Historian, writer, and artist Mary Frances returns to Community Voices to explore the powerful legacy of the People's National Bank of Springfield—an institution founded in 1970 by and for African Americans during a time of widespread financial discrimination. Mary Frances shares how her nonprofit, Untold Histories, is bringing this story to life through a new exhibit featuring oral histories, archival photographs, and rare architectural plans. The exhibit opens September 5th at the SAA Collective and promises to be a deeply immersive experience into Springfield’s Black history.
The conversation also dives into Mary Frances’s broader work uncovering overlooked figures in Illinois history, including Eva Carol Monroe and 19th-century artist Dennis Williams. From rediscovered portraits now housed in the Illinois State Museum to her ongoing archival research, Mary Frances reveals how storytelling and scholarship can reshape public memory. Whether you're a history buff, a local resident, or simply curious about the creative forces behind community preservation, this interview offers a rich and inspiring glimpse into the past—and the people working to keep it alive.
Randy Eccles: Welcome back to Community Voices on 91.9 UIS. I'm co-host Randy Eccles, and we're happy to have a friend join us again, Mary Frances. Thanks for joining us.
Mary Frances: Thank you, Randy. It's good to be here.
Randy Eccles: Lookin at your website, oh my goodness! There are so many cool things that you are doing. Lots of fun options to click through and see what you've worked on. Today, tell us about Untold Histories.
Mary Frances: That's a nonprofit I started about a year ago. It's the culmination of about five years of work in history. I decided to start it because I want to do more complicated projects that require funding. I've been getting local grants and donations for some of my projects. One that's coming up is an exhibit about the People's National Bank of Springfield, which was a bank created in 1970 by African Americans and for African Americans on the east side.
Randy Eccles: That wasn't an easy thing in 1970?
Mary Frances: Apparently it wasn't. They had experienced so much financial discrimination. Sometimes they didn't have bank accounts at all. They couldn't get loans. They located it right across from the post office on East Cook Street. The building is still there today, and it is still a bank.
Creating the exhibit required funding to produce materials, and that's where I got the idea to start the nonprofit. It's been going great. I've gotten grants from the Community Foundation for the Land of Lincoln, from Westminster Church, and donations from a bank and other private individuals. I'm very happy with how it's going so far.
Randy Eccles: It's a 501(c)(3), so it's tax-deductible if somebody makes a contribution to it?
Mary Frances: Right.
Randy Eccles: Then does that mainly fuel the history things that you're doing?
Mary Frances: Yes. The mission of the nonprofit is to promote research, publishing, and education regarding local African American history.
Randy Eccles: We need to have as much of that as possible. There is a movement going on right now at the national level to revise some of that history. Locally, has that impacted you at all yet?
Mary Frances: No, not yet. I'm so grateful for the local organizations, churches, and individuals who can still do the funding and aren't being impacted by the current administration.
Randy Eccles: What happens if they change what's happening at places like the Smithsonian Museum of African American History?
Mary Frances: I'll give you a statewide example. Illinois Humanities is a nonprofit organization in Chicago, and they get about one-third of their funding from the federal government. Tthey are definitely going to be impacted, and that does affect me because I'm in their speakers bureau. I'm a Road Scholar. They're saying they'll have funding for their program for the next year, but they're not completely certain.
Randy Eccles: It's difficult for everyone who's involved in the humanities, the arts, history, museums, etc., right now. Even if this doesn't happen directly to the funding streams, it creates uncertainty and makes it difficult to plan.
Mary Frances: Exactly.
Randy Eccles: This exhibit, People's Bank of Springfield, The First Integrated Bank in Downstate Illinois, where's the exhibit going to be?
Mary Frances: It's going to be at the SAA Collective, 105 N. 5th St., Springfield. It will be there from September 5th to the first week in November, so about two months. There's a reception coming up on the 5th from 5:30 to 7:30, again at that same location.
Randy Eccles: What are they likely to see? You talked about the bank and the location on Cook Street across from the post office. When they walk in to see the exhibit, what will they experience?
Mary Frances: They will experience, first of all, oral histories about the bank. I interviewed four people associated with the bank. One woman worked there, one woman's father was instrumental in creating the bank, one man's father was extremely instrumental, and one was an attorney who served different functions for the bank.
Those interviews will be scannable with your cell phone—there's a QR code—and you can watch the videos of me interviewing them.
Randy Eccles: Should you bring your earbuds with your cell phone?
Mary Frances: You might want to do that. Besides the oral histories, I have artifacts from the bank—photographs of the artifacts, because the Sangamon Valley Collection cannot loan those out. But you'll see images of actual objects used at the bank, lots of newspaper articles, certificates, and awards.
One of the great things I was lucky to get were the building plans—the architectural plans for the bank. I made copies of those and they're laminated. There are six pages you can leaf through and study.
Randy Eccles: Was it built specifically to be this bank, or did they convert a building into the bank?
