British "Prince of Spies," 19th century women photographers, and 1847 Harbor and River Convention are featured in latest Journal of Illinois History

SPRINGFIELD - A British spy who posed for 22 years as an Illinois physician, Illinois women photographers from 1850 - 1900, and the 1847 Harbor and River Convention at Chicago are featured in the latest issue of the Journal of Illinois History, a scholarly publication about the state's history.

Dr. Henri Le Caron was a respected physician and community leader who worked for 22 years in Braidwood, Wilmington, Lockport, Joliet and Chicago. He was also known as Thomas Miller Beach, the "Prince of Spies," who infiltrated Irish organizations in the United States to try and derail Ireland's quest for independence from England. Thomas Beach, an English adventurer, joined the Union Army as Henri Le Caron and was wounded in battle during the American Civil War. While at a hospital camp recuperating from his injuries, Le Caron befriended an Irish Union officer and was accepted into a radical Irish nationalist movement that had plans to invade Canada. Le Caron sent word of these plans to Great Britain and the plan was foiled. During the next two decades, Le Caron was outwardly a model citizen - respected country doctor, candidate for the Illinois General Assembly, active in local church and school activities, hero of the Diamond Mine Disaster, and president of the Illinois Pharmaceutical Association. But he also continued to funnel information about Irish organizations to England until 1888, when he went public to testify in England against criminal conspiracies allegedly being planned by those groups in the United States and other countries. Le Caron lived the rest of his life under constant threat and died in England, never to return to America. The article was written by Joseph Clark of Lockport, Illinois.

Women in Illinois began to photograph in the 19th century, either as a means to support their families, as a creative outlet, or as operators of commercial photography studios. As in other places in America, the emergence of women photographers in Illinois corresponded with shifting gender roles and advances in the women's movement.

Attributes most frequently associated with women - patience, diplomacy, empathy and creativity - were an asset in the photography business, and women in Illinois joined the profession in higher numbers than in virtually any other state. Many created niche markets, as noted by a Chicago journalist: "...one clever woman in this country makes $500 a year by photographing her pretty boy as a Cupid, little Lord Fauntleroy, etc. and selling the prints." The article was written by Margaret Denny, an adjunct instructor at Columbia College and the University of Illinois at Chicago where she teaches the survey of photography.

Joel Stone, curator of the Detroit Historical Society, wrote a third article about the 1847 Harbor and River Convention. Chicago, the convention site, was the place to be in July 1847 as the national debate raged over the funding for roads, harbors, rivers, canals, railroads and other national improvements. Although largely overlooked in history textbooks today, the Harbor and River Convention drew many celebrities and great press coverage as the merits of state versus federal funding for improvements were debated. The convention grew from an 1846 veto of a river and harbor improvements bill by President James K. Polk, and when it ended all political parties realized that the western states (Illinois included) could no longer be excluded from national debates. The convention also cemented Chicago's role as one of the nation's major transportation hubs and political convention sites.

The Journal of Illinois History is the foremost publication for readers who value documented research on the state's history, and features articles, book reviews, essays and bibliographies that have been reviewed by some of the country's leading historians. The Journal is published by the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency (www.Illinois-History.gov). Subscriptions are $18 per year for four issues. To obtain a sample copy, contact: Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, Publications Section, 1 Old State Capitol Plaza, Springfield, IL 62701, or call (217) 524-6045.