How a Treasurer Ruined a Small Town in Illinois

[@ChrisHarden]

Illinois Playlist: kzbin.info/www/bejne/ep6bYqykjNuIqa8 USA Small Cities Playlist: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jmbXapScl6p6f8U ==================================================================== EVERYTHING THAT I USE IN THE FIELD: Main Camera: amzn.to/3iS4vvF Side Cameras: amzn.to/2WuCYIs Media Mod for Camera: amzn.to/3j7CMGF Lav Mic: amzn.to/3lsMkz9 Drone: amzn.to/3ITcKBV SD Cards: amzn.to/3C2co9O Camera Mounts: amzn.to/2UXVR6p Cables Required for Longer Recordings: amzn.to/3BYnr3Q Computer: amzn.to/3787b2j External Hard Drive: amzn.to/3lb23Tf WHAT I USE AT HOME: Computer: amzn.to/3rKIdiN Sound Mixer: amzn.to/3C15Ubx Microphone: amzn.to/2VaCjvo Microphone Accessories: amzn.to/3v7A35Z INTERACTIVE MAP that shows you all of the places that I've made videos on: (Doesn't always work on mobile devices. Will always work on PC.) www.google.com/maps/d/u/2/edit?hl=en&mid=1Lhzf04ocimPu-ROkg4cfXEYEvKMNnlI5&ll=43.06219876674538%2C-83.82163216337808&z=10 SOCIAL MEDIA & CONTACT INFO: Email: [e-mail] On Twitter: twitter.com/Chris_Harden55 On Instagram: instagram.com/c_harden7/?... On Facebook: facebook.com/ChrisHardenYT/ DISCLAIMER: Links included in this description might be affiliate links. If you purchase a product or service with the links that I provide I may receive a small commission. There is no additional charge to you. As an Amazon Associate I do earn a small commission on qualifying purchases. As always, thank you for supporting my channel!

[@j.philiplarson2064]

Been through Dixon many times including Ronal Reagans birthday in 1984. I am a photographer and I had access to the press stand across the street from where he gave a speech. I was surprised by the knowledge his security had as they went through my camera bag. They knew who I was as I approached them and welcomed me. I was living in Rockford at the time and to this day I still don't know how they knew my name. Another connection I have with President Reagan is that my uncle worked with him in radio back in the day. My uncle became a minister, and also had a beautiful tenor voice and was a very talented artist. One of his paintings resides in the Reagan Library!

[@JDale56]

In regards to that criminal you mentioned; her family actually bought much of the property that was auctioned off - wonder where they got the cash?

[@NicCageCDXX]

She also got released to her brother's 80 acre farm (in Dixon, no less, because apparently shame is not something she's capable of feeling) after serving just 8.5 years of her sentence

[@creative-name5279]

@@NicCageCDXX She still lives in Dixon? Does she get a lot of visitors I wonder?

[@paulabarch5065]

She's out? Really? Wow. Is she wearing 1800$ boots? DIXON illinois, did you hire a team of accountants? No? You're back in the weeds, Dixon.

[@loralorraine5171]

Never thought I would see Dixon on youtube… you driving through town is what I do for fun… almost the same path too😂

[@glennso47]

The Dixon Correction Center was formerly a state school for the mentally handicapped. My one brother spent most of his adult life there before the state made it into a prison. My parents and I would visit him on Sunday afternoon until my parents couldn’t go there anymore due to age. Dixon has some sad memories for me.

[@brainerdboy1177]

Yes, Glenn, I remember that about Dixon as well. Sorry to hear about your brother. I will keep you in my prayers.

[@glennso47]

@@brainerdboy1177 Actually it was when I had to join the navy during Vietnam that I never saw him again until just a few years ago when he was in the Rockford Memorial hospital with his last illness before he died. The doctors actually starved him to death much like they did with Terry Shiavo several years before. The institution that he spent his last years in was in Another part of Dixon. The place had a nice get together to celebrate his life. It was difficult for me to see his remains in a little jug on a table after he had been cremated. He was 65 when he passed away but he had the intellect of a little child. The staff led in the children’s hymn “Jesus Loves Me. The Bible Tells Me So. “ His one earthly treasure was a doll made of socks.it was given to his sister who still has it. It has also been difficult for me to go anywhere near Rockford Memorial Hospital (now Mercy Health) .

[@tellurye]

*FUN FACT* : Yeah, Reagan really did love his hometown. So much so, as he starred in the movie Hasty Heart, Reagan played a WW2 veteran. While talking to a Scottsman, the line called for Reagan to say "I just cant wait to get home to Boston". He asked the director if he could change that to "I cant wait to get back to the Rock River, in Dixon" and it was granted. The Rock River is where Reagan worked as a lifeguard in the 1920's, credited with saving 77 lives.

