Known as the home of the Prohibition-era Shelton Brothers Gang, the true heritage of Wayne County, Illinois, is the collective life of its ordinary citizens--their surroundings, activities, and challenges. In 1819, settlers named the county seat Fairfield because there was "no fairer field" than the broad prairie between the timberlands. Villages scattered across the 715-square-mile county attracted families, teachers, doctors, blacksmiths, ministers, and merchandisers. The railroad brought prosperity. Fairfield's opera house, college, woolen mill, stately churches, elegant homes, and packed...