Illinois
Historic Highlights: Carnegie Libraries still a feature in Illinois towns
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/shawmedia/VQCTU2CNN5Y5TYBSTTH7WEGK3Q.jpg?ssl=1 "Historic Highlights: Carnegie Libraries still a feature in Illinois towns")
For decades, a central feature of over a hundred Illinois communities was the Carnegie Library, the gift of steel magnate Andrew Carnegie around the turn of the 20th century. Though declining in number, dozens still exist today, including many in this area.
Some 106 Carnegie public libraries were constructed in Illinois, trailing only Indiana and California. Several communities in the area were the beneficiaries and are still using their libraries today, over a century later.
Though he is lambasted today for his harsh treatment of workers and his unyielding lust for money and power, Carnegie, a native Scotsman, is also remembered for his interest in library buildings.
Some 1,412 communities nationwide used Carnegie funds to build libraries between 1889-1923, and 108 academic library buildings were also constructed with Carnegie donations, though they are usually mispronounced today. Commonly called “CAR-neg-ee,” the actual pronunciation is “car-NEGG-ee.”
In all, Carnegie spent over $56.1 million to erect 2,509 library buildings in English-speaking countries. Applicants normally wrote to Carnegie through his secretary, James Bertram, who frequently criticized and sometimes redesigned plans for proposed libraries. Many applications received less funding than they hoped for.
Carnegie’s donations also came with other caveats. The community was required to provide suitable land and formally agree to support the library with local taxation. As he did in other charitable endeavors, Carnegie was more inclined to “help those who helped themselves.”
••••
In Plano, a Carnegie library at 15 W. North St. was approved for funding in December 1904 with a grant of $10,250. The first librarian was Maude Applegate Cook Henning, a 34-year-old Northwestern University graduate who was affectionately known as “Aunt Maude” to hundreds of young patrons until her retirement in 1951. The renovated building in Plano is still in use.
In Geneva, a Carnegie library at 127 James St. was largely paid for with a $7,500 grant in January 1907. Bids for the building were more than the grant, but Carnegie repeatedly declined, causing hard feelings between the city and Carnegie.
The building underwent additions in 1938, 1986 and 1998, and served the community for over 111 years until the library moved into a new facility in 2019.
The home of the Sheffield Public Library is still in a Carnegie building at 136 E. Cook St. that was paid for by a $4,000 grant approved in May 1911. The building features many of the classic designs that Carnegies are known for, including high ceilings and windows, as well as striking wooden beams. The exterior brick was from a local clay products plant.
The Sycamore Public Library at 103 E. State St. was designed by Paul O. Moratz, a Bloomington architect who is credited with at least 27 Carnegie libraries in his career. The Sycamore library, which was constructed of Lake Superior red sandstone, was funded with $12,000 in Carnegie grants and opened in November 1905.
In Polo, a Carnegie building at 302 W. Mason St. that was funded mostly with a $10,000 grant in April 1903, remains in use. It was designed by the Chicago firm of Patton and Miller, which is credited with over 100 Carnegie libraries nationwide.
The library opened in September 1904 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in November 1995, one of several Carnegies in the area to receive that honor.
Patton and Miller also designed the Streator Public Library, which is still in use at 130 S. Park St. and is also on the National Register. The Carnegie building in Streator opened on Jan. 31, 1903, and is defined by its interior, two-story rotunda, with columns on the first story and murals of Shakespeare, Longfellow, and Socrates on the second story.
Several Carnegies are along the Illinois River towns, including in LaSalle, where a Carnegie library at 305 Marquette St. opened on Jan. 19, 1907, with funding from two gifts totaling $25,000. The Italian Renaissance building features a sweeping, stained-glass dome in the lobby, along with a decorative skylight.
In Peru, a Carnegie library on Putnam Street was funded with a $15,000 grant approved in April 1910. The building opened in the fall of 1911 and was used until April 1986, when a new facility was constructed.
To the north, Moratz designed the public library Mendota at 901 Washington St., which was used until a new facility opened in January 1994. The old library, which is now a museum, was paid for with a $10,000 Carnegie grant approved in February 1904. That grant was celebrated in a local newspaper headline that blared “Much Rejoicing in Mendota.”
