PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD) — Award-winning author Ken Zurski is a longtime broadcaster, author and speaker, who has made Peoria his home over his 19 years here. Zurski is more than a enthusiast when it comes to his knowledge of history, he is what some may refer to as a ‘history buff.’

‘Unremembered 2’ is Zurski’s fourth book. The first two hone in on historical events that have taken place right here in Central Illinois. Zurski takes you through a time machine, featuring stories from as back as the mid 19th century.

‘Peoria Stories’ features a story about Abraham Lincoln’s time as a lawyer in Metamora, Illinois. While, ‘The Wreck of the Columbia’ tells the tragic tale of the ship that collapsed, resulting in eighty-seven people losing their lives in the middle of the Illinois River.

A local publishing company had high praise for his writing.

“Over the last six years, [Zurski] has proven himself to be a remarkable historian, storyteller and writer,” said Peoria Magazines following the release of ‘Unremembered’, which was the first book of this series.

Unremembered‘ was given an honorable mention award from the international book website ‘Readers favorite’, in the category of non-fiction-adventure. This year, ‘Unremembered 2’ is also up for nomination, however this time it’s in the non-fiction-drama category.

Zurski discussed with WMBD this drive behind bringing these forgotten stories back to life, as well as the possibility of a third book in the ‘Unremembered’ series.

“You can go so many places with this series, you can do war stories, you can do sports stories, the possibilities are endless. My goal is to be able to tell history in a different way,” said Zurski.

Zurski’s books can be found online here.