Morrison

Drag racing and Arnie Beswick were born around the same time – one on the dry lake beds of California and the other in Morrison – and they’ve both found fame through the years, with drag racing attracting legions of fans and “The Farmer” becoming a legend in his field

In October 2023, 10 students from Morrison High School teamed up with University of Michigan researchers to install a rooftop antenna as part of a solar storm study. What they learn could one day help protect satellites, power grids, and astronauts and their equipment.

Town hall, coffee and conversation events will be held through Wednesday, July 16.

To promote its free book program, the United Way of Whiteside County hosted Dolly Parton’s Book Bash on Wednesday June 25, 2025, at the Odell Library in Morrison.

The expansion will double the size of the clinic’s current footprint. The first floor will be used for primary and urgent care services, with 22 exam rooms, three care team workstations and one procedure room. The second-floor addition will connect to the medical-surgical unit.

Many Illinois communities are adding back a 1% grocery tax that will otherwise expire on Jan. 1. Is your town among them?

Construction on a $14 million expansion at Morrison Community Hospital is experiencing some slight delays, pushing the completion date from January to May 2026.

The United Way of Whiteside County sponsored Dolly Parton's Book Bash on Wednesday, June 25, 2025, at the Odell Library in Morrison. Craft tables, books and resources were made available for families who attended.

Despite temperatures in the mid-90s some area residents still ventured outside for a variety of activities on Saturday, June 21, 2022.

Kari Carpenter owns The Midwest Mercantile, which sells a collection of carefully curated, “giftable” items at the Shoppes at Grandon Plaza in downtown Sterling.

Proceeds will go toward local projects, scholarships, the American Red Cross blood drive canteen and school supplies.

Presentation focused on the ways natural area guardians can support native populations.

For roughly the past 10 years, the Morrison Garden Club has been responsible for mulching the landscaping surrounding the public library. Mulch is applied about every two years.

The shutoff is to reduce the number of mayflies on the bridge pavement.

The role of the Whiteside County Sheriff’s Office is to uphold and protect the right to protest – while also ensuring the safety of all participants, bystanders and the broader community.

Scholarships are given to those students who best exemplify the goals of PFLAG: advocacy, support, and education.

Families throughout Whiteside County are invited to this free community event designed to spark children’s imagination and strengthen reading and family time.

Tours and historical displays were all part of a day of celebration Saturday, June 7, 2025.

Southside Elementary School of Morrison is hosting a drive-thru fundraiser to support Dylan Wescott, a Rock Falls High School student-athlete who was left partially paralyzed after suffering a broken neck during a track and field meet March 15.

The Illinois College & Career Pathway Endorsement Program allows students to earn a formal endorsement on their high school diploma or transcript by completing a series of structured requirements designed to prepare them for life after high school in their chosen career path.

The fair runs from Tuesday, Aug. 12, through Saturday, Aug. 16, at the Whiteside County Fairgrounds, 201 W. Winfield St. in Morrison.

Morrison resident Clara Bush recently was inducted into the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society at Bradley University.

With a number of ceremonies, parades and speakers planned throughout the Sauk Valley on Memorial Day, here is a list of what local communities will be doing to remember the fallen.

The Morrison Fire Department will host its annual pancake breakfast from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, May 18, at the station, 206 W. Main St.

Ed Britton, wildlife refuge manager of the Savanna District, will present a program on the 100th anniversary of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge at 2 p.m. Sunday, May 18, at the Fulton Martin House Museum.

The River Bend Board of Education may need to seek public funding in the form of a referendum in spring 2026, according to a district statement.

Due to contractor delays, the start of the closure has been postponed to June.

Ebenezer Reformed Church is hosting 7 p.m. program featuring Pastors Darin and Korene Sturtz.

A pavement replacement project on the U.S. 30 bridge over the Mississippi River between Clinton, Iowa and Fulton will require closing the roadway to traffic from May 7-9. The Illinois 136 bridge, also known as the North Bridge, will close May 12 to Sept. 30.

The bank provides lending, deposit, trust and wealth management services throughout northwest Illinois from locations in Prophetstown, Geneseo, Morrison and Mount Carroll.   

Kristophur Johnson was charged June 4, 2024, with sex assault as well as one count of aggravated battery accusing him of pushing a woman to the ground in the 18000 block of Blue Goose Road in rural Morrison and one count of unlawful restraint.

The Fulton City Council is discussing the development of single family households as a part of ongoing talks with Ryan Eissens Construction.

The 2025 theme for Dutch Days is the celebration of de Immigrant, Fulton’s authentic, Dutch, working windmill.

Here is a list of Easter egg hunts planned in the Sauk Valley beginning April 12.

Rock Falls and Sterling firefighters and CGH EMS were called at 9:37 p.m. Sunday, April 6, 2025, to 222 Ave. D in Rock Falls for a reported structure fire with a possible explosion.

The event will be in the program room at the Odell Public Library.

The Whiteside County Public Safety Tax Referendum passed with 3,667 votes for the measure and 2,907 against it. A total of 6,822 of the county’s 37,881 voters (18%) cast their ballots to decide the referendum’s fate.

Fulton city officials have announced that the Illinois 136 bridge, also known as the North Bridge, over the Mississippi River will close May 12 for maintenance.

New inductees consisted of 13 juniors and three seniors.

The Morrison Ecumenical Chorus will present the Lent and Easter portions of G.F. Handel’s “Messiah” on Palm Sunday, April 13, at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 601 N. Jackson St. in Morrison.

1st Gateway Credit Union operates seven full-service branches in Fulton, Morrison, Sterling and Prophetstown, and Camanche, Clinton and DeWitt, Iowa.

There are no charges for any services at this clinic. 

Film enthusiasts and supporters of local independent filmmaking are invited to attend the fifth annual Northwest Illinois Film Festival, “Shorts-A-Palooza 2025,” hosted by the Northwest Illinois Film Office.

The concerts will be presented in three services, at 7 p.m. Friday, April 4; 3 p.m. Saturday, April 5; and 7 p.m. Sunday, April 6.

Beginning May 12, donated pasta items can be delivered to New Life Church at 702 W. Lynn Blvd., Sterling, during office hours from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Thursday.

The Whiteside Area Career Center has named its students of the month for February.

Canvases on display at the library, 307 S. Madison St., through March 29.

Close to 300 mini masterpieces await visitors at the Odell Public Library’s Tiny Art Show this month. Cats, people, rural scenes, flowers, and a wide variety of other subjects now grace the 4″ x 4″ canvases displayed at the library, 307 S. Madison St., through March 29.

Nearly 50 students from 12 high schools attended the spring council meeting.

Ed Britton, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Refuge Manager, Savanna District, will speak about the 100th anniversary of the refuge.