • The Fighting Illini women’s soccer team opens up the season this week with a five-match homestand.

In today’s deep dive, we’ll listen to a conversation with author Chris Bodenner about the Funk farming family of central Illinois.

217 Today is produced by Stephanie Mosqueda. Reporting today contributed by Mawa Iqbal, Peter Medlin, Colin Hislope and Jim Meadows.

 

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Stephanie Mosqueda

Stephanie Mosqueda is a senior majoring in journalism at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign with minors in Spanish and public relations. She is the 217 Today producer and a reporter for the Illinois Student Newsroom.