Tag Archives: Springfield Survey

Elizabeth Brown Ide

Posted on August 14, 2014 by editor

Elizabeth Brown Ide (1873-1978), who was born into money and married more, could have been merely a socialite. Instead, she became Springfield’s most prominent children’s advocate during the early 20th century. Ide’s parents were Christopher Brown and Caroline Owsley Brown, … Continue reading →

Posted in Children, Medicine, Prominent figures, Public health, Social services, Springfield Survey, Women | Tagged , | 6 Comments

‘Hell at Midnight in Springfield’

Posted on March 31, 2014 by editor

Hell at Midnight in Springfield: or A Burning History of the Sin and Shame of the Capital City of Illinois was a rant against vice, alcohol and, especially, “political Romanism” written by professional anti-Catholic William Lloyd Clark after a visit to Springfield’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and vice, Hotels & taverns, Illinois capital, Law enforcement, Women | Tagged | 2 Comments

The Open Air Colony (Palmer Tuberculosis Sanatorium)

Posted on October 13, 2013 by editor

The Springfield Open Air Colony was a private sanatorium for people suffering from tuberculosis that operated at Chatham Road and Lawrence Avenue from 1913 until about 1953. (This closing date has been corrected.)  The Colony eventually was renamed the Palmer … Continue reading →

Posted in Churches, Public health, Social services, Springfield Survey | Tagged , , , | 19 Comments

School problems, 1914 (Springfield survey photo)

Posted on October 8, 2013 by editor

The Springfield Survey was a massive study of local schools, prisons, and other institutions undertaken in 1914 by the Russell Sage Foundation with the help of hundreds of local volunteers. Topics covered included schools, care of “mental defectives, the insane … Continue reading →

Posted in Children, Education, Schools and school districts, Springfield, Springfield Survey | Tagged | Leave a comment