In Marseilles, a library at 155 E. Bluff St. was built with a $10,000 gift from Carnegie that was approved in June 1904. The library was dedicated on Nov. 23, 1905, and underwent an expansion in 1938.
A Carnegie grant of $15,000 in January 1912 was the basis for the construction of the Spring Valley Public Library at 215 E. Cleveland St. As he was known to do, Bertram sharply criticized the original design for the library, which he deemed “impossible” and “drawn by an architect having no experience of library buildings.” The building was completed in late 1912 and was greatly expanded with massive additions that opened in June 2004.
The Streator library received a $35,000 grant, an unusually large grant from Carnegie, in February 1901. One history reports that the large gift was because a local opera house owner, Ralph Plumb, was a friend of Carnegie.
The Schmaling Memorial Library in Fulton is also still in a Carnegie structure, funded with a $5,000 gift in December 1908. The library, at 501 Tenth Ave., opened on Oct. 27, 1909.
In Oregon, the design of the Carnegie library at 300 Jefferson St. reflects the famed local Eagle’s Nest Art Colony of Illinois sculptor Lorado Taft, of which the architects, Pond and Pond of Chicago, were members. The art gallery on the second floor is among the outstanding features of the library, which was largely paid for with a $10,000 grant approved in April 1905.
Opened in June 1909, the Oregon library is also on the National Register.
••••
Barbara Love, the retired director of the Kewanee Public Library, a strikingly beautiful Carnegie facility designed by Patton and Miller in northwestern Illinois, notes the special needs of housing a library in such older surroundings.
“Carnegie libraries were built in a much different way than libraries of today,” said Love, who worked in four Carnegie libraries in her career. “They have high ceilings and aren’t as energy-efficient as new buildings. As a result, you really have to look for little ways to increase your energy efficiency.”
Many smaller Carnegie libraries also have floor plans that are best described as “chopped-up,” a contrast to the open floor design that dominates most newer libraries today. Space is also a severe issue in the Carnegies today, as libraries struggle to keep up with growing collections, increasing technology, and a demand for public meeting areas.
In 1991, some 83 communities in Illinois were still using Carnegie libraries, a number that has since dropped by over 20 with the advent of new buildings. The Carnegie library in Farmington, where Love worked before moving to Kewanee, was replaced after 107 years with a beautiful new facility on the east edge of town in 2014.
Sadly, some Carnegie libraries meet a less glorious end. The Carnegie facility in Galesburg, which opened in 1902, was wiped out in a fire on May 9, 1958, that ranks among the worst library disasters in state history. A new library was dedicated on the same site in November 1961.
Though some are being phased out, there is plenty of sentimental attachment to the old Carnegie libraries. “It is a very hard decision to leave a Carnegie library,” said Love. “There’s nothing easy about it. But in many cases, it’s less expensive to build a new building than it is to renovate the older one.”
In Morris, the Carnegie library at 604 Liberty St. was demolished in 1969, but not without regret. That library’s director wrote in 1982 that “to this day there are many residents angry about its demolition.”
Similar sentiments still linger in Decatur, where a 2015 account noted that the demolition of the Carnegie library in 1972 “is still a sore subject for many.”
Others fondly recall the memories of the library staff in the Carnegies. In Farmington, Miss Minta Schoonover became the head librarian in 1917 at age 48 and remained in the position for 50 years, retiring at the age of 98. She was then a regular patron until her death at 106.
• Tom Emery is a freelance writer and historical researcher from Carlinville, Illinois. He may be reached at 217-710-8392 or ilcivilwar@yahoo.com.
An Illinois high school football assistant coach has been arrested on criminal sexual abuse charges.
High School on SI previously reported that John “Jake” Wakey had been placed on leave and was being investigated after the FBI received a tip accusing an employee of inappropriate sexual conduct involving a former student over a year ago.
From that tip, investigators confirmed that at least eight students from 2013 to 2015 were abused by Wakey, according to a report by Capitol News Illinois. Thursday, he was arrested and charged with nine Class 2 felony counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse.
