Bill Text: IL SR1209 | 2021-2022 | 102nd General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Mourns the passing of G. Cullom Davis of Springfield.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2022-11-16 - Resolution Adopted [SR1209 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2021-SR1209-Introduced.html

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SR1209 LRB102 29062 LAW 40971 r
SENATE RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened
to learn of the death of G. Cullom Davis of Springfield, who
passed away on September 9, 2022; and
WHEREAS, Cullom Davis was born to George and Elizabeth
(Scripps) Davis in Aurora on May 2, 1935; he was raised in
Peoria; he completed high school at the Lawrenceville School
in New Jersey; he earned his degree in History from Princeton
University in 1957, where he was a member of the Tiger Inn; he
taught History at the Punahou School in Hawaii before
returning to study at the University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign, where he earned his Ph.D. in American
History in 1968; he married Ann Chapman on May 27, 1976; and
WHEREAS, Cullom Davis joined the History Department at
Indiana University in Bloomington, where he taught for five
years before being recruited in 1969 to be among the founding
faculty of Sangamon State University (SSU), which became the
University of Illinois at Springfield (UIS); he was a
creative, enthusiastic educator devoted to student learning
and developing SSU and its mission as a multidisciplinary
public affairs institution; he brought the discipline of Oral
History to the university, creating and leading its Oral
History Office; he was an ardent supporter of the arts and

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Prairie Stars soccer; he held several administrative
leadership roles during his 39 years of service at SSU/UIS;
and
WHEREAS, Cullom Davis authored several seminal oral
history texts, including Oral History: From Tape to Type in
1977; he also designed and promoted the Public History
concentration of the master's degree in History; in service to
his profession, he served on boards and presided over many
state and national professional organizations; he was
presented countless awards for his advocacy, innovation, and
expertise in history; and
WHEREAS, Cullom Davis became the director of the Lincoln
Legal Papers in 1981, a project focused on discovering,
interpreting, indexing, and digitizing all known legal works
of Abraham Lincoln that became the most comprehensive
chronicling of Lincoln's legal career; he served in that
capacity until his retirement in 2008; and
WHEREAS, Cullom Davis' many years in Springfield were
marked by civic interests, including supporting Planned
Parenthood, desegregating Springfield Public Schools,
expanding the Lincoln Memorial Gardens, educating the public
on the Springfield Race Riot of 1908, and providing advisory
work in the creation of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential

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Library; and
WHEREAS, Cullom Davis served on the board of directors of
Springfield Marine Bank until its purchase by Banc One and as a
trustee of the Shelby Cullom Davis Charitable Fund; he also
was active in politics, serving as an alternate delegate of
Illinois at the Democratic Party Presidential Convention in
Miami in 1972; and
WHEREAS, Cullom Davis was preceded in death by his parents
and his sister, Mary Scripps Swayngim; and
WHEREAS, Cullom Davis is survived by his wife, Ann
(Chapman) Davis; his children, Cathy Davis Lunday, Lesa Davis,
Cully Davis, John Giordano, and Mark Giordano; and his eight
grandchildren; therefore, be it
RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL
ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of
G. Cullom Davis and extend our sincere condolences to his
family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be it
further
RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
presented to the family of Cullom Davis as an expression of our
deepest sympathy.