The Sterling education history dates back to 1837 when the "three R's" were administered by Mrs. Eliphalet B. Worthington, the first school teacher in Sterling.

The year was 1837 and the earlier children of the pioneer settlers in the area were without the educational process for some three years before Mrs. Worthington accepted the office.

The Sterling history indicates the first frame school building built on a lot near Broadway and paid for by the citizens of Harrisburg, the name of the town at that time. Later, a brick school house wsa built and then school districts formed and on Feb. 14, 1846, and the the first school officials were elected in the office of Hugh Wallace, E.B. Worthington was elected school treasurer and his bond was set at $100. Jesse Pensore was appointed treasurer in 1854 with a bond of $8,000.

In 1855, L.L. Emmons and Henry Tuttle and Fred Sackett were elected trustees of District No. 3, which was divided, the second ward retaining the number three, the first ward being number seven and the third ward District No. 8. School was held in the first ward building and in the old courthouse until 1860, when a two story brick building was built at 15th Ave. and East 5th Street a a cost of $3,000.

The first directors of the district were R. DeGarmo, J.E. Cobby and George W. Brewer, the latter holding his office for 33 and one-half years and was a leader in the movement to consolidate his district with that of the second ward in 1898. The first ward school continued to grow and by 1902 the building was so crowded some of the pupils were provided temporary quarters in the old enclosed pavilion which stood in nearby Lincoln Park for many years.

In 1906, bonds were sold in the amount of $10,000 to finance an addition to the old Lincoln School. The old Lincoln School was demolished around 1950 and a new school building completed in 1951.

The old second ward school (Central School), was erected in 1867 and was a three story brick veneer erected in 1886, while on the northeast corner of the square was a small frame house used as a janitor's residence. The larger building was devoted to the grades and the smaller building was the high school. The absorbing of the high school by the Sterling-Coloma Township high school (now the Sterling Township High School), in 1898 left the smaller building available for use by the grades. In the fall of 1898, the third floor was abandoned and the grades moved to the smaller building.

In the Central School yard at one time was a granite sundial donated in the name of Alfred Byaliss, who was superintendent of the second ward schools from 1874 to 1895. The monument was dedicated in ceremonies held Aug. 28, 1912. Another monument, still a landmark in Sterling today, is the stone in the Central School schoolyard which marks the place President Abraham Lincoln spoke while visiting in Sterling on July 18, 1856. The old Central School building was demolished and replaced by a new structure in 1921 which remains today.

WALLACE SCHOOL

The first Wallace School was a brown, dingy, one-story frame building erected in 1856. It had but two rooms and an entry. As the school district grew, frame buildings were added. In 1865 an election was held for the purchase of more ground and this addition gave the school the entire block. Another election in 1874 paved the way for a building not to exceed $25,000. In 1889, additional bonds were approved and a primary building for four rooms was added to the main structure.

In 1884 the school was named "Wallace School" as a tribute to Hugh and James Wallace, father and son, who had long been identified with its growth and development. On April 23, 1909, the Wallace School was partly destroyed by fire and then reconstructed. In 1927 both of the old buildings were razed and the present school building erected at a cost of $95,000.

STERLING HIGH SCHOOL

The necessity of a better high school was realized by the community and after an election April 11, 1896, approved the establishment of a township high school. Those first members of the high school board included C.A. Wetherbee, the Rev. E. Brown, James Platt, F.W. Wheeler and W.A. Sanborn.

The first board selected a site for the building which was approved during an election Aug. 1, 1896. The site was the grounds of the old Catholic church at the corner of 5th Ave. and 4th St. In another election May 11, 1897, voters approved the issuing of $40,000 in bonds for the new building. Sterling High School opened in the fall of 1898 with almost 200 students.

The first section of the current Sterling high school complex was built in 1949 and an addition in 1963. The former building was used as a junior high school before it was razed and today, yet, the site of the first high school is a vacant lot. While the original 1898 high school opened with 200 students, for comparison, during the 1975-76 school year nearl 1800 students were enrolled.

Illinois - "Our Way"