The Ira & Reatha T. Post Wildlife Sanctuary

The town of Vishnu Springs, located west of Tennessee, IL, was founded ca. 1880 as a health retreat/spa. The town reportedly hosted as many as 3,000 visitors, annually, and contained a hotel, restaurant, blacksmith shop, fishing pond, race track, and a school. By the 1920s, the town was defunct and remained so despite intermittent efforts at revival. Part of the town was used as a commune through the 1970s and has been uninhabited since it was abandoned in 1980. The only remaining structure is the Capitol Hotel. The property is currently owned by Western Illinois University Foundation and is known as the Ira & Reatha T. Post Wildlife Sanctuary.

Capital Hotel ca. 1884.
Capitol Hotel ca. 1890s.
(courtesy of the WIU Archives)

Capital Hotel, October 2007.
Capitol Hotel, October, 2007.
(Photo by L. Dean, October, 2007)

Since the site was occupied only sparingly since the 1920s, there are significant opportunities to study processes relevant to the recovery of disturbed natural systems in western Illinois and beyond. Likewise, the collection and preservation of cultural and historical remnants from the unique communities that occupied the site can enhance our understanding of western Illinois’ rural heritage.

Spring-fed pond with the Capital Hotel in the background.
Spring-fed pond with the Capitol Hotel in the background.
(Photo by L. Dean, October, 2007)

To develop these opportunities, a multidisciplinary inventory of assets at the Post Wildlife Sanctuary is being conducted; representative examples of this work include: groundwater monitoring, assessment and characterization of biological communities, and mapping of natural and historic resources. Collaborators on this multidisciplinary project include the Departments of Biological Sciences, Geology, & Geography; the WIU GIS Center, and the Institute for Environmental Studies.

Atumn colors.
Autumn colors
(Photo by L. Dean, October, 2007)

 

Measurements at Vishnu pond.
WIU Biological Sciences graduate student, S. Goddard, making water quality measurements in the pond
(photo by R. Viadero, October 2007).

Click here for more information on multidisciplinary work being conducted at the Post Sanctuary.