[@ronnyrono782]

I am a 73 year old man. I am in my kitchen dancing to this crazy spiffy music. Yeah baby yeah

[@johnriesinger]

Yes I remember this woman quite well. Her love for horses. Certainly Out shines her love for the people of Dixon.

[@barbaraallen7164]

'All the Queens Horses'. I believe you can watch it on KZbin.

[@charleykeenan6171]

Your comments rock! Another great video - catching these moments in time of small town America are awesome! I appreciate the work!

[@chrishines4968]

I graduated from that high school I remember going to white pines skating rink

[@craignovy2090]

The care and pretrip hard work and research done before the video was made pay off in seeing and understandings why the community is as it is. The incredibly beautiful drone footage at the end is very artistic. Two extremely important topics that are destructive to communities are wisely explored that being corruption and drug abuse. The way money is handled is far more important than is generally realized which is captured here. The observations about drug abuse are spot on! I have never seen by any producer such ability to demonstrate, narrate, enlighten and entertain all at once.

[@jeffammons912]

I interviewed for a prosecutor position in Lee County once. There is indeed a "new" courthouse there, which I was able to find, even though nobody bothered to tell me the courthouse moved ahead of the interview.

[@danielsentertainmentproduc1527]

Man I love the taste of rural America

[@OmahaWayne]

Great video man, thank you.

[@tellurye]

Phenomenal job! Thanks so much for this video!

[@matthewkitzmiller]

Nice bookends of a great sunrise and sunset to start and end the video. I think your editing and style is always getting better.

[@ChrisHarden]

Thanks, I’ll probably never be apart of a set for any Hollywood movie production but I’m always looking at ways to make better videos.

[@glennso47]

Dixon grows petunias along the streets in downtown.

[@PrairieMidwester]

Love your videos, Chris.

[@glennso47]

I was a victim of bullying when I was a kid but I don’t remember hurting anyone. Except myself due to feeling like I was trash.

[@larryfischer2972]

A pleasant cruise for an early Saturday morning when I am watching this, with some jazzy background music. Where would we be without criminals.

[@sophie-ip3oc]

i live here! you drove past my aunts old house :)

[@sophie-ip3oc]

also my brother was in the shooting, luckily he wasn’t hurt..

[@ChrisHarden]

Glad he and everyone else was safe

[@57270100]

Well, since I can’t go with my husband trucking anymore, because I don’t own class 1 driving license and the border being closed, I’ll watch your videos, and you got pretty decent music to listen to. Haha 😄

[@westfester859]

Great video, as Jon stated, how does that much cash disappear for that long. A supposed victimless crime probably affected 10s of thousands for heartless greed. Keep that camera rolling.

[@jonbystrom9410]

The bank was in on it, but not prosecuted. How does someone deposit $54 million and not raise questions?

[@ChrisHarden]

Maybe, but the bank could’ve been just as naive as everyone else. The bank account was listed as the “reserve sewerage development capital account”. (RSDCA) The 54 million occurred through over 150 deposits over a time period of 29 years. At first, she started off slow with small deposits like 25k, and overtime the individual amounts of the deposits grew bigger and bigger. You might be right but I could see it either way. She was very manipulative.

[@glennso47]

@@ChrisHarden as are a lot of people in politics. In fact I got so disenchanted with the election system that I unregistered as a voter after the 2020 election.

[@ChrisHarden]

Don’t blame you.

[@glennso47]

@@ChrisHarden I supported a candidate in the 2020 election. She lost. But she’s running again in 2022. I got a plea for donations to her campaign. I had to write and tell her that I’m no longer a registered voter and it was because of being so turned off by the 2020 election that it might take a miracle from God to make me want to vote again. I really like her and what she wants to accomplish if elected, but I can’t support anyone right now. Her name is Esther Joy King and she is Running for Congress in Illinois 17th district.

[@chooch1995]

The auditors were in on it. A handful of bad actors.

[@jlloyd4771]

Excellent!

[@blackbelt2000]

I remember that treasurer being in the news regarding her embezzlement. I really think that if you are going into politics, you should already be assumed to be guilty of corruption and you need to prove to the taxpayers that your are not...everyday.

[@ChrisHarden]

Haha not a bad idea.

[@RJEngle1]

She was shown on American Greed. What a piece of work she was. She only got caught because she went on vacation and her stand-in discovered the fraud.

[@brentvance9090]

Haha, I love the poke at the comment trolls. LOL

[@CynthiaMalkmus]

I have been to dixon many times throughout the years recently it seems to be looking much better then 20 years ago. Would love to see something on origon il.

[@chicagofan76]

I've never been to Dixon, But I have driven past it several times over the years. I have been to eureka So I need to watch that video too soon. Good video Unfortunate I do agree with your demon voice at times.

[@creative-name5279]

I'm just glad Dixon is still such a nice town despite the embezzlement scandal. I've driven through there before and the route between Dixon and Oregon is one of my favorite drives.

