Letter to L.P. Frohardt from the Granite City School Board. Dated June 14, 1897.
On letterhead from the St. Louis Stamping Company, which was owned by Granite City founders Frederick G. and William F. Niedringhaus. L.P. Frohardt was Granite City’s first superintendent of schools and Frohardt School bears his name. Also of note, the man listed on the letterhead as treasurer of St. Louis Stamping Company, George W. Niedringhaus, had a school (and our temporary home) named after him, too.
The content of the letter is transcribed below:
“Prof. L.P. Frohardt
At the meeting of the Granite City Public School Board you have been appointed the Principal of the school for a term of 9 months and your salary to be at the rate of $85.00 Eighty five Dollars per month on conditions that the St. Louis Stamping pays no money to you for school services and to teach night school and music as the Board may direct. Hoping this will be satisfactory to you.
We remain yours
Granite City School Board
W.H. Niedringhaus
sec”
History of the Granite City Fire Department (1987)
This speech was given to the Old Six Mile Historical Society in Granite City, Illinois in 1987. The speakers are Rich Woods and John Miller of the Granite City Fire Department, discussing the history of the GCFD and the ambulance service. Jim and Sharon Engelke of the Old Six Mile Historical Society donated the original cassette of this recording to the Six Mile Regional Library District in 2013.
Did you ever wonder where Nameoki Township or Nameoki Road got their names?
From the book “Indian Place Names in Illinois” by Virgil J. Vogel, published 1963:
Nameoki (township, Madison Co.; also the name of a village now absorbed by Granite City)
The supposed manner in which this name was given is furnished by a local history:
The word Nameoki is of Indian origin, and signifies smoky. It was first given to a station on the Indianapolis & St. Louis railroad by A. A. Talmadge, while a conductor on that road, and afterward to a township.
The name does not, however, mean “smoky.” It appears to come from some New England dialect, most probably Mohegan. J. H. Trumbull, who cited a number of New England place names of similar construction, believed it came from “nama-ohke” or “nama-auke,” and meant “fishing place.” The Indian form and meaning of the name would be nearly the same in our region.
Like Metamora, this name may be a result of the popularity J. A. Stone’s play, “Metamora, or the Last of the Wampanoags.” In this drama, “Nahmeokee” is the wife of Metamora, or King Philip.”
Food and Price List of Madison County Emergency Relief Committee Effective July 1, 1934
The maximum price for bacon can be no more than 17-cents per pound… in 1934. Take a look at the Food and Price List of Madison County Emergency Relief Committee, which was in effect nearly 80 years ago.
This document was originally donated to the Old Six Mile Historical Society by Mildred Branding in December 1986.
A publicity and ad campaign poster for film cowboy and Granite City native Whip Wilson, circa 1951.
This poster was donated to SMRLD by the Old Six Mile Historical Society.
Wilson Park Ice Rink Brochure
Our favorite part: “Q. What will it cost me? A. 1%, or less, of your total tax bill. . . . The average home valued at $15,000 would pay about $3.20 a year—little more than the price of a carton of cigarettes.”
