Mattoon High School - Riddle Yearbook (Mattoon, IL)

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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 ,

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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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,- i 'I 47-N.. +'s . - 5- he West Side School, erected in the '60's. ' ,r f 1 - 1 1 F Ima!! V 0 t-4!r,9,, tr22cX27f evo 1 r fffffl if tl 1-X2 X nbjf jfsv ,Z ,Ji I e Efixxg. - 7 ia rect- FW-, t L 1 .1-.v Klvlhiv- ,' ' v 'vx-fe AJ The 1-rw-tion of t'lllll't'llt'S :intl schools vlost-ly follow thc hirth of at town. ln tho wintvi- ot' lS55. :1 school wus hvltl in u snntll t'r:uno houst- on liroaulwny in thc oust pzu't ot'town. lizu-h littlv pupil puial his few mlollzirs tuition and svti- tlwl tlown to thc husinoss of 11-:nlil1', writin', :incl 'l'lfllllll'llt'. Siinilzn' schools wort- holtl in various unot-1-upiotl rooms until INST. when tl hrivk huiltling cnllvtl thc l':2lNi Sitlo S4-hool wus 01-on-tml. 'l'h0n privntc schools wow opvnwl rup- ielly, hut none wow very sut-1'0ssl'ul. Soon schools sprung up alll ovvr town :intl sonic were constantly lltlllltl' roinotlvlwl, on- P' c lan-gwl or rebuilt to zu-voninioclztto tho lllt'l't'2lN' ing population. The lligh School huihling was cwvtecl in -l2lllll2ll V of 1890, oiilairgwl in 1902, :intl finally rvpl:u'od hy tho present ono in ' 1929. Now tlwre is an lwillllllhlll new high school in our future. The first Slllltlily St-hool was ht-ld in :L lit- tle building :lt 15th anal lil'02ltlW2l.V. All faiths uttolulwl nntl 2ll'gll0t'l over tlll'fl'l'L'lll, intt-rprc- tations ot' thc St-riptui-cs. Religion grew rup- ially in Mnttoon, :incl two 1-liim-lu-s, tho liilll tist :intl tho lipiscfopzll, wort' soon unmlor wat-V. K 2 5 2 7 ctured above is the East Side School, now Longfellow. , N.. j - .3 'QQ it I Q ffl '-. - , f'-'lf ,ta WFWNNQX - ' L 7 'l!Kmn.un-A X h king N B 'wi Q ' 1.7 0171- . ' l - ' W? The High echcol. Jnrl55wdemm,i,a.i I:-Q f - -h452'4!4 i 'E E l j' using. I ' S - it al S -A ,nw 'tt 2 - ' 1 A -Q - . 1--'m.1Bl A' Q, : g 1' 3 f- ,V s4:'f,g'x --' mpliments of Ryan Brothers Conoco Service Center :if 2' --.?i 5 ..,