Mattoon High School - Riddle Yearbook (Mattoon, IL)

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Erected in 1856, this grocery store stood at 1529 Broadway. A lot snlo was hold the following dny tlllll :xfte-r that vvvlits lmppviwd tlllif'liI'Y. Malt- toon wzls an lbtitilllillg little town, bursting.: with l'lli'l'g,Y :ind growing like :I weed. In loss than three nionths the population had jllllllwtl to illl't'Pl1llll1il'Ptl. and in 1856, more than ont- hundred hnildings stood wht-ro the talll prairie grass had 'rown. 2' In those first few yours, Blilfttbllll was wide open - for zmgvtliing. The doors of il llilif dozen snloons W1-rv swinging day and LQ3 ' jr ' 1 Y ir f all ,U G,xhQ y 'AH ' X ZH .. .. I I - 4 L. if U f ., ' x r W I r f ,S-J Bin J 5 Q 'XJ 'Im K I l I -L ., w Y , X .1 J, 5,41 night. lizunlrling. vzlrd plnyillgj, horso raving, and vvon innrdur wont on nnpnnishvd - illld ll02ll'l'V nnnotirod! Yes, those were wild days, lint before long' Mnttoon IDOQEIII to strvtrh its legs and look around. The good iIlflll0lll'l'S started to tzlko over, and soon Mnttoon sotllvd down to being :1 good little prai- rio town. In the earliest days of Mat- toon, Ichabod Jennings built this house for his bride. Best Wishes - Provinzano Studio

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IIIIIIIUVS ot' at 1':1il1'o:ul tlriftwl tln-ongh in lS52, :intl in 'SIL tln- Illinois ilt'llfI'2ll stalrtwl lmiltling its iron 1-oml whit-In was tlvstinml to rnn IIIPUIIQII Mnttoon. 3I9ZlllWllll0, in Intliztnzl, tlw t-onsti'nt-- tion Ctllllllilllj' of l'l1vIps. Mzlttoon, und I'l2lI'llPS lwgzln lztyingg tlw trucks :intl driving the spikes of zmotln-1' rnili-o:ul to strott-li from 'l'01'1'o IIZIIIIP to Alton, Illinois. When tlw Illinois Central I'tPIlit' lwvzlilw wi'- tnin in 1854, at stztlcv wus tlriwn into the ground wln-rv the two i-nili-owls wonltl 1-ross. The ltllltl owners of this t'0llllllllllIf,V nwt :intl 4l4'ft'l'llllllPtI that :lt tho 1-rossing tlwy would lnniltl il town. William Mammn -Iolln Mwulows t'ron1 flllillu leston. SlII'Vl'j'1'tI this st-1-tion in Ibcvolnilwr, 1854. In tlw following spring the lots were stalked off. :incl for two Awaits the lmlmy village was 1-:tllwl l'0g1town. With shovels and picks, these brawny men built a. railroad that spanned the prairie. ii . 1:: 'I' 'I I Al ' Qglpgc' :F 5. -,es T-,.,gf ff? ,s X ig if fi i wsaffi we 72 ., A is 2 5, Jsl Meg, 1' A ' 5 fi' ' ' I, .gn .1 ,gm , ! -if K Kg? I try.. I I 754 -Ifllllll I- s 5 Ill X' ' ll jill it 5 Ei' '- , flip I Ori' YZAE, L , xl 5 -lil f ffjfff I , X ffrriffeffvvj 1 in-, it In 'll 'tl' 'WP is - -Y H Jr, tgciissii. Mtg, w 5,g,pi 2 M 42 e ,-5 ' X X ,? K A q ir' p- f xl ,fffff 'girls - iii I taxis e , is irwgft I ' lx zffzfffn f Q-I 4- I sa' e l? I 'I ' fi x 'Ill W4 f ,I Q 3 MQW -2 S ff f ,gt I ft A 75 I . amz if, fx!! H X ,t s ,. -i4 -f X 2 -,, av: K ,,!,, A , fig f ,'QlA,::m,y -- ,I-args' .- - , Qfffk iff, I M255 A fbi l - 64'-f -...A J - 1 at ff f Ky N V 5' ?:1.,,,-I 7 ,Q fl? , l fi H 'Q Compliments of Dr. L. R. Cantwell, Optomefrisf.

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M iwrnanitfg Q .. if - The Mattoon Hotel, later named the Pennsylvania House. On a June day in 1855, the first train rolled over the shining rails to Mattoon. Three thousand peo- rp1e gathered to gaze in wonder at the miraculous iron horse. Soon after, a train schedule from Chi- cago to Terre Haute was arranged so other towns could make connections here. However, those early trains had a habit of being so late that their passengers would often have to stay over until the next day. Mattoon's lhospitality became widely known, and many well educated families from the eastern states came bringing culture and social standing. Two hotels in particular played important roles in the early history of Mattoon. The Pennsylvania House was the first big building in town, and the first sidewalk, paved with corncobs, led from the street to the hotel entrance. The Essex House, the best known early hotel, was one of a chain of Eating Houses where the trains stopped twenty minutes for breakfast, lunch or dinner. From a window space in this building, Abraham Lincoln spoke to a, great crowd of local people early in the campaign of 1856. The Essex House, built by Eb- enezer Noyes, served as 3 de- pot for many years. 'lncere congratulations from W. S. Henry, Jewelers. ff BQ-.J gf I 'Y ,aegis L44 ff ,