SHELBINA – A former president of the Shelby County Historical Society has been accused of mismanagement and misconduct, according to a civil petition filed April 1 in Shelby County Circuit Court.

Three Shelby County Historical Society board members have accused former society president and longtime volunteer Kathleen Wilham, 82, of Shelbina, of allegedly sanctioning historical artifacts from the society museum, destroying artifacts, misusing assets, and breaking and entering into the SCHS museum.

The petition also claims that Wilham broke into the SCHS Society Museum with the help of Sen. Cindy O’ Laughlin, the Shelby County Sheriff and Shelby County Prosecuting Attorney.

According to unofficial court documents, Wilham is being accused of mishandling Shelby County Historical Society property and putting the assets of the society “at significant risk.”

Wilham is a long-time member of the society who has been volunteering for the society for over 40 years, having held the seat as president for a while until her resignation in July of 2024.

According to unofficial court documents, the board claims after Wilham’s resignation as president they were made aware of several instances of Wilham misusing historical society property and assets, which even after her resignation, has continued on during her time volunteering at the society.

The board is accusing Wilham of sanctioning historical artifacts from the society to other historical societies in the area without the board’s knowledge or permission.

The board believes Wilham has either moved, destroyed, or gifted several boxes worth of artifacts within the last six months, and claims to have received confirmation from both the Monroe County Historical Society and the Ralls County Historical Society that artifacts from SCHS were delivered to them by Wilham or by others who were assigned to do so by Wilham.

According to the petition, Wilham attempted to deliver more boxes of artifacts to the Monroe County Historical Society on March 6 and again on March 31.

In addition to the confirmation from other societies, the SCHS board claims that Wilham cleaned out numerous filing cabinets, destroyed a valuable book shelf that was donated by The Shelby County School district, and also failed to insure the historical museum property for 10 months while it was being built, thus violating her fiduciary duty as president and construction coordinator at the time.

In addition to destruction of artifacts, the SCHS board also claims Wilham routinely positioned the indoor security cameras so that there would not be any recordings of the conduct going on while she was in the museum building.

Further on in the petition, Wilhem is not only being accused of misusing SCHS property, but also misusing monetary assets of the society.

According to unofficial court documents, the board claims that Wilham unilaterally approved the costs of the destruction of a church in Lentner, Missouri, that belongs to her “hairdresser’s husband.” Wilham allegedly ordered SCHS to pay $10,000 for the demolition of the church and even signed the contract herself without board approval.

In addition, Wilham also allegedly used employees of the museum to clean her personal residence while being paid by the society.

In order to protect the historical museum and society assets, the board decided to have the locks changed on the building to keep Wilham from entering the premises and removing more assets.

According to the unofficial court documentation, Wilham notified the board via email that Sen. Cindy O’Laughlin of the 18th District of Missouri, coupled with lawyer John Russel, Sheriff Fredrickson, and Shelby County Prosecuting Attorney Jordan Force, helped her reopen the museum by hiring a locksmith and changing the locks back so she could gain access again.

This statement was demonstrated in evidence provided to the court via a copy of an email that Wilham had sent to all board members on March 22.

The SCHS Board was later informed by counsel that the sheriff and prosecuting attorney did not assist or approve the actions of Wilham, however it was implied that O’Laughlin and counsel were present the day the locks were changed back.

In a statement issued to the Moberly Monitor-Index on April 1, O’Laughlin claims the whole situation is based on internal issues between board members that are “personality driven.” O’Laughlin admitted to being partially involved because she is friends with Wilham and Wilham came to her for help.

“I encouraged her [Wilham] to try and reach some sort of resolution with the board member who she disagrees with. That didn’t work,” said O’Laughlin. ”My involvement was supporting and trying to reach an agreement. Ultimately the 82-year- old woman [Wilham] hired a locksmith and changed the locks back. My involvement was simply trying to broker a deal.”

When asked by the Moberly Monitor-Index on April 2 about whether or not she was present at the historical society museum the day that Wilhem had the locks changed back, O’Laughlin responded by saying: “I really have nothing more to add…this is some kind of personal issue between the board members that I have not been able to unravel. It is very unfortunate.”

However, the email Wilham sent the board implies that O’Laughlin helped reopen the facility. The email also reveals Wilham stating that the security systems in the museum need replacement and that bylaws will need to be changed so a new board election can be held sooner than October 2025.

Photo evidence circulating on social media shows Wilham inside the Historical Center attempting to poke at a security camera with a long wooden implement, thus suggesting she was trying to remove or shift the camera in some way. However, O’Laughlin was not present on the camera footage.

Other members of the SCHS board declined to comment on the situation due to the current litigation in place.

Muddy River News out of Illinois reached out to Wilham about the situation and she told them that her title with the historical society is “museum curator,” a position she has held since 1988.

“I’ve got a lawyer, and that’s John Russell,” she said. “And Cindy O’Laughlin is supporting me. She’ll be a good spokesperson.”

MRN went on to report that Wilham ended their two-minute conversation by saying, “I think I better close off now. You know, I’ve been told not to talk to the media.”

In the petition, it is stated that there is “significant concern as to the safety of the assets of the society.” The board believes that Wilham’s actions have jeopardized the tax exempt and non-profit status of the society therefore they have requested for “injunctive relief” and a temporary restraining order that asks the following:

Wilham and her associates are barred from accessing historical society property; Removed materials for the Museum be returned The disabled security system be replaced Wilham be prohibited from representing or working on behalf of the society.

The board is also asking the court to authorize the election of the historical society’s officers and directors, claiming they were elected to their positions after Wilham’s resignation last July.

The petition goes on to say that Wilham’s resignation in July of last year was due to questions that were asked of her regarding the construction and costs of the new historical society facility.

In unofficial court documentation, Wilham and her counsel contend the election of members was improperly conducted because the historical society’s constitution and bylaws call for the annual meeting to be held every year in October.

The other board members and their counsel claim they were not aware of the bylaws and constitution prior to Oct. 4, 2024. They further claim that while Wilham was president, she failed to provide necessary copies of documentation for the proper administration of their outlined duties despite her involvement in “working for the society for decades.”

The construction of the new Historical Society building was completed recently, and an open house was held earlier this year, yet the building has not officially opened because of a lack of handicapped accessibility.

A majority of the funding for the construction of the new historical society came from the wills of two longtime members of the Shelby County Historical Society.

Wilham was issued a summons April 1 to appear at the Shelby County Circuit Courthouse in Shelbyville. As of yet, no official dates have been set.

Several community members have taken to social media to voice their concerns about the situation, with many hoping for transparency and clarity on the preservation of historical artifacts that are donated to the society and placing trust in the integrity of how the society is being managed.