Mary Frances: No, it was an empty plot of land. They hired an architectural firm and built it specifically to be People's Bank.
Randy Eccles: And the legacy is—it's still there on the east side serving the community?
Mary Frances: It is, yes.
Randy Eccles: One of the great things about history is it can prompt you to think about what it was like before this happened. Things may have changed now, but in the 1960s, it was difficult if somebody wanted to do banking who was African American. Was it similar to how it was difficult for women to get credit cards?
Mary Frances: I think it was similar. I've heard people say it was so important for them to walk into the bank and see Black people working there—getting jobs, becoming supervisors, serving on the board. The bank was eventually sold in 1986. It didn’t fail—it was just a small bank that couldn’t compete with larger institutions in terms of offering bigger loans.
Randy Eccles: The positive thing there, is that other banks then started loaning to Black customers.
Mary Frances: Exactly.
Randy Eccles: So there were more options and opportunities, and that meant People's Bank didn’t have as broad a market.
Mary Frances: Exactly. If you need more information, everything is on my website, Mary Frances Artist. If you have any stories about People's Bank—if you remember it in any capacity—I would love to talk to you. I plan to expand the exhibit over time. It’s going to be a traveling exhibit, and I want to take it throughout Illinois.
Just yesterday, I spoke with an architect who remembers the bank and is very interested in its design. It’s a unique and progressive structure for its time. I love hearing stories and gauging interest in Springfield about the bank.
Randy Eccles: Was this unique to Springfield, or were similar banks opening in other cities?
Mary Frances: According to the newspapers, it was the first integrated bank in downstate Illinois. It was new not only for Springfield but for the region. I also want to add that Jewish people were involved in starting the bank and serving on the board. That may have been partly due to their own experiences with discrimination during that time.
Randy Eccles: So this helped those communities access banking, loans, and opportunities to start their own businesses.
How do you choose your next project?
Mary Frances: I always try new and challenging things. I’m keeping my mind open until after the exhibit, but I do have some ideas I’m not ready to share yet. It’s going to be a big surprise.
Randy Eccles: That’s not the answer we wanted—but that’s excellent. I hope whatever you’ve got cooking turns out well. Besides the nonprofit, Untold Histories, and the exhibit, is there a book to go with ithis research?
Mary Frances: There will be a pamphlet available if you want to take something home.
Randy Eccles: Have you been doing any other art projects lately, or taking a break?
Mary Frances: No art projects, but I’m always doing research and working on publications. I’ve published in Illinois Heritage Magazine through the Illinois State Historical Society. I’m always looking for new ideas and people—especially Black individuals—to research and write about. If anyone has suggestions, please come to the exhibit and talk to me.
Randy Eccles: That’s your history specialization, right?
Mary Frances: It is. I also look for new archival collections in Springfield related to Black history. For this exhibit, the Sangamon Valley Collection has an extensive photo archive of People's Bank from the 1970s. They’re large, black-and-white photos—really beautiful. That was my starting point for the exhibit. I’m always searching for collections in libraries, archives, or even from individuals.
Randy Eccles: There are some major historical events tied to Black history in Springfield—like the 1908 race riot and the founding of the NAACP. As you have explored the People's Bank, what other areas have you focused on?
Mary Frances: One of my first projects was a documentary film about Eva Carol Monroe, who created and ran the Lincoln Colored Home for 33 years on the east side. It was an orphanage for Black children and also housed widows. That film is on my website, and it was my starting point. As I continued publishing,
I realized I love writing about people who are creative and artistic. One of those people was Dennis Williams—a prolific and respected artist in Springfield during the 1870s and 1880s.
Randy Eccles: What medium was he working with?
Mary Frances: He worked in charcoal, pastel, ink, pencil, oil—everything. He had studios downtown near the Old State Capitol. He was formerly enslaved and migrated to Springfield during the Civil War. He had a 20-year career here. I found enough primary documents and archival materials to write an article about him.
Randy Eccles: Some of his art survives?
Mary Frances: It does. Three of his portraits are in Springfield—two at the Illinois State Museum and one at the Judge David Davis Mansion in Bloomington. After I published the article on Sangamon Link, someone in the Carolinas saw my research and contacted us. He believed he had a Dennis Williams portrait. I spoke with him, and we were able to authenticate it—it was from around 1873. He eventually sold it at auction in the Carolinas, and someone from the Illinois State Museum bought it and donated it to the museum.
Randy Eccles: Great to see impact from your work.
Mary Frances: It’s a huge impact. Now the State Museum has two of his portraits. Another hangs at the new State Capitol building, and one is in Bloomington. The newly acquired portrait will be going on exhibit soon.
Randy Eccles: Wow, congratulations on helping rediscover it—or get it authenticated.
We really appreciate you joining us today. We look forward to seeing what you tackle next.
Mary Frances: Thank you.
This transcription was assisted by AI and edited by a human.