Illinois Assistant Football Coach Was Investigated By FBI, Local Law Enforcement
The charges involve victims aged 13-to-17 by a person in a position of trust during the 2013, 2014 and 2015 school years. Four former students provided statements to Williamson County detectives, with eight total potential victims being connected to the investigation.
“Of those eight identifiable victims, four individuals have presently memorialized the facts of their experiences on the records with investigators, which ultimately formed the basis for the charges announced,” Williamson County Sheriff Jeff Diederich said during a press conference. “In cases involving criminal sexual abuse, it frequently requires a victim-survivor to come forward, disclose what occurred and allow investigators to memorialize those facts for prosecution.
“For many victims, that process can take months or even years, as appears to have occurred in this investigation.”
It was also reported that the offenses involved members of the Carterville High School football team, where Wakey served as an assistant coach.
John “Jake” Wakey Has Previously Been In Trouble As Teacher, Coach
Wakey was placed on paid administrative leave back in February 2026 once the school district received word that he was involved in an investigation. He had worked for the Carterville School District since 2003 as both a teacher and as an assistant football coach.
Previously, Wakey had been suspended for 10 days in 2009 after being accused of inappropriately texting students, allowing students at his home and drinking in front of students. He was not charged at the time. He also received a misdemeanor conviction for providing liquor to minors in 2003 before joining Carterville.
“The Williamson County Sheriff’s Office is aware of longstanding community concerns, suspicions, rumors and allegations involving inappropriate conduct, including allegations related to alcohol, student-teacher contact and the sharing of images involving students and/or faculty members,” Diederich said.
Wakey is set to be held at the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office after being transferred from the Livingston County Jail. The Carterville Board of Education is expected to hold a special meeting to take action on the “discipline and/or dismissal of a licensed employee of the District.”
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Beach Park’s Lake Michigan dunes stretch from town toward the Wisconsin line, all sand and waves and no high-rises in sight. Up the Fox River, paddlewheel boats move past picnic blankets in St. Charles. Hot air balloons drift over Galena’s Mississippi bluffs every June. Woodstock’s town square stays just as walkable in July as it was when Bill Murray walked it over and over in Groundhog Day. Eight Illinois small towns where summer breaks open in a different direction.
St. Charles
St. Charles is more than a Chicago commuter town. It sits 40 miles west of the city, close enough for an afternoon shopping trip, but St. Charles itself is family-built. The Fox River runs through downtown lined with parks. Mount Saint Mary Park works for dogs and kids, and Wheeler Park has playgrounds, mini golf, and disc golf. On the east side, Pottawatomie Park stretches north into Norris Woods Nature Preserve. Weekend traffic concentrates here for picnics, frisbees, garden walks, kayaking, and even paddlewheel riverboat tours aboard the “St. Charles Belle” and “Fox River Queen.”
Geneva
The Fox River keeps going south through Geneva, and so does the park network. Summer visitors will find the Fabyan Villa Museum & Japanese Garden and the German-built Fabyan Windmill on either side of the Fabyan Forest Preserve, with the Sacred Heart Grotto monument inside the Gunnar Anderson Forest Preserve. Downtown Geneva has refurbished its Victorian-era commercial core, which now runs independent retailers and restaurants out of renovated houses. Time a trip for the Swedish Days festival in late June or the Geneva Classic Car Show in mid-July.
Beach Park
Northeastern Illinois owns the southwestern chunk of Lake Michigan, and Beach Park is the village holding most of the protected stretch. From Beach Park up toward the Wisconsin border, the lakeshore runs through parkland and beach preserves end to end. Illinois Beach Nature Preserve flows into Illinois Beach State Park, which connects north to North Dunes Nature Preserve. Visitors get sandy beaches and dunes interspersed with wildflowers, hiking and biking paths, a 241-site campground, bird-watching, fishing, boating, swimming, and even SCUBA diving. The lodging and lakeside eateries run along Sheridan Road just off the water.
Galena
Galena, in the northwestern corner of the state, runs on stately architecture and the bluffs of the Mississippi River and the Galena River that bisects the town. The Italianate-style home of former president and Civil War general Ulysses S. Grant is one of many 19th-century brick buildings on the National Register here. Galena’s downtown, voted one of America’s Best Main Streets, runs more than 125 individual shops and restaurants along a single strip. Late June brings the Great Galena Balloon Race, when roughly two dozen hot air balloons float across the bluffs at sunrise.
