Roald Tweet
Writer and Narrator of 'Rock Island Lines'Beginning 1995, historian and folklorist Dr. Roald Tweet spun his stories of the Mississippi Valley to a devoted audience on WVIK. Dr. Tweet published three books as well as numerous literary articles and recorded segments of "Rock Island Lines." His inspiration was that "kidney-shaped limestone island plunked down in the middle of the Mississippi River," a logical site for a storyteller like Dr. Tweet.
It was from Rock Island’s rich heritage that Dr. Tweet spun his histories, biographies and "stretchers." Among his favorite topics were railroads and riverboats, which he combined on a CD in celebration of the Grand Excursion in 2004. "Rock Island Lines with Roald Tweet" received awards from the Illinois Historical Society as well as the Towner Award from the Illinois Humanities Council.
Dr. Tweet was professor emeritus, retired from the Augustana College English department, where he was professor and Conrad Bergendoff Chair in the Humanities. A writer and radio personality, Dr. Tweet was also an accomplished woodcarver and whittler.
Dr. Tweet left us in November of 2020, but his legacy lives on. You can hear many of his Rock Island Lines in podcast form here and also in a forthcoming book from WVIK and East Hall Press.
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CommunityThis is Roald Tweet on Rock Island.In real life, there sometimes is such a thing as a straw that breaks the camel's back. For downtown Rock Island, that…
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CommunityThis is Roald Tweet on Rock Island.If there is a rich heart of the heart of the Illinois prairie, it would be Henry County just south of here. In the…
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CommunityThis is Roald Tweet on Rock Island.Are you one of those kids whose parents went off to Disney World and all you got was this lousy T-shirt that announced…
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CommunityThis is Roald Tweet on Rock Island.The august members of the Davenport Academy of Natural Sciences who met in June of 1869 to vote on the membership of…
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CommunityThis is Roald Tweet on Rock Island.Are you a stressed-out parent who wonders how you are going to get son number one to play practice on time and still…
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CommunityThis is Roald Tweet on Rock Island.Did you ever wonder as a kid what you would do if the world came to an end as you sat in the fifth row of the Crown…
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CommunityThis is Roald Tweet on Rock Island.Henry David Thoreau advised the readers of Walden to be tolerant of those who live outside the norm. "Perhaps they hear…
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CommunityThis is Roald Tweet on Rock Island.Take out a pencil and a piece of paper. A short quiz will do more than just my words to increase your respect for Tom…
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CommunityThis is Roald Tweet on Rock Island.Between St. Paul, Minnesota, and St. Louis, Missouri, the Upper Mississippi River once planted a hundred towns beneath…
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CommunityThis is Roald Tweet on Rock Island.In those quiet moments of reflection, sitting in your kitchen as the sun rises and the coffee finishes perking, what…