South
Historic Illinois home of Paul Powell, the 'Shoebox Scandal' politician, faces sale as trust funds dwindle
- Paul Powell, a powerful figure in southern Illinois politics, left behind $800,000 in cash in the “Shoebox Scandal.”
- Powell established a $250,000 trust that sustained his legacy for over half a century.
- The trust, which maintains Powell’s birthplace as a museum in Vienna, is running dry, and the home is likely to be sold.
Paul Powell, the southern Illinois political powerhouse who died and left behind $800,000 in cash in the notorious “Shoebox Scandal,” used to say, “The only thing worse than a defeated politician is a broke one.”
For more than half a century, a Powell-established $250,000 trust sustained his legacy, for better or worse. But the account that maintained his birthplace as a museum will soon run dry. The fate of the home in Vienna, a town of 1,300 about 140 miles southeast of St. Louis, is uncertain, but it likely will be sold.
For decades it has been home, according to Powell’s wishes, to the Johnson County Genealogical and Historical Society, which has the home looking as it did during the political giant’s time in office, with memorabilia cluttering the walls.
FORMER ILLINOIS SENATOR HALTS FEDERAL TRIAL AFTER ABRUPTLY ADMITTING TO FRAUD AND MONEY LAUNDERING
The upkeep runs about $5,000 annually, while last year the society’s income was $4,300, said board member Gary Hacker, 85, whose parents were schoolmates of Powell and mowed his lawn as a teenager in the early 1950s.
A sign marks the Paul Powell Home and Museum in Vienna, Ill. The birthplace of Powell, one of Illinois’ more notorious politicians, might soon be up for sale. (AP Photo/John O’Connor, File)
“We’re probably going to be putting it on the market for sale,” Hacker said. “The historical society will relocate.”
Southern Illinois was Powell’s fiefdom for much of the mid-1900s. He brought jobs by expanding the state’s prison infrastructure to the region, pumped money and status into Southern Illinois University and promoted county fairs and pari-mutuel betting on horse racing, which served the dual purpose of enriching Powell, who held racetrack stock.
While in later years Powell spent more time in Springfield and Chicago, when he was at home, favor-seekers streamed to the house. Sunday afternoons were spent in the sunroom he added in the 1950s, where three televisions were tuned to separate networks carrying sports, Hacker said.
“He was pretty adept at watching football, smoking cigars and conducting political business on the telephone or with people who visited him there,” Hacker said.
Winning a House seat in 1934, the Democrat was elected speaker in 1949, 1959 and 1961 — once despite Republicans claiming a one-seat majority. His quid pro quo deals with the boss of Chicago, Mayor Richard J. Daley, ensured projects for both regions and were often punctuated with another Powell aphorism: “I can smell the meat a-cookin’!”
Powell’s leverage only grew with his 1964 election as secretary of state.
“When Paul Powell was a man of influence, people knew where Johnson County was,” said John Rendleman III, a lawyer from Carbondale.
Rendleman’s father, a Powell friend and executor of his estate, uncovered one of the more outlandish political scandals in a state renowned for splashy corruption cases.
After Powell’s sudden death at 68 in October 1970, the elder Rendleman found $750,000 in cash, stuffed mostly in attache cases but also in at least one gift box from Marshall Field & Co., in his suite at Springfield’s St. Nicholas Hotel. Another $50,000 was stashed in his Capitol office about five blocks away.
A federal investigation concluded Powell skimmed much of it by awarding contracts to friends with kickback conditions. His estate, settled in 1978, was worth $4.6 million, the equivalent of $21.8 million today. He had $1 million worth of stock in horse tracks where he determined the most favorable racing dates.
The IRS claimed $1.7 million, and the state of Illinois $230,000. News reports on other politicians with horse racing stock led to federal prison for former Gov. Otto Kerner, at the time a federal appeals judge. Future politicians were required by law to start completing annual statements of economic interest.
FORMER ILLINOIS SENATOR’S WIRE FRAUD AND MONEY LAUNDERING TRIAL DELAYED AGAIN
The number of curiosity-seekers once drawn to the Powell home by the bizarre legend has dwindled, Hacker said. Few remember Powell even in Vienna.
“Memories last about a generation,” Rendelman said.
About $80,000 remains in the trust, Hacker said. Subtracting legal fees and the home’s value, appraised at about $60,000, will empty the account. A court date for closing the trust has not yet been scheduled.
Telephone and email messages seeking comment were left for the trustee at First Mid Bank & Trust in Mattoon.
It’s not beyond possibility that the house will remain open, Hacker said. One potential buyer has suggested making the three-bedroom home of about 1,700 square feet (160 square meters) into a bed-and-breakfast.
North Carolina
Bill To Put Marijuana On The Ballot In North Carolina Unlikely To Advance, GOP Senate Leader Says – Marijuana Moment
“I’m not sure that we’re in a place where legalizing marijuana is going to be taken up.”
