Central School invite

This is a picture of a 3 inch by 4 inch card that was given to students who were invited to attend a Central School exercise in 1885. This card belonged to Lillie E. Anderson and was donated to the library years ago. On the inside of the card other students are listed. The list inside may be a list of all the children in each grade that attended the school in 1885, there is no other information available for this card. Central School was erected in 1856. First through fourth grade were taught at this public school.

Center School

Center School was erected in 1856. Grades first through fourth grade were taught in the Center School. The other grades and high school were located in the old seminary building at that time.  It became the home of  Mr. and Mrs. Harry Brown after a remodel in 1917. It stayed in the family and became the home of Ms. Mable Brown. It still stands today. This building is located just west of the current First Presbyterian Church.

Northside School and East North School

This is a picture of both north side schools at one time. The new East North School was built in 1961 as part of Northside Grade School. Fifth and sixth grade classes were only held in this building at that time. An addition to the East North School was made in 1963.

 

The old north school was demolished in 1968. The new East North School became the current Northside Elementary School.

Northside School rebuilt in 1893

These are postcard pictures of the new Northside Elementary School. It replaced the old North school that burned down in 1893. It housed elementary classes from kindergarten through sixth grade for well over sixty years. This school was later torn down and eventually replaced with the current Northside school.

North Grade School

Geneseo's first north-side grade school was built in 1866. It first had four rooms for classes. In 1871 two more rooms were added. The building caught fire and burned in 1893. It was replaced by another larger north-side building.

North-Western Normal Campus

This is the campus of North-Western Normal college in Geneseo on more than three acres of land. This picture was taken in 1988. The first building from the left was the original home of Major James M. Allen and was converted for class room use in 1883. In 1885 "The Mansion" was used chiefly for housing teachers and a limited number of lady students at a cost of $3.25 to $4.00 per week. Beside the "Mansion" seven boarding houses and a large number of private families boarded students with a furnished room at the cost of $2.00 to 3.50 per week, some places as little as $1.25 per week, according to the school catalog. The next item in the middle was the bell tower. The building you can see in the back, "The College" was built in 1884 for $5,000. For several years over 400 students yearly attended this college. Bachelor's and Master's degrees of Science were attained upon graduation. Their specialty was education for teaching and business or professional studies. In 1885 at the "Business College" the tuition for six months was $40.00 to $60.00. Room and board rent was $70.00 to $100.00. A course in English branches was an additional $5.00 to $10.00. Otherwise, the tuition for two terms at "North-Western Normal" was $24 a term. Room and board for two terms was $40.00 to $60.00. Courses in English Branches, Drawing, Penmanship, and Common Law were free and included in the tuition. A "term" consisted of 10 weeks. After 30 weeks a student could be certified to become a teacher.

Students of North-Western

This picture was taken in 1888 at North-Western Normal college in Geneseo, Illinois. This building was one of the buildings added after North-Western originally opened in 1883. The original board of Trustees were : A. Lieberknecht, President ; H.V. Fisher, Secretary ; P.S. Schnable, Treasurer ; W.P. Blackiston, Asst. Treasurer ; R. Harrington ; I.R. Wells ; and H.W. Moses. When the school opened in 1883, W. J. Cook was the principal. W. James Stevens taught Natural Sciences and Greek ; Edward K. Mohr taught Book-keeping, German, and Penmanship ; Edward N. Cook taught Arithmetic, Common and Commercial Law ; Mrs. Mary E. Cook was Matron and teacher of Extra Branches ; Mrs. Ella G. Stevens taught Latin, Drawing and Elocution ; Mrs. Allie E. Mohr taught Rhetoric and Literature ; Mrs. Eliza B. Hayward taught Grammar, Algebra, and Common Branches ; Miss Sadie M. Brown taught History, Essays, and Common Branches. Miss Agnes E. Cram taught Vocal and Instrumental Music. Painting and Decorative Art were also listed in the original catalogue of the Announcement of the North-Western Normal.

North-Western Normal College

Geneseo's North-Western Normal college was founded in 1883 on North College Avenue in a section of the town known as Park Villa. It started in the former home of Major James M. Allen. Leading citizens of Geneseo became trustees of the home and formed a contract with Professors William J.Cook & Wyandotte Stevens, which led to the opening of the private college on September 4, 1883. Hundreds of students attended the college. Two other brick buildings were erected to accommodate the needs of the growing school. The college closed in 1894 due to competition offered by other state colleges. The original home then became the city hospital and eventually a private residence again. The home was torn down and the current hospital has expanded into that space.

South Side School

The South Side School was built in 1889. The school was designed by John W. Ross and was built by Volk Construction Company. The school was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. It was controversially demolished in 1979. As of this posting there is an empty green space where the school once stood. The school was originally built as a public school for Geneseo and accommodated grades one through twelve.

Geneseo Seminary

The Geneseo Seminary construction began in 1845. It opened as a school in 1847 and was maintained by tuition and gifts. The Geneseo Public School system started in 1856 and the board of education bought the old seminary building and grounds. It was used as a public school building for many years. It was later torn down to erect the township high school building in 1911.

Geneseo Train Depot 1883.

The first passenger train passed through Geneseo from Chicago on February 22, 1854 on its way to Rock Island. Trains stopped at the depot twelve times daily during the 1880's. The train was a great advantage for students attending the North-Western Normal college in Geneseo in the 1880's and 1890's. The school mentioned the train for marketing appeal to attend the school. A telegraph office was located inside the depot.