Mount Carroll
About 40 miles south of Galena, Mount Carroll sits just inland from the Mississippi River with a population around 1,500 and a business district that punches harder than that count would suggest. Red brick pavement runs alongside a multi-colored strip of historic buildings now housing cafes, galleries, restaurants, antique shops, and inns. On the edge of town, the 371-seat Timber Lake Playhouse hits its stride in summer with musicals, classic plays, and new productions. West of town along the Mississippi, the 2,500-acre Mississippi Palisades State Park has dense forests, river bluffs, and a campground.
Galesburg
Galesburg is a railroad town that brings the heat to western Illinois. Train enthusiasts can spend an afternoon at the Galesburg Railroad Museum, classical music fans can catch a concert by the Knox-Galesburg Symphony at the Orpheum Theatre, coffee drinkers and shoppers can take to the vendors along downtown’s Seminary Street, and kids will find the Discovery Depot Children’s Museum on Mulberry Street, with hands-on exhibits and art studios. All of this runs year-round but reads better with a warm sun between exhibits and a few minutes on a shaded bench.
Arlington Heights
Arlington Heights is another Chicago suburb, this time to the northwest, that pulls weight in summer. Like St. Charles and Geneva, it gives residents a break from the city while keeping the metro within reach. Parks and golf courses ring the village. Busse Woods has an elk habitat and a winding lake, Deer Grove Forest Preserve handles hiking, fishing, and wildlife viewing, Buffalo Creek Forest Preserve adds a short boardwalk to all of the above, and little Lake Arlington rounds it out. Right next to the train station, the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre is a 329-seat venue running music, comedy, and cabaret. The dining options run from tapas to Thai, pho, Italian, Mexican, and most of the rest of the world map.
Woodstock
About 40 miles northwest of Arlington Heights, near the Wisconsin border, Woodstock (not the New York one) is as cool as the name suggests. The Woodstock Folk Festival has been running annually for nearly forty years, with local and international performers on the main stage at the Woodstock Square Historic District, which has been listed on the National Register since 1982. The Woodstock Opera House, built in 1889, still books shows, and the McHenry County Courthouse, built in 1857, has been converted to a museum, events venue, and historic landmark. After a few blocks the streetscape will start to look familiar. Woodstock was the primary filming location for the Bill Murray classic Groundhog Day.
Summer vacations in America take many forms. The Atlantic and Pacific coasts call hard this time of year. The mountains, just past the last of the skiers, exert a different kind of pull on warm-weather travelers. But the Midwest has an understated case to make, and these eight Illinois towns make it. Community events, one-of-a-kind shops and restaurants, parks aplenty, and even a long stretch of the Great Lakes all await.
Springfield-area nursing homes fined thousands of dollars to end 2025
Multiple Springfield-area nursing homes were fined during the fourth quarter of 2025.
The State Journal-Register
SPRINGFIELD – Four times a year, an Illinois agency releases a report showing violations against nursing homes, and how much the facilities were fined.
The Illinois Department of Public Health recently released its fourth quarter report that spans from October to December of 2025.
Here are facilities within about 45 minutes of Springfield that were fined for violations.
Arcadia Care on the Hill, Springfield
Address: 555 W. Carpenter Road
Fined: $25,000
Survey date: Sept. 17, 2025
What: The facility failed to ensure competency of the Professional Nursing staff when that staff failed to provide one resident in a crisis condition the correct medication. The resident did not receive his glucagon when needed, resulting to his blood sugar dropping to a critical low. The resident was taken to the hospital and subsequently admitted to the Intensive Care Unit.
Arcadia Care on the Hill, Springfield
Address: 555 W. Carpenter Road
Fined: $2,200
Survey date: Oct. 17, 2025
What: The facility failed to send the results of a urinalysis and urine culture in a timely manner to one resident’s urologist. This failure resulted in a nonverbal resident being taken to the emergency room where he was diagnosed with a UTI. IDPH said the failure caused pain, discomfort and invasive interventions during a hospital visit.