By Brandon Kingdollar, NC Newsline
A new bill proposed by North Carolina Senate Democrats would put constitutional amendments to legalize recreational and medical cannabis on the ballot. But its odds of getting a vote in the Senate are not high, Republican leadership says.
Senate Bill 1072 would put two separate amendments on the ballot in November, asking voters to legalize possession of “limited amounts of cannabis” for recreational use and medical use by patients with qualifying conditions, respectively.
“The people of North Carolina deserve a voice in determining the future of cannabis policy in our state,” said Sen. Kandie Smith (D-Edgecombe), one of the bill’s lead sponsors. “What it does is, it provides a pathway for North Carolinians to vote on whether limited personal possession and medical use should be permitted under our state’s constitution.”
Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger (R-Rockingham) had a blunt response: “I’m not sure that we’re in a place where legalizing marijuana is going to be taken up,” he said Wednesday afternoon.
“I think there is some interest in looking at the hemp situation and the components of hemp and the sale of some of the derivatives,” Berger said. “It’s really undetermined whether we’re talking about a complete ban, or we’re talking about a regulatory scheme, or we’re talking about including these and not including those. There are just discussions that are taking place as to what we garner consensus over.”
One such proposal currently moving through the House would ban individuals under the age of 21 from purchasing hemp-derived consumables.
Berger has lent support to medical marijuana in the past. In 2024, the Senate passed a bill that would have legalized medical marijuana while restricting hemp-based consumables. The bill, which passed by a margin of 36-10, was championed by Senate Rules Chairman Bill Rabon (R-Brunswick), a cancer survivor who said cannabis helped him withstand intensive chemotherapy for colon cancer.
However, the House declined to take up Rabon’s bill due to insufficient GOP support in that chamber. North Carolina remains one of only 10 states that have not yet approved medical marijuana.
In the absence of a medical cannabis program in North Carolina, many have turned to the state’s burgeoning hemp industry to meet what they describe as medical needs, such as alleviating pain, insomnia, and anxiety among other conditions. Many of those products, however, are set to disappear following much stricter federal restrictions on hemp-based consumables set to take effect in November.
The Meredith College Poll found in February 2025 that 71 percent of North Carolinians support the passage of a bill permitting medical marijuana, with 17 percent of respondents opposed. Polls by Elon University and progressive think tank Carolina Forward have also shown majorities in favor of recreational marijuana in recent years.
Sen. Caleb Theodros (D-Mecklenburg), another lead sponsor of S1072, said the bill would allow state law to catch up with public opinion on cannabis use.
“If the legislature cannot resolve this issue after years of debate, who should? I believe the answer is simple, and it’s the people of North Carolina,” Theodros said. “Senate Bill 1072 provides an opportunity for voters to have a direct voice on an issue that has remained unresolved for far too long.”
He said Berger has acknowledged momentum around cannabis legislation in the past year, an apparent reference to the Senate Leader’s past comments on medical cannabis. That makes him “cautiously optimistic” about the bill’s fate.
“We’re aware of the political climate in this building. But again, we didn’t get elected to just sit on our hands and say we’re in the superminority and therefore there’s nothing we could ever do,” Theodros said. “We’re just trying to move along our colleagues here and to join the rest of America and the rest of the planet in suggesting that we need to have some kind of policy on this.”
This story was first published by NC Newsline.
Photo courtesy of Philip Steffan.
Kamden Mantooth caps wild week by leading Mustang to 6A baseball title
It was a wild week for Kamden Mantooth, who helped Mustang beat Edmond Santa Fe 5-4 for the 6A baseball title. After being forced to sit in the semifinals due to an ejection in the quarterfinals, he pitched 5 2/3 innings Saturday.
Joe Patterson was hoping it would be different this time.
The Mustang baseball coach is no stranger to state championship games.
But as Mustang headed into its Class 6A title matchup against Edmond Santa Fe in May, a state championship victory remained a goal that hadn’t been fulfilled for Patterson as a player or head coach.
“That was all together — playing and coaching — my (sixth) state championship game, and I was 0-5,” Patterson said.
Patterson can now revise that record to 1-5 as the Broncos beat defending champion Edmond Santa Fe 5-4 at ONEOK Field in Tulsa.
An unforgettable day for Patterson.
An unforgettable season.
After leading Mustang to its third title and a 39-6 record while playing a brutally difficult schedule, Patterson is The Oklahoman’s 2026 All-State Coach of the Year.
“It was one of those years where it felt like I wasn’t working the whole year,” Patterson said. “Just a special group and everybody involved did such an amazing job and the players got along and the senior leadership was just unbelievable.”
A year after going 19-16 and falling at regionals, this season was vastly different for Patterson as Mustang dominated from beginning to end.
The Broncos won 11 of their first 12 games and ended the season the exact same way, claiming victories in 11 of their last 12 matchups.
They thrived in tight games, going 12-3 in matchups decided by two or fewer runs.
“We lost a bunch of close games last year,” Patterson said. “We didn’t have as great a season as we wanted, so we talked about trying to change the team morale and change the culture just a little bit in the fall, and we really focused on that. Just trying to make the place a more positive place for the kids and emphasize them having a little bit more fun but still working.”
