14. “
”
By the aid of perfected garden tools onions can now be raised with so little
trouble that even school teachers and their pupils are picking up all odds
and ends of vacant lands lying around and raise onions for profit with
much success. Mt. Prospect public school gardens, under the direction of
Miss Rickard, produced in 1918 a crop of onion sets that totaled $1,128.27.
Mt. Budlong of H. H. Chester Company would not bother with these many
small contracts if it were not for the excellent quality of sets produced by
the children. They follow instructions to the letter and have no notions of
their own.
-The Daily Herald
March 28, 1919
17. “
”
The Box Social Friday evening was a great
success. The program turned out very well and
was complimented by many. We realized $21.90
from the sale of boxes and a friend helped the
good cause by making it $22.00. We hope to be
able to exhibit new shades, water cooler and other
school-room supplies soon.
-The Daily Herald,
April 4, 1914
22. “
”
Come one and all, big and small, to the Mt.
Prospect school house, at 7:30 p.m., Monday, Dec.
18. You will see more than 100 stereoscopicon
views, some in the finest of colors. You will hear a
fine talk on the lives of Geo. Washington,
Abraham Lincoln and Wm. McKinley.
- The Daily Herald
Dec. 15, 1905
23. “
”
Educational Lecture illustrated by 150 fine Stereopticon Views
show on 200 feet of canvas by wonderful calcium light. A trip
through the Rocky mountains, views of the Holy Land, England,
Scotland and other places of interest. Scientific views of the Moon
and Stars. The formation of Coal, Giant Glaciers, etc. Songs and
stories for the children, Famous Indians and Scenes of Wild West
Life. Many comic pictures full of funny surprises. The lecturer is
principal of a Cook County school and has traveled over much of
Europe and America, will be at Mt. Prospect School house, May 19,
7:30 p.m. Admission 15 cents. One-half of proceeds for benefit of
school.
- The Daily Herald
May 4, 1906
31. “
”
Arbor day was observed at Mt. Prospect school, which is taught by
Miss Mattie R. Perkins of Bloomington. A fine [program] of songs,
recitations, etc. was rendered by the pupils. The patrons of the
district were present and showed much interest. Fourteen hard
maple trees were set out, besides some shrubbery. It is to be hoped
that the coming generations may enjoy the shade of these trees and
thank their ancestors for planting them.
-The Daily Herald
April 22, 1899
Over the past decade, the discourse on the schoolhouse has surrounded the relocation and renovation of the building, as you are all very well aware. We talk about how we need to complete its restoration in time for the Centennial in 2017. We talk about how it will be available to schools for field trips and to the community as a rental venue. We know that it was originally located at the corner of Central Rd. and Main St. and that it was built in 1896 by William Wille. We also know that upon its construction, SD 57 was established. It was the first public school in Mount Prospect. It was moved in 1933 to Main St. and Thayer to become a part of St. John’s Episcopal Church. And of course, we know that it was moved to 103 S. Maple Street in 2008 by the Historical Society.
It was the building in which the Fire Department, Women’s Club and Library were established. The Campfire Girls and Boy Scouts congregated there. And of course, the Village itself was incorporated inside the schoolroom. These are all things that many of us already know.
But so much more happened in our little schoolhouse. Tonight I am going to show you some of the things that have been overlooked that make Central School a truly special building. I want to take you back in time to experience the schoolhouse as it was. How did the community view it? How did the children feel about it? How was it recognized beyond the Village’s borders?
At the turn of the century, Mount Prospect, although still a farm town, was gaining momentum as a developing community. At this point in its history, it boasted a train station, two taverns, two general stores, a post office, one creamery, a church and a blacksmith. All of these entities were vital components in transforming Mount Prospect from a sparsely populated farming town, to an industry driven suburb.
There was another building that was erected during this time that also heavily contributed to Mount Prospect’s progression. The Mount Prospect Public School, or as we call it today, Central School.
The idea of having a public school in Mount Prospect was spurred by William Busse and William Wille. William Wille took it upon himself to make sure the schoolhouse had cloak rooms for both the boys and the girls. The school was originally located at the southeast corner of Rt. 83 and Central Rd. It faced west. The very first teacher was Mary Cooley.
