Category Archives: Education

Ridgely Elementary School, 1914-1926 (Marguerite Soma memories)

Posted on October 30, 2017 by editor

In 1997, students at Ridgely Elementary School, 2040 N. Eighth St., interviewed former Ridgely teacher Marguerite Beechler Soma (1894-1997). Her reminiscences were compiled and published on the school’s Alumni Day web site (in fact, the site was dedicated to her). … Continue reading →

Posted in Children, Education, Histories, Schools and school districts, Women | 2 Comments

Patrick Henry statue, St. Joseph School

Posted on September 29, 2017 by editor

The mystery of what happened to St. Joseph School’s statue of Patrick Henry may never be solved. But the question of how a life-sized marble sculpture of a Protestant patriot happened to stand above the entrance of a Catholic school … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Arts and letters, Buildings, Churches, Education, Schools and school districts | Leave a comment

Annie Rheem Hannon (first woman elected to public office)

Posted on April 16, 2017 by editor

The first woman to hold an elective office in Sangamon County was Annie Rheem Hannon (1857-1945), who served from 1892 to 1894 as county superintendent of schools – a position for which neither she, nor any other woman, could cast … Continue reading →

Posted in Education, Local government, Politics, Prominent figures, Sangamon County, Women | Leave a comment

Lincoln Land Community College founded, 1967

Posted on February 14, 2017 by editor

Lincoln Land Community College held its first classes on Sept. 23, 1968, in temporary buildings on a temporary site. Even the name was temporary. LLCC – officially known as Lincoln Land Junior College until two weeks after classes began –was … Continue reading →

Posted in Education, First Citizens, Higher education, Local government, Prominent figures, Schools and school districts | Leave a comment

Edith Martin, teacher & heroine

Posted on February 7, 2017 by editor

Teacher Edith Martin may have saved 30 children by forcing them out a second-story window as flames consumed Thayer’s Caldwell School on Feb. 16, 1903. An Illinois State Register special correspondent described the rescues in a highly colored account published … Continue reading →

Posted in Buildings, Children, Education, Fires, Schools and school districts | Leave a comment

Ridgely School fire, 1916

Posted on February 3, 2017 by editor

Regular fire drills were credited with saving the lives of an unknown number of children when Ridgely School caught fire in the middle of classes on Nov. 15, 1916. The blaze began when sparks from the school’s coal furnace flew … Continue reading →

Posted in Buildings, Children, Disasters, Education, Fires, Schools and school districts | Leave a comment

Springfield High School explosions, 1932

Posted on October 24, 2016 by editor

Two firefighters and a janitor were killed when mystery explosions wrecked a storeroom at Springfield High School on March 20, 1932. A total of 13 people were injured by the blasts, which were never fully explained. The school’s night watchman … Continue reading →

Posted in Disasters, Education, Schools and school districts | Leave a comment

Pawnee High School fire, 1958

Posted on November 8, 2015 by editor

Pawnee High School was demolished by a fire on Feb. 24, 1958, that was ignited by a student attempting to break into the school’s vault. Frank Carlos Ewing Jr., 15, admitted to Sangamon County sheriff’s investigators that he broke into … Continue reading →

Posted in Buildings, Communities, Crime and vice, Disasters, Education, Law enforcement | 13 Comments

Divernon school photos, 1920s

Posted on November 8, 2015 by editor

The above photos of Divernon school students were provided by John Faber. Students’ identifications (except for a few relatives of Mr. Faber) are not available. Divernon opened its first school in 1887, but school enrollment began to jump after the … Continue reading →

Posted in Coal mines and mining, Communities, Education, Photos and photosets, Schools and school districts | Leave a comment

Hay-Edwards School (1914-2000)

Posted on August 27, 2015 by editor

The former Hay-Edwards School, for which redevelopment plans were announced in August 2015, got its name from a former mayor and school board chairman and a prominent Springfield family. Charles Hay (1841-1916), a brother of President Abraham Lincoln’s secretary (and later … Continue reading →

Posted in Education, Local government, Prominent figures, Schools and school districts | Leave a comment