Category Archives: Ethnic groups

Ku Klux Klan, 1920s

Posted on March 5, 2014 by editor

The high point of Ku Klux Klan activity in Sangamon County probably was a parade from the Statehouse to the Illinois State Fairgrounds on Oct. 11, 1924. About 2,000 Klan members participated in the march, the Illinois State Journal reported … Continue reading →

Posted in African Americans, Politics, Schools and school districts, Spectacles, State government | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

NAACP Webster Plaque

Posted on January 8, 2014 by editor

The Springfield Branch of the NAACP annually awards its Webster Plaque to “a Black citizen of Springfield, who has contributed toward the uplifting of the Black race in any field of honest endeavor. …” The plaque recognizes Dr. D.E. Webster (1897-1973) and … Continue reading →

Posted in African Americans, Prominent figures | 2 Comments

Jessie Palmer Weber

Posted on January 4, 2014 by editor

Jessie Palmer Weber was Illinois state librarian from 1898 until her death in 1926 and also helped organize and served as the first secretary of the Illinois State Historical Society. She also was involved in creating the Journal of the Illinois … Continue reading →

Posted in African Americans, Education, Prominent figures | Leave a comment

St. Luke’s Episcopal Church

Posted on December 6, 2013 by editor

St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, 1218 South Grand Ave. E., began in 1876 under the name of Lincoln Memorial Chapel, an Episcopal mission directed at former slaves. The mission was short-lived, but local Episcopal bishops Revs. George Seymour and Edward Osborne … Continue reading →

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Springfield School District desegregation order (1976)

Posted on November 19, 2013 by editor

The Rev. Negil McPherson filed suit against the Springfield School District in April 1974, accusing the district of “numerous deliberate actions all of which boiled down to creating, fostering, and maintaining racial and ethnic segregation in the Springfield, Illinois, public … Continue reading →

Posted in African Americans, Education, Local government, Schools and school districts | Tagged , | 3 Comments

The Sugar Bowl restaurants

Posted on November 14, 2013 by editor

Springfield had two Sugar Bowl restaurants, both on South Grand Avenue, which between them lasted from 1919 to 1959. Teddy Gray (1892-1977) was the main operator of the 11th Street and South Grand Sugar Bowl, while Alex Karon (1893-1972) was primarily identified … Continue reading →

Posted in Amusements, Ethnic groups, Greeks, Restaurants, Transportation | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Gertrude Wright

Posted on November 14, 2013 by editor

Gertrude Wright, who was the first African American to graduate from Springfield High School, went on to marry Clement Morgan, a lawyer in Massachusetts. Both Wright Morgan and her husband played prominent roles in W.E.B. Dubois’ Niagara Movement, designed as … Continue reading →

Posted in African Americans, Education, Prominent figures | 3 Comments

Josephine Snowden Meek

Posted on November 11, 2013 by editor

Josephine Snowden Meek was salutatorian of the Springfield High School midwinter graduating class in January 1907; she might well have been valedictorian except that she was black. See Black honor student controversy, 1907.

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Black honor student controversy, 1907

Posted on November 11, 2013 by editor

White students in the January 1907 graduating class at Springfield High School objected when it appeared that two black students, both girls, were in line to become the class’s valedictorian and salutatorian. In a suspiciously sudden reversal of fortune, however, … Continue reading →

Posted in African Americans, Education, Prominent figures, Women | Tagged , | 4 Comments

Judge John Wickliffe Taylor House

Posted on November 9, 2013 by editor

The 20-room Judge John Taylor House built in 1857, housed the Home and Hospital for Fallen Women starting in 1868 and later the Ambidexter Institute, an “industrial school” primarily for African American boys. The Taylor home, 12th and Cass streets … Continue reading →

Posted in African Americans, Architecture, Buildings, Early residents, Historic Sites, Women | Tagged | Leave a comment