Radium Girls Tour

We took two tours with Awesome Ottawa Tours in Ottawa, Illinois, in October of 2022. One of several tours, the entire tour company is owned and operated by Ottawa local, Tom Aussem. Because we were quite familiar with the Radium Girls, Tom took us to sites not typically on his tour, such as Marie Rossiter's home, an EPA Superfund Site, and a home in the St. Columba Cemetery. You can read more about this tour and others here.

The tour website describes "The Radium Girls of Ottawa, Illinois Driving Tour" in this way:

"The Radium Girls of Ottawa, Illinois, takes you to the sites, past and present, of this sad era. During the early 1900's Radium Dial Corp. chose Ottawa, Illinois, in the heart of Starved Rock Country as the site of its largest luminous watch dial plant. The product used to make these dials glow, pure poison, radium! The result was prolonged gruesome death, contamination, and unthinkable cover-up. We'll visit the sites of the Radium Dial and Luminous Processes factories. You'll see the ladies' homes, their place of worship, the streets they walked, their gravesites, monuments, and memorials. You'll see how nearly 100 years later the ill effects are still haunting Starved Rock Country. During the tour you’ll have exclusive access to photographs and maps on our website. Offerings of respect and remembrance may be made at the gravesites and monuments. They will be attended too by this tour company. This driving tour accommodates groups up to 14. Tour typically lasts 1.5-2 hours. $35 per person (discounts given for cash customers.)"

Marie Rossiter's Home

Marie Rossiter lived in this small home in 1927, at the time she was employed by Radium Dial Co. It's located in downtown Ottawa, Illinois, now adjacent to a funeral home.

Marie Rossiter was featured in the 1987 documentary Radium City. She eventually lost at least one leg due to radium poisoning.

Catherine Donohue's Home

Catherine Donohue and her family, including her husband Tom, and two children, lived at 520 Superior St. Her home is a couple of blocks from where Radium Dial Co. was located and her church, St. Columba's, which still stands.

Long after her family had moved out, residents in the home received from the factories rubble to possibly fill a low spot in the yard, according to our tour guide. It was also a contaminated site, according to the EPA for this reason.

Radium Dial Company Location

On the left, where the white building is located (currently a Subway restaurant), is where the Radium Dial Company was located. On the right is St. Columba Catholic Church, where Catherine Donohue and many other dialworkers attended.

St. Columba Cemetery

Radium City Scene

This particular gravesite does not have a direct connection to the Radium Girls of Ottawa, though it's located in the St. Columba cemetery where many are buried. It was used as an opening scene for the 1987 documentary Radium City, filmed by Carole Langer.

Cemetery Caretakers' Home

This was the home of cemetery caretaker, Wayne <last name>, until a few years ago. We toured the home with a Geiger counter. Below are photographs from the basement, which includes a piece of furniture that was included in the film, Radium City.

The Geiger counter hovered around 25cpm in the basement.

Radium Girls Gravesites

"Revolution" Mural

"Revolution" appears to "move" (top window), as a viewer moves from one side of the street to the next.

Below is a description from Pick Us! Ottawa, Illinois, website. More information is also on Street Art News.

"In 1919, women got the right to vote. A pivotal moment. “Revolution” overlooking the confluence of the Fox and Illinois Rivers, is a tribute to Ottawa’s, and America’s tenacious women exploding into independence. Our ladies oversee the heart of Ottawa, remembering bustling speakeasies, hotels, and trolleys. With John Pugh’s Trompe L’ Oeil mural, we witness a revolution in time and culture. Two flappers perched on the ledge of our infamous Zeller Inn toast passersby. Luminous green radium gas oozes and swirls behind. “Poppy”, by ‘The Mother of American Modernism’, Georgia O’Keefe, epitomizes the feminine revolution. Rotating downward, peering at us through misty revolving windows are two heroic Radium Dial women. The first from New Jersey, then Ottawan Charlotte Purcell, both poisoned by radon. Charlotte with a handful of unswerving Ottawa Radium Dial women laid the foundation for today’s worker protection laws. Look closely and you will find hidden images within."

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