Lincoln Elementary as pictured when it first opened in 1928. Photos courtesy of the St. Charles History Museum and School District 303.

• Editor’s Note: This article is part of a weekly series on Kane County’s amazing history. Today’s article was written by Tim Kirsininkas, marketing manager for the St. Charles History Museum.

For a community as rich in history as St. Charles, every building has a story to tell, but it’s tough to find one that tops the story of Lincoln Elementary School on 6^th Avenue in St. Charles.

This year, Lincoln School is celebrating its 90^th anniversary, and generations of St. Charles students will come together to honor and look back upon the fond grade school memories the building has provided.

As a classic example of beautiful 20^th century grade school architecture, the school has been praised for its design from the very beginning when it opened in 1928.

After holding its first classes, the St. Charles Chronicle described Lincoln Elementary as a school that “will stand and be fit for occupancy for two, three, and four hundred years. It will remain for countless generations as an example of good architecture.”

Nine decades following that original prediction, it would seem the writers were spot-on in summarizing the importance that Lincoln School continues to play for the St. Charles Community.

The school opened as the replacement for the East Side School. Opened in 1856 and the second public school in Kane County, it was a building that originally served as the First Methodist-Episcopal Church.

By 1927, concerns began to be raised by members of the local community due to overcrowding and sanitation issues in the converted building. After petitioning the local school board, a replacement building to be designed by local architect Frank B. Gray, designer of other historic buildings in the community like the Baker Memorial Church and our own St. Charles History Museum Building was approved.

The classic features of Lincoln Elementary have led to it becoming the cherished treasure of the St. Charles community that it is today. Gray adopted the philosophy of making his school buildings feel like home for students. For this reason, the school still features beautiful wooden and glass storage cabinets, vibrant murals, detailed stonework, large windows, and even a fish pond in the Kindergarten classroom.

Lincoln Elementary is a living and breathing time-capsule, a standing monument to the days of school design gone by. And for as old as Lincoln Elementary is, Frank Gray was sure to acknowledge the building’s roots. If you enter the gymnasium at Lincoln School, you’ll still see the cornerstone of the original East Side School, inscribed “PUBLIC SCHOOL, Dist. No. 7. 1856.” displayed prominently.

Niney years later, the St. Charles community can continue to celebrate Lincoln School as a cherished bastion of education, a place full of connections to times and eras long gone, and a place where the hallways hold a lifetime of memories for generations of St. Charles students, parents, and teachers alike.

To explore more about the history of Lincoln Elementary School and to find out more about its unique historical and architectural features, visit www.Lincoln.d303.org and click on the “Celebrating a St. Charles Story” tab.

Murder Mystery Night April 12 at Pheasant Run

The St. Charles History Museum will be hosting its annual benefit fundraiser from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Friday, April 12, on Bourbon Street at Pheasant Run Resort. This year, Vero Voce will present Murder on the Bayou, an original murder mystery interactive script written exclusively for this event and set in 1920s New Orleans.

The event kicks off NoLA-style with cocktails on St Charles’ very own version of Bourbon Street in the heart of Pheasant Run Resort. As murder ensues, pursue the clues within Preservation A while dining on heavy appetizers and desserts.

Come dressed for the 1920s New Orleans-themed event, as there will be a costume contest prize awarded at the end of the evening.

Tickets to the event are $75 per person, and can be purchased on the Pheasant Run Resort website at www.pheasantrun.com/murder-mystery-event. Admission includes two drinks, a three-course dinner (hors d’oeuvres, peppercorn crusted sirloin, a salad station, and assorted desserts), and interactive entertainment presented by Vero Voce with all proceeds going to benefit the St. Charles History Museum.

Pheasant Run Resort will also be offering a Murder on the Bayou package including full admission to the event, plus deluxe overnight accommodations at the resort and one breakfast voucher per adult. The special package starts at $279.

Read The Kane County History Series!

• 1850-1925 Geneva — When Penmanship Was Mightier Than The Sword
• St. Charles Museum Site — From Serving Gas To Preserving History
• Elgin Puts 3,500 Priceless Photos Online
• Batavia-Inspired Miniatures Thrilled a Nation
• Aurora’s Maud Powell, World Famous Violinist
• Waxing Nostalgic on Geneva’s WGSB, WFXW
• American Doughboys of WWI — in St. Charles, IL
• Experience High-Tech History at April 21 ‘Open Elgin’ Event
• Batavia, IL — ‘Windmill Capital of The World’
• Meet Andy Aurora, Man About Town
• Celebrating The 50th Anniversary of 9-1-1 in Geneva
• Blue Goose And Evergreen Pub — ‘Shop Local’ 90 Years In The Making
• Elgin Is The Apple of Illinois Bicentennial’s Eye
• Nordens Soner And Batavia’s Swedish Society
• Aurora’s Melting Pot ‘Yearning To Breathe Free’
• Candles, Timing Devices, Phonographs And The ‘Life Cup’ — All Things Made in Geneva
• Hotel Baker, The ‘Masterpiece’ of The Fox Valley
• Elgin Celebrates Our Once-Burgeoning Dairy Business
• Reflections of Batavia’s Quarry Beach Pool
• Aurora’s Mabel O’Donnell, Author of “Alice And Jerry’ Books
• As Alice (Davis) Says, ‘Schools Out For Summer!’
• Elgin Watches, ‘The World’s Standard’
• Aurora Silverplate a Symbol of Good Taste
• Women Leaders Played Huge Roles in Geneva
• Nationally Renowned Summer Camp in St. Charles
• The Harrowing Story of William Lynch, Elgin’s Civil War Brigadier General
• Batavia Powered The Aurora, Elgin & Chicago Railway
• Corsets Doing Big Business in Aurora? Scandalous!
• One Block of Geneva Tells 1,001 Fantastic Stories
• St. Charles’ Evergreen Pub — The ‘Before’ Photos
• 1917-18 — When Elgin Artists Went to War
• Thomas Cleveland — Batavia’s Presidential Connection
• Do Your Wurst — Aurora Meat Markets Are ‘In’ Again
• Geneva Is The Place For Graveyards And Ghosts
• Visit Amelia Anderson At St. Charles’ North Side Cemetery
• Calling All Artists! … For a Cobblestone Reflection in Elgin
• Batavia’s 108-Year-Old Gazebo Still Lights The Way
• The Compelling, Tragic Story of Aurora’s Black WWI Hero Frank Boger
• Geneva History Museum Invites Artists To Celebrate Cultural Heritage
• Elgin’s Anson Clark Soared in The Great War … And Life
• What It Meant To Be a Patrol Boy and Louise White School
• ‘Men’s Night’ Christmas Shopping Was a 1950’s Aurora Phenomenon
• St. Charles Remembers Colson’s Christmas-Day Fire of ’33
• The Art of Elgin’s Cobblestone Reflections
• When Suffrage Met Prohibition in Batavia
• Geneva Presents The Art of The Fox River
• Blansford Astronomical Clock Is Aurora’s Treasure
• St. Charles Returns Family Heirlooms From WWII
• Museum Lands Painting By Elgin Artist Albert Kenney
• Cars Still Fixed at Historic Location in Downtown Batavia
• A Bird’s-Eye View of 19th Century Geneva
• Sheldon Peck: Kane County’s Connection To The Underground Railroad
• Elgin High School Celebrates 150 Years of ‘Education For All’
• Batavia’s Incredible Roller Skating History
• The Fabled History of Jewelry Stores in Geneva