[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 13]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 17360]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




            CELEBRATING THE BRYAN-BENNETT LIBRARY CENTENNIAL

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                           HON. JOHN SHIMKUS

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, July 9, 2009

  Mr. SHIMKUS. Madam Speaker, I rise today to mark the Centennial 
Celebration of the Bryan-Bennett Library in Salem, Illinois.
  The Bryan-Bennett Library was established by Salem native William 
Jennings Bryan and his friend, Philo Bennett. In a letter to the mayor 
of Salem in 1905, Bryan stated that ``the library (was) established 
because of my attachment to the city of my birth and to the friends of 
my childhood.''
  William Jennings Bryan was born in 1860 in Salem, Illinois. He had a 
distinguished career serving as a lawyer, a member of the U.S. House of 
Representatives and as Secretary of State during the Wilson 
Administration.
  Through the tribulations and successes of his professional life, 
William Jennings Bryan gained an apprecation for education. His desire 
to share that passion with his community insprired Bryan to bring a new 
library to Salem. With assistance from Philo Bennett, he spearheaded 
the construction of the Bryan-Bennet library. On June 9, 1909, William 
Jennings Bryan gave his ``Price of a Soul'' speech to dedicate the 
opening of the library.
  The original location of the library was on South Broadway Street, 
the site of Bryan's childhood home. It has since been moved with the 
generous contributions by Joe and Anna Hale of Salem and the support of 
the Illinois State Library's Live and Learn Grant.
  On August 15, the Bryan-Bennett Library will formally celebrate its 
Centennial and dedicate its new site to Joe and Anna Hale.
  I would like to congratulate the citizens of Salem, Illinois and the 
men and women who serve at the Bryan-Bennett Library to preserve the 
living legacy of William Jennings Bryan.

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