This shows the schoolhouse at its original location at the southeast corner of Main St. and Central Rd. It faced west.
The is the class in 1898- two years after the schoolhouse was built.
Today, teachers and students alike celebrate the coming of June and the end to another school year. I remember when I was in grade school, we always had a field day where we would go to an offsite park and play games like Frisbee or tug-of-war. We would have our lunch there instead of in the cafeteria. It was always a really special day.
Well, 100 years ago they did the exact same thing here in Mount Prospect. Mount Prospect Public School would have a picnic to celebrate the end of the school year and the beginning of summer. Today, the end of the year celebrations are exclusive to the students, teachers and sometimes parents. Whereas 100 years ago, these picnics extended the invitation to the entire community.
Even the Mt. Prospect Citizens Band was invited to play music for entertainment.
The school picnic likely consisted of food, games and socialization. It was a kick off to the summer and an end to another successful year of education. What’s not to celebrate?
Their picnics consisted of the same food that we regard as picnic food today. Things like sandwiches, fruit, cheese, bread, lemonade, tea and water.
At the 1909 school picnic, they had a tug-of-war competition between the first and second precinct. The second precinct won.
In June 1916, Mount Prospect Public School hosted the annual school festival for seven villages and districts, and about 300 people. The County Superintendant Edward J. Tobin was there, along with some of his colleagues to supervise.
There was a lot of pressure on the schoolhouse as it was a reflection on the community as a whole. It was important to illustrate the success of the students, as well as the teacher. The festival consisted of exercises, contests and games. They even played a game of baseball. Their garden of about 1.5 acres received favorable attention.
During WWI, communities across America were strongly encouraged to raise their own food, so that there would be enough to feed the troops overseas. Mount Prospect participated in this nation-wide war effort. Individual families, churches and schools all grew their own fruits and vegetables. The routine of having a small garden remained even after the war. The students of Central School grew sets of onions to raise money for their school.
The article reads:
“By the aid of perfected garden tools onions can now be raised with so little trouble that even school teachers and their pupils are picking up all odds and ends of vacant lands lying around and raise onions for profit with much success. Mt. Prospect public school gardens, under the direction of Miss Rickard, produced in 1918 a crop of onion sets that totaled $1,128.27. Mt. Budlong of H. H. Chester Company would not bother with these many small contracts if it were not for the excellent quality of sets produced by the children. They follow instructions to the letter and have no notions of their own.”
This is the class of 1918. Look at the smiles on their faces. They look proud and happy to be students of Mount Prospect public school.
Organizing fundraisers for non-profit organizations, specifically for our one-room schoolhouse, is nothing new to Mount Prospect. In the early 1900s, whoever was the teacher at the time would organize box socials to raise money for the school. The box socials were held inside the schoolhouse.
In 1914, the Box Social raised $22.00 to help purchase new shades, a water cooler and other school-room supplies.
What is a Box Social? There is not doubt in my mind, that most of you know what a Box Social is. But in case some folks don’t know what it is, I’ll explain.
A box social is a fundraiser that was held at schools or churches. Women decorated a cardboard box or picnic basket and filled it with either lunch or dinner for two. Men bid on a box, anticipating a meal with the women whose box it is. The boxes are anonymous, so the men aren’t aware of which woman belongs to which box, nor what the box contains. The mystery and often times humorous results make these fundraisers quite interesting.
The thing that I find interesting about this, is that single people, I’m assuming, are the ones making the boxes and placing bids. Single people that most likely did not have children, yet they are still supporting a fundraiser that directly supports the children's’ education.
So what could the Mount Prospect Public School purchase with $22?
In our collection of reference books, we have several Sears & Roebuck catalogs from the late 1800s – early 1900s. I opened up the 1897 and 1908 catalogs and did a little hypothetical shopping. Now this box social was done in 1914, which is six years after the 1908 catalog, so these are approximate figures. I wanted to see what school supplies I could afford with $22.
