Lanphier High School - Lan Hi Yearbook (Springfield, IL)

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0 R HERITAGE BUILDINGS The early history of Illinois indicates that it was a conservative state in many respects, for the Constitutions of 1818 and 1848 make no mention of education. A general school law passed in 1825 and considerably improved in 1845 made possible the formation of free public schools. The early settlers in the little prairie town of Springfield were hunters and fishermen. Their migration from Tennessee, Kentucky, and Virginia had left very little time for formal train- ing. For many years, therefore, the inhabitants of Springfield were indifferent to education. By 1850 people from the eastern and northern states had arrived, and being farmers and trades people, their first interest was in providing churches and schools for their families. The first schools were owned and operated by individuals, and anyone who considered him- self qualified could solicit pupils, charge tuition, and keep school. Mr. Erastus Wright, one of the earliest teachers in Springfield, describes the building in which he taught: The log school house located near the northeast corner of what is known as Hutch- inson's Cemetery, was about eighteen by twenty feet. In the construction of the building, a log was left out from each side and the place supplied by a continuous pane of glass which served as a Window. Four sticks driven into-sometimes through -a slab, the convex side down, formed moveable seats. The pupils leaned against nothing. They had no desks, but kept their few books behind the teacheivs stand, on a shelf made by fasten- ing a slab to the Wall. In 1828, a school house was built of rough logs, near the present intersection of Adams and Second streets. The building was about twenty by thirty feet, and served for school house, church, and all other public purposes. Tuition ranged from 81.50 to 5133.00 per term of eleven weeks, for education was no cheaper than the necessities of life. Because many of the schools were started by young ladies who taught only until they were married, Springfield oc- casionally had no school, thus, educa- tional opportunity was very meager dur- I ing the period lasting from 1821-1854. On March 2, 1854, Springfield took advan- tage of the Illinois law which authorized tax supported education. The City Council was empowered to appoint seven men to serve as a Board of School Inspectors, to set up its duties, and to divide Springfield into school wards or districts. The ofiice of Superintendent of Schools was originated by an ordinance by the City Coun- cil in November 1858 on recommendation of the Board of School Inspectors. Lots were purchased in each of the four wards for school purposes, and buildings were to be erected at a cost of 310,000 each. These build- ings were expected to accommodate, altogether, about 1500 pupils. In the spring of 1856, the First and Third XVard Schools were completed and school was opened April 14, 1856. Seven hundred thirty-nine pupils were registered for the spring term, which was the last one of the year. Pandemonium reigned. An excerpt from the diary of one of the teachers describes vividly the first day. IVhen this school was first opened, the behavior of the children indicated their joy . . .They seemed frantic with curiosity and delight. . .They ran, they jumped, they screamed. The boys brought their bone- rattles, and the girls and boys came with whistles. They leaped over chairs, and from desk to desk, rattling, singing, hooting and screaming, in joyous exhilaration, as if the occasion and the house had been gotten up expressly for frolic and fun, and with- out any design whatever for study, dis- THE INTERIOR OF AN 1854 SCHOOL

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F0l?fWU!?D Springfield schools this year are celebrating the one hundredth year of public education in Springfield, Illinois. The Lan Hi Staff hasvtried to capture in the next few pages some of the highlights of this interesting and progressive story.

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cipline and improvement of mind and morals. The Second Ward School, a three story brick building located on Second and Mason street, is still standing today. Familiarly known as the Old Trapp School, it is now used by the Arm- bruster Manufacturing Company as a warehouse. Then - 1858 - Springfield had four public school buildings, today - 1954 - fifty-four schools are in Springfield, thirty of them publicly owned. The School Board passed the resolution july 27, 1857, to establish a high school in some central, convenient location. The lirst term was conducted in a small building in the Third W'ard, the following year, in the Fourth 1Vard School. Placing pupils, ranging from five-year-olds through high school age in the same room with the same teacher caused many problems: dis- cipline, subject matter, method of presentation, materials, and seating arrangement. These diffi- culties, plus an increase of 100W in population, demanded more adequate accommodations for high school boys and girls. In the recommendation of the Board to the City Council, the values of a centrally located school were expressed: Such a school will pay, in the increased wealth, population, intelligence, and im- proved morals of this place. It will honor the present and benefit the future. It was further recommended that if the City Council did not deem it expedient to erect a build- ing for the purpose of a high school, suitable rooms, in some central location, be rented, in order to accommodate the high school students more satisfactorily. In 1861 a building, located on Fourth and THE EXTERIOR OF AN 1854 SCHOOL BUILDING Market and capable of holding 90 pupils was rented and used. All modern conveniences, including an up-to-date lioor plan enabling the pupils to change easily from one room to an- other, were used in this building: it was well lighted with hanging kerosene lamps, it was heated by a wood furnace, it was furnished with the fashionable one-seat desks, and it boasted the newest visual-education aid-black-boards. From this one high school of 1864, the secon- dary level of education in Springfield has ex- panded to three. Feitshans High School became a four year school in 1933 and Lanphier was built to replace Converse elementary and high school and began to be used in 1937. CURRICULUM Most of the common branches were taught in the early Springfield School System, however, other school systems were being watched. The Boston Schools and Oswego Schools were models that were kept under consideration and their methods and practices were extensively copied. Current subjects of the day were taught in the early high school: First Year English Grammar and analysis, higher arithmetic, elementary alge- bra, physical geography, outlines of history, psy- chology, Second Year algebra, geometry, book- keeping, natural philosoph , botany, rhetoric, Third Year mensuration and, surveying Coptional with ladiesD, trigonometry Calso optional with ladiesD, chemistry, astronomy, intellectual phi- losophy, moral science, political economy, decla- mations and compositions, Fourth Year CClassical Course to be pursued by those intending to enter collegeD English grammar and analysis, higher arithmetic, elementary algebra, algebra-extended course, outlines of history, Latin grammar and reader, Caesar, Cicero-select orations, Virgil, Latin prose composition, Greek, grammar and reader, Xenophon's anabasis. New subjects and classes were added as progress was made. Music, art, and physical education were introduced in 1858. Domestic science and manual training were first taught at the Trapp School in 1890 and later introduced into high school in 1903. Business courses were lirst taught in 1900, night schools for foreign born were organized in 1908, a school nurse was first em- ployed in 1911, and special education began in 1925. ATTENDANCE Irregular attendance was the rule rather than the exception in the first schools of Springfield. The evils of this practice were recognized and much ef-