Historic Shoemaker School

Shoemaker School began in 1851 when Hammond Schoemaker built a log school on his farm south of Columbia for his children and neighboring families. Schoemaker was the only doctor along the Cahokia-Kaskaskia Trail, a major pioneer thoroughfare across Illinois Territory. In 1867, Fred Koch Construction built a new brick school building on the farm for $800. In 1891, under a new school law, the one-room school organized as Schoemaker District #4. The school became part of the Columbia School District in 1950, but because its directors had already contracted Marian Maag to teach the 1950-51 term before consolidation, the old school remained open for one final year. In 1992, the building was moved to its present site to avoid demolition caused by the widening of Illinois 3. The city of Columbia acquired it in 2009, and it has since been transformed into the Monroe County Welcome Center and associated facilities.

Columbia, Illinois · United States