You can blame Ed Hertel for an "Illegal Of The Day" that is too big to post in 1 part. He found a gaggle of Illinois chips and sent them out to our little inner circle of collectors. He asked "Wonder if the Shawgo's Club was in Havana, IL?" None of us had ever seen them and they were not in TGT.

Special note: Earl Shawgo proves the age old saying "When Pigs Fly" at the end of Part 2 on the Havana, IL illegals. The best part is, there is proof! Read on.
Part 2 will follow this post.

I got my first Havana, IL illegals from Rene Nedoza in 1999. He also found a gaggle of chips. I contacted the source of the chips. She was a daughter of one of the operators and had a ton of info. Also talked to the Havana library back then. I was able to put Club names to several of the UFC's in that lot. When Rene contacted me about the chips, I doubted there even was a city called Havana, IL. Google solved that doubt. Scans of some of Rene's find are in Part 2. Special thanks to David Spragg for formatting the scan.

Once again a SPECIAL thank you to our "Friend of the hobby."

Enough of that:

Havana, IL:

Here’s some stuff on the Havana, Illinois area chips.
It’s an interesting contrast between the way operators in Pittsburgh had to go about
their business versus how they did it in Havana: behind steel doors on second floors
versus wide open doors on downtown streets.

Havana, Illinois area

In the first half of the 20th century Havana, Illinois and the surrounding Illinois River Valley area were
popular places for all kinds of outdoor recreational activities, attracting visitors from all over Illinois and
beyond. The area, known as the “playground of central Illinois”, had a reputation as one of the best places in North America to hunt ducks—trainloads of people came to the area for the duck hunting. Havana and surrounding communities are loaded with story after story of one guy in particular coming there to shoot ducks:
Al Capone.

from Dec.1928:

My note: Both the library and my source in Havana told me Big Al had interests in several of the Havana North Shore operations. I never saw any written proof of it.

The people who came to the Havana area for the outdoor activities needed a place to go for some
indoor recreation when the sun went down so the area provided them with plenty of roadhouses and
taverns for eating, drinking and gambling. In Havana gambling was up front and out in the open
and nobody seemed to mind. A Chicago Tribune reporter visited Havana in 1948:

Gambling operators were “fined” once a month by the Havana city government—basically a de facto gaming license.

During this time period Havana was given the nickname “Catfish Riviera of the Corn Belt.” One of the guys who operated in Havana was Frank Lawson Shawgo (1891-1965).

pic of Shawgo:

Shawgo, a native of the Havana area, operated a place on Quiver Lake in the 1920’s called the “Shawgo Inn.” From the 1930’s to the 1960’s Shawgo and other members of his family ran a place in downtown Havana at 109 N. Orange St. called “Shawgo’s Tavern.”

pic of Shawgo’s Tavern—the sign is kinda hard to read but the top part says “Package Liquor” and below “Shawgo’s Tavern”

Another well known sportsman in Havana was Edward S. Long. Born 1891 near Havana, Long had ownership interests in many gambling operations in Havana and nearby towns.

In the late 1930’s Long teamed up with another local guy named Louis Elmer Becker (1906-1966) and they opened-up a place in downtown Havana at 118 N. Plum St. (across the street from the Mason County courthouse). For many years this place was known as “Becker & Long’s Victory Room.”

Several chip orders were delivered to the address on N. Plum St. during the 1940’s:

My note: Like the VCC chip below, this chip was made with HLB both sides the same and with $5 on obverse. I have both chips.

I need this chip. Cough it up if you have a trader.

My note: My notes from 1999, says this chip was also used at the Pastime Club in Havana.

As was mentioned earlier, Long had ownership interests in places outside Havana. At some point
he was part owner of the Virginia Country Club which was located about 30 miles south of Havana and
just outside of Virginia, Illinois. From the late 1930’s and for many years afterwards the principal proprietor of the VCC was a guy named Jesse L. Watts.

Here’s an ad from the late 1940’s (“Dine by candlelight in the most beautiful nite spot in central Illinois”)

aerial view of the VCC from the early 1950’s (the adjacent 9 hole golf course was opened in 1949):

I need this chip. Cough it up if you have a trader.

The VCC property was put up for auction in February 2012: http://www.sullivanauctioneers.com/02.13.12.Trison/photo.html

Part 2 Havana, IL to follow this post.