Full Text of HR0151 97th General Assembly
HR0151 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | HOUSE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | 3 | | Representatives are pleased to congratulate the | 4 | | administration, staff, and students of the Harrisburg School | 5 | | District on the occasion of its 150th anniversary in 2011; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, The rich history of the Harrisburg School District | 7 | | began in October of 1861, when Green B. Weir was elected to | 8 | | serve as director of the school board; B. D. Grace, William | 9 | | Riley, J. W. Mitchell, James Feazel, and W. H. Dove were | 10 | | subsequently picked to serve on the school board over the next | 11 | | four years; and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, The Harrisburg School District's first school | 13 | | building was a one room house on the corner of Church and Vine | 14 | | streets; eventually, the room proved to be too small to | 15 | | accommodate the number of pupils, leading the directors to rent | 16 | | another room in the town; by 1865, the number of pupils had so | 17 | | increased that the directors saw the necessity for having a | 18 | | larger building, and an election was ordered for October 27, | 19 | | 1865 to vote on the question of purchasing a school house site; | 20 | | in April of 1866, the site was bought for $200; the following | 21 | | month, the school board voted to borrow money to build a school | 22 | | house; in 1868, the building was furnished and three teachers | 23 | | were employed; and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, In 1875, the Harrisburg School District attempted | 2 | | to institute a new teaching plan where an additional teacher | 3 | | was employed to teach in the school's upstairs space, which | 4 | | effectively made two separate schools in the same room; despite | 5 | | the inconvenience, the plan appeared to operate effectively; in | 6 | | 1879, the directors decided to try a new, ultimately | 7 | | unsuccessful plan where the school would have no principal, | 8 | | with each room being an independent school run by a male | 9 | | teacher; around this time, the school had become so overcrowded | 10 | | that it was necessary to make more room and employ more | 11 | | teachers; subsequently, in 1881, bonds in the amount of $2,000 | 12 | | were issued and two new teachers were employed; and
| 13 | | WHEREAS, By 1877, the Harrisburg School District census had | 14 | | increased to over 500 and it was necessary to again make more | 15 | | room; as the population of the west end of the district had | 16 | | greatly increased, a lot was purchased from J. M. Baker for | 17 | | $500 as a school site and the lower story of the West Side | 18 | | school house was erected by J. P. Hodge at a cost of $1,402; | 19 | | and
| 20 | | WHEREAS, In 1890, a great many changes were made to the | 21 | | Harrisburg School District; the district's terms were | 22 | | lengthened to nine months, the salaries of the teachers were | 23 | | increased, and it was decided to employ no teachers except |
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| 1 | | those having successful experience in the department in which | 2 | | they wished to be employed; in addition, the schools were | 3 | | re-graded, a high school was organized, the district's course | 4 | | of study was revised, and a system of diplomas was created; in | 5 | | 1894, a second story was added to the West Side schoolhouse; in | 6 | | 1899, a new grade was added to the course of study; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, In 1900, another year was added to Harrisburg | 8 | | School District's course of study; the following year, the | 9 | | people of Harrisburg Township voted to erect a building for the | 10 | | high school; after voting for $20,000 in bonds, a site was | 11 | | given to the township by the City National Bank free of charge; | 12 | | in 1903, the cornerstone of the high school was laid; in 1904, | 13 | | the building was completed, with classes moving into the new | 14 | | building in September of 1904; and | 15 | | WHEREAS, The Harrisburg School District continued to grow | 16 | | rapidly throughout the early 1900s; in 1914, a new addition was | 17 | | constructed to the rear of the first unit; in 1922 and 1923, | 18 | | the third unit to the east was added; in 1929, an athletic | 19 | | field was purchased and equipped at an initial cost of $26,000, | 20 | | which was, at the time, the largest field in southern Illinois; | 21 | | by 1938, the district's enrollment had reached nearly 1,200, | 22 | | and a fourth unit to the west was added; and
| 23 | | WHEREAS, Today, the Harrisburg School District continues |
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| 1 | | the legacy of excellence created by Green B. Weir and his | 2 | | associates 150 years ago; therefore, be it
| 3 | | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 4 | | NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 5 | | we congratulate the administration, staff, and students of the | 6 | | Harrisburg School District on the occasion of its 150th | 7 | | anniversary; and be it further
| 8 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 9 | | presented to the Harrisburg School District as a symbol of our | 10 | | esteem and respect.
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