To put things into perspective, Miss Cora Bergmann, school teacher from 1908 to 1910, made $47 per month in 1908. Most Country Education Boards purchased text books for public schools, but it is not clear whether they purchased actual school supplies for the school. It is very possible that without the benefits of fundraisers, school supplies would have been purchased with the teacher’s own money. So in other words, without this Box Social, the teacher would have had to dish out almost half of her monthly wages to pay for school supplies.
Central School and its various teachers were fortunate to have a supportive community. After all, why wouldn’t a person want to invest in an institution that educates their children?
Before television, silent films and even radio- books, magazines and newspapers were the chief sources for public information.
The magic lantern and the stereoscope are two other instruments that were used for both education and entertainment. They were both widely popular around the turn of the century. When the technology of the two were merged together, it created a stereopticon projector. This was essentially an early projector of still images. They were used widely across the country as a means of entertainment and education. Communities used them in churches, schools or town halls to screen educational or entertaining shows. Mount Prospect was one of them many towns in America that utilized this technology.
It is no surprise that in 1905, the Mount Prospect Public School hosted a stereoscope viewing in the schoolhouse for the entire community to attend. On December 18, the school invited people in the community to come to the schoolhouse and view over 100 stereoscope slides, some in color.
Magic Lanterns were widely popular from the 17th century until around the 1920s. A magic lantern was an early type of slide projector. It was typically made out of metal, and the images were painted or drawn onto a glass slide. A candle or kerosene lamp was placed underneath the lantern to flood the inside with light, projecting the image onto the screen. The magic lantern brought pictures to life, even more so than stereoscopes.
Not only was this entertainment for children, it was also a way for them to make money. A child could charge his or her friends a penny to watch their magic lantern show. Blank glass slides were also available so that kids could make their own slides using crayons.
The Mount Prospect Historical Society has a magic lantern from 1900 in its collection. Along with this magic lantern are over 30 slides, a box of blank slides and crayons. Because it is a unique object in our collection that is in excellent condition, we have chosen to digitize it as a part of the Illinois State Library Digital Grant project. It will also be on display at the Mount Prospect Public Library this summer.
Stereoscopes were devices that allowed the user to view 3D images of people, places and things. A stereoscope card had an image printed on it twice. It was placed in the stereoscope viewer, and when the user looked through the lenses of the viewer, the image on the card looked 3D.
Why were stereoscopes so popular? Today, we have the ability to go to Google Maps, click Street View and look at almost any place in the world. We have Google Images that allow us to see pictures of places all over the world. 100 years ago, people had books, paintings and other 2D media to view images of people, places and things all over the world. But with the stereoscope, they were able to see these things in 3D. That was a really big deal. It was the equivalent to our Google Maps Street View.
Here is a stereoscope card of a woman looking at a stereoscope. This card is from 1901.
The second one is of men in a railway car in Syria in 1908.
Something that I found rather interesting during my research is that stereoscope viewers never really went away.
Arbor Day is one of those holidays that only a handful of people remember. It doesn’t revolve around a religion; it doesn’t involve a festive feast; and it doesn’t consist of giving gifts. It is purely a day to celebrate the importance of trees and their very important relationship with the human world. Arbor Day is usually celebrated through government entities, including schools and Libraries.
I remember when I was in grammar school, we observed Arbor day. In the classroom, we usually talked about the importance of trees, and some years we even got to plant a tree.
In 1899, the children at Central School not only observed Arbor Day, they celebrated it.
Here is a quote from an article written on April 22, 1899:
Mount Prospect’s early students celebrated Arbor Day by singing songs, reciting poems and planting a whopping 14 hard maple trees around the schoolhouse. Quite impressive!
The top photo shows Central School in 1900, two years after they planted the maple trees. As you can see, they are still very young. In the second picture, the trees are much taller ten years later.
In the Arbor Day article that was written in 1899, it says, “It is to be hoped that the coming generations may enjoy the shade of these trees and thank their ancestors for planting them.” Well, we have certainly carried on the tradition of planting trees and making sure Mount Prospect is well shaded. And we most certainly thank our ancestors for planting those 14 maples 117 years ago.
Although the trees that these students planted in 1898 are not there anymore, Mount Prospect still celebrates trees. It isn’t a coincidence that The Village has received the Tree City USA Award from The Arbor Day Foundation for over 20 years. We even have a tree in our logo.