[@pamdobran5754]

just before the old court house on right , the new court house is on your right

[@vr6swp]

$53.7 million. Holy cow.

[@willbygosh4887]

I know Dixon has an abandoned swimming pool built in the 1950s that Reagan actually attended the grand opening,he was a lifeguard at a riverside swimming area back in the late 20's but back to that abandoned pool,it closed and was never rebuilt probably due to the lack of funding because of that embezzlement,sad for the kids there.

[@glennso47]

What was the large industrial looking place at 37:55?

[@OmahaWayne]

there is nothing at 37.55 except the end of the video

[@alternativeopinions5349]

In small towns it's not hard for the police to spot junkies and arrest them.

[@feltongailey8987]

You can tell that there is still a lot of civic pride overall in this town. Beautiful old homes, cared for and yards kept neat and clean. I have lived in the deep South my entire life and while, there are many beautiful areas (parts of Mobile, AL and Athens, GA are breathtaking), there is a great deal of generational poverty which tends to bleed over into the communities at large and affect peoples vision for these areas and also whole towns. And as these cities/towns continue to lose population, complacency evolves and spills over into areas traditionally revered for their beauty and "tidiness". Interestingly, perhaps, is that the town which I reside (Prichard, AL), just came to grips with our own internal scandal, as the manager of the water and gas dept. was arrested (along with her husband I believe) for embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars of city monies. The couple used this money to purchase hundreds of pairs of "elite" sneakers and designer purses. This along with lavish vacations and the like. I believe they are "cooling their heels" in separate cells currently.

[@willgrellosbelts8695]

6:08 is that Family Video still open?

[@Lonemacaroon]

As a resident that lives just outside of Dixon sadly no and it become a smoke shop

[@glennso47]

The Walgreens Drug Store chain started with Mr Walgreens drug store in Dixon.

[@dorianmarch5811]

Lewiston when?

[@michaelmcelrath8536]

hey NT i think a movie was also made there not for sure and one of the episodes of Hoarders was filmed in i think piken not for sure but the show did do some in Illinois

[@ChrisHarden]

Looked like a town that’s full of hoarders! (Jk people)

[@ASAManifesto]

@@ChrisHarden lol

[@glennso47]

There doesn’t seem to be much of a downtown in Dixon. Just like most other places around here. All the amenities are on The edges of the city.

[@Marioheat24]

I heard she got released out

[@latashaharvin618]

She should have used some of the money to get rid of all of the wrinkles on her face. Look at her mugshot.

[@glennso47]

Savanna Illinois has a celebration in the summer called The Shadfly Festival. You talk about quirky? 🤨Savanna is nearby to Dixon along the Mississippi River.

[@glennso47]

No doubt Crudwell was a big reason for the town shrinking.

[@taverill1]

Go to Shelbyville and sullivan Illinois

[@user-vg6vx9ve7j]

One of the episodes on American Greed CNBC did a story about Dixon. That woman isn't the only one in Illinois that davestates their community every community in Illinois is horrible. That will happen over and over and over in Illinois forever. It's in their DNA it's Illinois. I grew up in St Clair and Madison counties IL across from St Louis. I'm a lucky one that got out alive I hate Illinois Do a video about Kankakee IL because that town has ex Illinois governors that call Kankakee home. Kankakee reminds me of Cop Land in Garrison New Jersey the Sylvester Stallone movie 🎥🍿. Dexter Lombardo 🧔🤠

[@josword7602]

18:25 just inside those doors was the Dixon School shooting 3 years ago..... 28:50 on the left is the NEW Court house you didn't get downtown or the hospital....

[@ChrisHarden]

I didn’t go anywhere in Downtown Dixon?

[@josword7602]

@@ChrisHarden You got part of it, when you say driving circles you mean it lol you drove Peoria Ave, Galena Ave, River St.and W.2nd St. the main part of downtown is from Peoria west toward the hospital. You said you wanted to come back here so you can do a update, I'm sure if you post on Facebook someone will go with you that know more than I do.

[@chronocross7174]

I bet you Crundwell's family packed and left the state

[@brentroscoe9922]

Did anybody ever wonder why a woman so rich was working

[@rampage230]

Poplar grove IL plzzzzz

[@johnsmallberries3476]

What's up with all the "peace" signs? I wonder what the story is with the abandoned railroad bridge. Heh....clowns ARE creepy. Lots of these little towns have Family Video stores...interesting.

[@glennso47]

Family Video stores in Rockford and Loves Park are both closed.

[@billg6166]

Why is this "....Woman Treasurer...?" Why does the title advertise the perp's sex?

[@williamruiz3533]

Did not enjoy this video and did not learn a damn thing!

[@onceuponabobby5538]

Are you sure a slight negativity perhaps of another source other than Dixon. I’m calling foul ball on this one... sorry Nostalgia you’re burnt. I’m moving there!haha