Born and raised in Duncan, Patterson’s love of baseball and sports in general go back to those days.
His dad, Bill, was Duncan’s head football coach from 1997-2003 before accepting an assistant position at Owasso and serving as the Rams’ head coach from 2007-2016.
A standout in football and baseball in high school, Joe Patterson was at Duncan as a freshman and sophomore before spending his final two years at Owasso and then playing college baseball from 2007-2010. He went to Oral Roberts for one year, Seminole State for a season and Texas A&M for his final two.
Patterson was named the national junior college player of the year at Seminole State and had a successful stint at Texas A&M, hitting .362 with 21 homers and 100 RBIs with the Aggies.
He’s been at Mustang since the summer of 2019 after coaching at Westmoore.
Former OU shortstop Brandon Zaragoza played for Patterson during his senior year at Westmoore and was a Mustang assistant for the last four seasons before recently being named Westmoore’s new head coach.
Patterson has had a huge impact on Zaragoza, who will take what he’s learned from his former coach into his new gig.
“He just brought pure joy to the game for me, especially with just his ability to, one, obviously coach the game, but two, to allow his players to go out there and perform,” Zaragoza said. “The coolest thing about Pat was his ability to just pick up on player knowledge. Just kind of knowing what he has in terms of personnel and then of course his ability to just game plan, strategize, just get his guys ready to play.”
Patterson always wanted to coach at a one-high school town like Mustang.
He has his wish now, and Zaragoza says it’s a well-oiled machine.
“That’s kind of how I describe it a lot to people,” Zaragoza said. “Just a well-oiled machine in terms of just the coaches that are over there and the attention to detail and the preparation. There’s no loose ends at Mustang. And given how big the school is, you can always get kind of lost in personnel or all that stuff, but just the way that Mustang operates, it’s top tier.”
Mustang didn’t necessarily have big names this season like some teams in the state, but the Broncos had several guys who shined.
Outfielder and Northern Oklahoma College-Enid signee Nate Sutton hit .449 with 15 homers and 70 RBIs.
Fellow senior Kamden Mantooth was second on the team with a .442 batting average. A shortstop, Mantooth started at pitcher in the title game and held Edmond Santa Fe to eight hits and four runs — three earned — over 5 2/3 innings.
“It means everything for us,” Mantooth said after the championship win. “We’ve been working for this since we were in seventh grade. We’ve been working for this, and we finally achieved our goal that we wanted.”
For Patterson, it’ll forever be a special moment as he had his 6-year-old son with him in the dugout and his dad watching from the stands.
Patterson had lost two title games as a player at Owasso and three as a head coach — two at Westmoore and one at Mustang.
The outcome was different this time, and it was well worth the wait.
“It was just a feeling of relief and happiness,” Patterson said.
Nick Sardis covers high school sports for The Oklahoman. Have a story idea for Nick? He can be reached at nsardis@oklahoman.com or on Twitter at @nicksardis. Sign up for The Varsity Club newsletter to access more high school coverage. Support Nick’s work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com.
Top astronomy events for June 2026
From a trio of planets lining up with a crescent moon to a solstice bringing the beginning of summer, here are the top astronomy events to mark down in June.
It may have felt like summer in South Carolina these past few weeks, but it is just now the first official day of summer.
Days have become longer, and temperatures have pushed toward 100 on some days ahead of the first day of summer. Now the longest day of the year is here, and the hottest months in the South are ahead of us.
On June 21, Greenville and Upstate South Carolina will experience more than 14 hours of daylight, according to Time and Date. From there, days will start being shorter once again.
Here’s how much daylight Upstate South Carolina is expected to see for the summer solstice.
When is the first day of summer 2025?
Well, there are technically two answers.
The first official day of summer astronomically for 2026 is Sunday, June 21, which is when the Northern Hemisphere has the longest day of the year, according to the Old Farmer’s Almanac.
But when we talk meteorologically, summer starts on June 1. The reason for this is that meteorologists divide the year into four seasons based on the months and the temperature cycle. Doing it this way also allows them to compare and organize climate data more easily. In this system, summer begins on June 1 and ends on August 31.
What is the summer solstice?
The summer solstice marks the astronomical first day of the summer season in June in the Northern Hemisphere.
This is also when the Earth arrives at the point in its orbit where the North Pole is at its maximum tilt toward the sun, according to the Almanac. This makes it the longest day with the longest period of sunlight hours and the shortest night of the calendar year.
It will begin at 8:25 UTC or 4:25 a.m. ET on June 21, according to EarthSky.org.
When is the longest day of the year?
The summer solstice is the longest day of the year. On June 21, it will be the day with the longest period of sunlight, with some areas in the Northern Hemisphere getting upwards of 15 hours of sunlight on that day, according to EarthSky.org.
In South Carolina, communities will see around 14 hours and 28 minutes of daylight on the longest day of the year, according to timeanddate.com, which tracks when sunrise and sunset occur in communities across the United States.
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