Documentary on ‘iconic’ Richland Creek to premiere at Lincoln Theatre in Belleville

Teri Maddox
·3 min read

Richland Creek has a “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” reputation in the metro-east communities it runs through.

That’s according to Mike Quirin, a retiree who has spent the past three years trying to drum up interest in the “urban” stretch of the creek, which begins at Three Springs Park in Shiloh and runs through Swansea and Belleville on its way to the Kaskaskia River.

The Mr. Hyde part is the serious damage done to buildings, vehicles, parks and other property during floods and the dangers related to periodic dumping of sewage and chemicals. One of the worst floods hit in 1957.

The Dr. Jekyll part? The creek’s natural beauty, places for quiet reflection, plants, animals and fish.

“When I was a kid growing up in Belleville, the creek always had fish in it,” said Quirin, 69. “I can remember looking down and seeing 3-, 4- and 5-pound catfish swimming in the creek.”

Quirin is founder of Richland Creek Improvement Association, a Facebook-based organization with 226 followers.

The association will premiere a 25-minute documentary called “Richland Creek: A Stream in Transition” at noon Saturday, April 29, at the Lincoln Theatre in downtown Belleville. Admission is free.

“We’re not aggressively going after anyone (on the creek’s problems),” Quirin said. “It simply reports a little bit about the history, a lot about today and a little bit about what the future holds.”

Mike Quirin, founder of Richland Creek Improvement Association, shows a young fishing enthusiast a hand-painted paddle at a scavenger hunt that the organization hosted last year.
Mike Quirin, founder of Richland Creek Improvement Association, shows a young fishing enthusiast a hand-painted paddle at a scavenger hunt that the organization hosted last year.

Quirin worked with Eastern Illinois University journalism instructor Joe Astrouski to produce the documentary, which mostly consists of interviews with scientists and local officials.

Quirin and Astrouski plan to ask Nine PBS, the public TV station in St. Louis, to broadcast the documentary.

“Working on this project really helped me appreciate Richland Creek and just what it has to offer,” said Astrouski, who has also worked as a TV reporter. “There’s really beauty along the creek, and I think many of us have take it for granted or haven’t taken the time to notice what we have.”

People who attend the premiere can view 26 wooden fishing paddles that will be given away as prizes on May 21 as part of Richland Creek Improvement Association’s second-annual scavenger hunt. Each paddle features a hand-painted image by an area artist.

Jack LeChien, chairman of Belleville’s Historic Preservation Commission, applauds the association’s effort to keep the creek and its banks clean and to educate the public.

“Richland Creek is an iconic part of Belleville in the same sense as Stag beer, the Public Square fountain and Scott Air Force Base,” he said. “It played an important role in its history. It was the dividing line between West Belleville and the original town of Belleville.”

LeChien noted that George Deeke, a German immigrant who grew up in Belleville from 1849 to 1865, wrote of swimming in Richland Creek in the summer and ice skating in the winter.

In 1854, a distillery owner who drew water from the creek sued another distillery owner upstream for allowing waste from his hogs to pollute the water.

“He lost the lawsuit,” LeChien said.

Over the years, Richland Creek has flooded buildings, vehicles, parks and other property in metro-east communities that it runs through. One of the most serious floods occurred in 1957.
Over the years, Richland Creek has flooded buildings, vehicles, parks and other property in metro-east communities that it runs through. One of the most serious floods occurred in 1957.

In recent years, Quirin has been involved in several fish surveys conducted by crews from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources Division of Fisheries in response to a “fish kill” several years ago.

That term refers to the widespread killing of fish due to dumping or other environmental factors.

The state also has enlisted the help of McKendree University and other college students with some of the surveys. Recent findings have brought good news, according to Quirin.

“(The creek) is doing great,” he said. “We usually find at least 20 species of fish, and we’re finding darters, which only live in very clean water.”

For more information on the premiere of “Richland Creek: A Stream in Transition,” or the scavenger hunt, visit the Richland Creek Improvement Association’s Facebook page.

Richland Creek Improvement Association will give away 26 wooden fishing paddles hand-painted by local artists during its second-annual scavenger hunt on May 21 along Richland Creek.
Richland Creek Improvement Association will give away 26 wooden fishing paddles hand-painted by local artists during its second-annual scavenger hunt on May 21 along Richland Creek.