PEORIA MAGAZINE July 2023

S P O T L I G H T

THREE MORE REASONS TO EXPLORE PEKIN’S DIRKSEN CENTER Representatives Cheri Bustos, Adam Kinzinger and Rodney Davis have donated their papers to the research institution

BY CHRIS KAERGARD

F ifty years ago, official Wash ington, D.C. – Air Force One and all – came to Pekin for the ceremonial cornerstone-laying of the Everett McKinley Dirksen Con gressional Research Center. Over the ensuing half-century, the Center has grown into a facility with state-of-the-art archival space and added collections from Dirksen’s congressional successors in central Illinois, boasting records from U.S. Reps. Bob Michel and Ray LaHood. Researchers nationwide make use of the nonpartisan organization’s records, and it provides educational material about key moments in congressional history, like Dirksen’s role in the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. But a recent flurry of newly donated papers has proven history-making for the venerable research institution, while also offering a wider glimpse into the politics of the 21st century. Three mem bers of Congress who retired in January each chose to donate their papers to the Dirksen Center: Reps. Cheri Bustos, Adam Kinzinger and Rodney Davis. "To add one new collection is notable; three simultaneously is a landmark," said Dirksen Center Executive Director Tiffany White. "It positions us as a go to institution for the study of modern

The collections include members’ public papers from their time in office, everything from the bills they sponsored to notes from staff on national issues. Bustos may be most familiar, having represented Peoria and Pekin as part of Illinois' 17th Congressional District. Kinzinger grew up in McLean County and served in the Air Force before representing a wide swath of north central Illinois. He became something of a household name during hearings of the bipartisan commission examining the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol. Davis, a longtime congressional aide, served nearby Bloomington-Normal and Springfield. BIPARTISAN FIRSTS The addition of Bustos’ papers provides two Center firsts. She’s the first woman and first elected Democrat with papers in the collections. The legacy of the institution helped solidify her decision to donate her records, she said. “The names of Everett Dirksen, Bob Michel and Ray LaHood mean a great deal to Illinois. To have my congressional papers even in the same vicinity as theirs is a complete … honor,” Bustos said. “And as someone who believes in the bottom

Cheri Bustos, former congresswoman, Illinois' 17th District

congressional activity, especially during such a turbulent period in government.” Rodney Davis, former congressman, Illinois' 13th District

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