After readmission, the facility failed to reassess the resident for warning signs of sepsis for multiple days prior to having a change in condition on Feb. 20, 2024. The resident was again taken to the emergency room and diagnosed with a UTI and sepsis.
Additionally, facility staff failed to complete change in condition documentation which included current vital signs and assessment of two residents reviewed for change in condition. These residents were also taken to the emergency room.
Curtiss Court, Springfield
Address: 2883 S. Taylor St.
Fined: $1,100
Survey date: Aug. 7, 2025
What: IDPH found the facility failed to identify two occurrences of abuse for a resident, failed to verbally notify administrator of abuse allegations per policy, failed to investigate abuse allegations and failed to protect individuals from alleged perpetrator. This failure resulted in the resident feeling targeted and anxious.
The facility also failed to prevent elopement for one resident with a known history of elopement and allergy to bee venom without an EpiPen. This failure resulted in the person walking out of the door unsupervised. Local first responders then found the resident on the asphalt in a parking lot, playing in a puddle of water, around 0.4 miles from the facility and without their EpiPen.
Arcadia Care, Auburn
Address: 304 Maple Ave.
Fined: $2,200
Survey date: Aug. 27, 2025
What: The facility failed to ensure room temperatures were within the heat index/apparent temperature guidelines inside the facility and did not exceed 81 degrees Fahrenheit. The facility also failed to follow their Heat Emergency Policy as residents were not moved out of their rooms when temperatures were reached over 81 degrees for four residents. This failure resulted in residents being left in rooms with the heat index, indicating extreme caution to the residents.
Sunny Acres Nursing Home, Petersburg
Address: 19130 Sunny Acres Road
Fined: $2,200
Survey date: July 26, 2025
What: The facility failed to protect a resident from staff-to-resident mental and verbal abuse for two residents. These findings resulted in a Certified Nursing Assistant yelling at a resident and causing them to feel belittled, to feel like a child, and feel verbally abused, according to IDPH.
Taylorville Care Center, Taylorville
Address: 600 S. Houston St.
Fined: $1,000
Survey date: Aug. 15, 2025
What: The facility failed to conduct pre-employment screening and obtain results of fingerprint checks to determine if employees had a prior criminal history that would disqualify them for employment.
Sunrise Skilled Nursing & Rehab, Virden
Address: 333 S. Wrightsman St.
Fined: $2,200
Survey date: Sept. 4, 2025
Based on interview, observation, and record review, the facility failed to provide supervision to prevent falls for one of three residents reviewed for falls.
Sunrise Skilled Nursing & Rehab, Virden
Address: 333 S. Wrightsman St.
Fined: $25,000
Survey date: Oct. 14, 2025
What: IDPH said the facility failed to properly transfer a resident for appropriate safe transfers. This failure resulted in the resident having a fall, sustaining a right hip fracture and ultimately passing away.
Lincoln Village Healthcare, Lincoln
Address: 2202 N. Kickapoo St.
Fined: $4,400
Survey date: July 20, 2025
What: IDPH found three residents experienced symptoms after not receiving prescribed opioid medication, indicating the health facility failed to perform proper pain assessments and implement pain relieving interventions when residents were not receiving their prescribed medicine.
Lincoln Village Healthcare, Lincoln
Address: 2202 N. Kickapoo St.
Fined: $25,000
Survey date: Sept. 10, 2025
What: IDPH said a resident was taken to the hospital after the facility failed to protect a wound from insect contamination.
Fair Havens Senior Living, Decatur
Address: 1790 S. Fairview Ave.
Fined: $25,000
Survey date: Aug. 13, 2025
What: The facility failed to ensure physician orders were accurately transcribed and implemented for one resident reviewed for blood glucose monitoring. These failures resulted in the resident being hospitalized.
Arc at Hickory Point, Forsyth
Address: 565 W. Marion Ave.
Fined: $25,000
Survey date: Sept. 3, 2025
What: A resident fell and suffered multiple fractured ribs and a collapsed lung. IDPH said the facility failed to ensure fall interventions were in place to prevent the resident from falling.
Tom Ackerman covers breaking news and trending news along with general news for the Springfield State Journal-Register. He can be reached at tackerman@usatodayco.com.
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